Corporate Finance

and Investment
Seminar 5 & 6
Dr. Martin T. Holi
Jacobs University 2019
 Corporate Finance
Registers

Business Registers

Dr. Martin Holi (Corporate Finance and Investment) 2

 Corporate Finance
Terms

• Commercial Registration – Gewerbeanmeldung

• Registers of
companies – Handelsregister
cooperatives - Genossenschaftsregister
partnerships - Partnerschaftsregister
associations - Vereinsregister

Dr. Martin Holi (Corporate Finance and Investment)

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 Corporate Finance
Official Company Registers

Commercial register
• mandatory for all trading businesses
• excl. freelancing business
• Non-public register
• Online registration possible
• https://www.service.bremen.de/sixcms/detail.php?gsid=bremen128.c.23.de

Dr. Martin Holi (Corporate Finance and Investment)

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 Corporate Finance
Official Company Registers

• Registers of
companies – Handelsregister
cooperatives - Genossenschaftsregister
partnerships - Partnerschaftsregister
associations – Vereinsregister
• One website for all registers
www.handelsregister.de

Dr. Martin Holi (Corporate Finance and Investment)

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 Corporate Finance
Official Company Registers

www.handelsregister.de
• Free information:
 firm, address, capital
 Traditional information (VÖ) currently not
available
• Chargeable information (registration required):
 Shareholders list, shareholders agreement
• Direct access at courts possible at no costs
Dr. Martin Holi (Corporate Finance and Investment)
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 Corporate Finance
Case Study

Jacobs University Bremen gGmbH

• https://www.jacobs-university.de/
• https://www.jacobs-university.de/impressum
• Amtsgericht Bremen, HRB 18117

Unique Identifier:
• Court & Registertyp & Number
• Bremen HRB 18117
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 Corporate Finance
Official Company Registers

www.handelsregisterbekanntmachungen.de
• Additional information
 company objectives, management
 changes

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 Corporate Finance
Official Company Registers

www.bundesanzeiger.de
• financial accounts of all Handelsregister-
registered German companies
• level of disclosure depend on company size
• small companies (with less then 10 employees)
excluded

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 Corporate Finance
Official Company Registers

www.unternehmensregister.de
• pay-as-you-go register
• contains all information from handelsregister.de
• financial accounts from small companies
available (4,50 €)

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 Corporate Finance
Private Registers

www.northdata.de
• Connecting data
• Premium Services

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 Corporate Finance
UK Official Registers

Companies House
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/companies-house

• all information in one place

• free of charge

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 Corporate Finance
UK Case Study

OakNorth
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OakNorth_Bank
https://www.oaknorth.com/

Registered in England No. 08595042

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 Corporate Finance
European Registers
Business registers in Member States
• https://e-justice.europa.eu/content_business_registers_in_member_states-106-en.do?init=true

• all EU member states

• access to company registers on country level

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