Topic Information obligations for issuers Influence on prices
Article from Issuer Guidelines published by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority
A condition for a criminal offence under sections 120 (15) no. 2 and 119 (1) no. 1 of the WpHG is that the criminal act has influenced the stock exchange or market price of a financial instrument. If there is no evidence of any influence on the stock exchange price, there may be either an attempt to commit a criminal offence or an administrative offence.
The stock exchange price is influenced if it is artificially – i.e. compared with the actual economic conditions on the market – increased, reduced or merely stabilised. The decisive factor is that the manipulative act causes the influence on the price. Disseminating or withholding information must therefore be at least partly responsible for the price change or stabilisation. This will require comparisons with the previous price trends and turnover, and the price and turnover movements for the security concerned on the date of the criminal act to be used as indications.
