New Short Selling Rules Effective From 1 November 2012

New rules on notifying short positions in listed companies will come into force on 1 November 2012. A position has to be notified to the AFM when the position reaches or exceeds a "notification threshold". This threshold is 0.2% of the company's issued share capital and each subsequent 0.1% above this. When a "disclosure threshold" is reached or exceeded, information about the position must be made public via the registers of the AFM. The disclosure threshold is initially 0.5% of the company's issued share capital and, subsequently, each 0.1% above this. Net short positions in government debt must also be notified to the AFM when they reach certain thresholds. The notification requirements do not apply to market makers and liquidity providers, provided that they registered with the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM) before 1 October 2012.