The Norwegian Minister of Finance, Per-Kristian Foss, has taken delivery of a report into the question of whether Norway should permit domestic investors to hold and register shares in nominee accounts.
The issue of nominee registration, which has been under discussion in Norway for over twenty years, was addressed by a committee appointed in April 2004. The committee, chaired by Professor of Law Dr.Finn Arnesen, included representatives of the securities industry, plus industry associations.
Charged with evaluating the merits of nominee registration, the committee has recommended that Norwegian investors not be allowed to register holdings in Norwegian companies in nominee accounts. Its report argues that a mixture of factors – primarily transparency of ownership structure, and control of Norwegian industry – lay behind the decision. For domestic investors, current rules will remain in place.
Nor has the Committee proposed major changes in the scope for foreigners to use nominee registration, though it did suggest the value of the central registry could be improved by permitting companies to receive regular updates on the identity of approved foreign nominees. The Committee has recommended a clarification and tightening of the rules in this field.
Custodians are disappointed. “The Norwegian Market, although efficient, is the least efficient of the Nordic markets and also the by far most expensive post trade market in the region,” says a spokesman for SEB in Oslo. “A practice for nominee registration in line with Sweden would considerably improve the framework within which custodians must operate in the market. It would increase price efficiency, since domestic as well as foreign institutional activity would not need to be individualized to the current extent.”