THE TRANSFORMATION OF GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) Gerasimos Georgopoulos Head of Company Law & Business Registry (GEMI) Unit General Secretariat of Commerce & Consumer Protection Directorate General for Market – Directorate of Enterprises March 14, 2019

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) - HISTORY  56 REGIONAL REGISTRIES FOR S.A.’s  54 COURT REGISTRIES for LTD’s & PERSONAL COMPANIES  LOCAL (PAPERBASED) MANAGEMENT IN REGIONAL REGISTRIES (PERFECTURES) AND COURT’s  LIMITED PUBLICITY  EFFORT FOR FINDING INFORMATION GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) - HISTORY1

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – HISTORY - START UP PROCEDURE (PARTNERS)  NOTARIES  TAX AUTHORITY  REGIONAL COURT’s  REGIONAL REGISTRIES  SOCIAL SECURITY ORGANISATION  PUBLICITY TO GOVERNMENT GAZETTE  13 PROCEDURES - 5 PUBLIC BODIES - 10 DAYS TIME  LACK OF IT SYSTEM (ELECTRONIC BUSINESS REGISTER) GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – HISTORY - START UP PROCEDURE (PARTNERS)2

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) - HISTORY  LACK OF QUALITY DATA  LACK OF CRUCIAL DATA FOR IDENTIFING THE BUSINESS ENVIROMENT (CAPITAL, ACTIVITIES, SECTORS, REGIONAL ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES)  WRONG POLICY DECISION GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) - HISTORY3

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – FIRST WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( )  NEW INFORMATION SYSTEM GEMI IS REALITY (04/04/2011)  MASSIVE DATA ARE INSERTED TO GEMI FROM OTHER GOVERNMENT BASES (TAX AUTHORITY, CHAMBERS, ERMIS etc.)  MASSIVE DIGITALISATION PROCESS STARTED. ANY ACT OF COMPANIES KEPT IN DIGITAL FORM IN NEW GEMI IT SYSTEM  THE SELF SIGNING PROCESS FOR ANY KIND OF COMPANY STARTED FOR ONE YEAR PERIOD (END 2011 TO END 2012)  FROM 01/01/2013 GEMI PASS TO DIGITAL ERA GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – FIRST WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( )4

 A NEW KIND OF CAPITAL COMPANY (IKE-PRIVATE CAPITAL COMPANY) WAS INSERTED IN THE COMPANY LAW WITHOUT USING THE BODY OF NOTARIES (2012)  A NEW GOVERNMENT SERVICE CREATED THE ONE STOP SHOP (OSS) THAT UNIFIED ALL THE PROCEDURES IN ONE POINT  NOTARIES START TO ACT AS OSS AND SPECIAL DEPARTMENTS OF CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE TRANSFORMED TO OSS (3.000 NOTARIES & 56 SPECIAL UNITS) GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – FIRST WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( )5

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – SECOND WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( )  2014 STARTED THE E-APPLICATION FOR COMPANIES (PROCEDURE BECAME OBLIGATORY FROM 01/01/2015)  EVERY ACT (GENERAL MEETINGS, DECISIONS OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS, FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, CHANGES IN ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION etc.) ARE CHANELLED THROUGH GEMI IT SYSTEM  FROM 01/01/2015 GEMI STOPPED TO ACCEPT PAPER COPIES  GEMI IS THE NEW e-GOVERNMENT GAZETTE FOR COMPANIES GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – SECOND WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( )6

 E APPLICATION PROCEDURE CONNECTED WITH E-PAYMENTS PROCEDURE (e-banking payments, credit/debit card, other means of e- payments)  FULL REVENUES TRACKING  FULL PERFORMANCE TRACKING OF SERVICES AND EMPLOYESS  TRACKING OF THE APPLICATION IN GEMI SYSTEM FOR THE COMPANIES  ERROR IDENTIFICATION GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – SECOND WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( )7

ADVANTAGES OF THE ONLINE REGISTRATION PROCESS (E-APPLICATION) FOR THE COMPANIES: 1.QUICK REGISTRATION TO GEMI 2.IMMEDIATE UPDATE OF THE GEMI SYSTEM AND UPDATE (REAL TIME) COMMERCIAL PUBLICITY 3.THE PUBLIC BODIES INFORMED ABOUT COMPANY’s CHANGES 4.THE THIRD PARTIES BY CHECKING GEMI WEBPAGE IFORMED FOR THE NEW ACTS OF THE COMPANY GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – SECOND WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( )8

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – THIRD WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( ) – NEW e-OSS  A NEW LAW INSERTED IN COMPANY LAW FOR START UP PROCEDURE  THE NEW e-OSS  AUTHENTICATION METHOD THROUGH e-IDAS  USE OF DIGITAL OR ELECTRONIC SIGNATURE  USE OF MODELS ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION (NO DOCUMENTS AT ALL)  REAL TIME REGISTRATION OF COMPANY NAME, REGISTRATION TO GEMI, TO SOCIAL SECURITY ORGANIZATION & TO TAX AUTHORITY  EVERYBODY CAN ACT AS AN e-OSS  THE COMPANY START ITS ACTIVITIES IMMEDIATELY GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – THIRD WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( ) – NEW e-OSS 9

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – THIRD WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( ) – NEW e-OSS SIMPLE STEPS TO START YOUR COMPANY : 1.INSERT COMPANIES DATA AND FOUNDERS DATA (DATA ARE VERIFIED THROUGH GOVERNMENT DATA BASES) 2.CHOOSE THE MODEL ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION (OF ANY TYPE OF COMPANY) 3.BOOK THE COMPANY’s NAME 4.ACCEPT THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS 5.PAY THE RELEVANT FEES 6.START IMMEDIATELY THE BUSINESS ACTIVITY GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – THIRD WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( ) – NEW e-OSS 10

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – THIRD WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( ) – NEXT STEPS  HEAVY INTERCONNECTIONS WITH OTHER GOVERNMENT IT SYSTEMS (THROUGH EXTENDED WSDL’s)  INCREASE OF OPEN DATA  USE OF NEW TOOLS (XBRL etc.)  HEAVY STATISTICS  INCREASE OF CYBER SECURITY  INCREASE THE LEVEL OF EDUCATION FOR THE PERSONEL OF COMPETENT AUTHORITIES  IMPACT ASSESMENT FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – THIRD WAVE OF TRANSFORMATION ( ) – NEXT STEPS 11

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – TYPE OF COMPANIES REGISTERED LEGAL FORMS IN GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – TYPE OF COMPANIES12 CAPITAL COMPANIESPERSONAL COMPANIES OTHERS S.A.GENERAL PARTNERSHIP COOPERATIVE L.T.D.LIMITED PARTNERSHIPEUROPEAN COOPERATIVE PRIVATE COMPANY (Ι.Κ.Ε.) LIMITED PARTNERSHIP BY SHARES CIVIL ASSOCIATIONS EUROPEAN INTEREST GROUP SOLE PROPRIETORSHIPS EUROPEAN COMPANYSOCIETIES JOINT VENTURES

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – NUMBERS OF ACTIVE COMPANIES IN GEMI TYPE OF COMPANY NUMBER OF ACTIVE COMPANIES TYPE OF COMPANYNUMBER OF ACTIVE COMPANIES S.A SOLE PROPRIETORSHIPS L.T.D COOPERATIVES (TOTAL) 610 P.C SOCIETIES1.424 GENERAL PARTNERSHIP JOINT VENTURES661 LIMITED PARTNERSHIP UNION OF PERSONS 58 CIVIL ECONOMIC SOCIETIES 1.693VARIOUS OTHERS1.919 TOTALS GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – NUMBERS OF ACTIVE COMPANIES IN GEMI13

NUMBERS OF START UPS vs DEREGISTRATIONS 14

GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – LESSONS FROM TRANFORMATIONS STRONG RESISTANCE TO CHANGE FROM ALL INTERESTED PARTIES (NOTARIES, LAWYERS, PUBLIC BODIES, LOCAL REGISTRIES, MINISTRIES, COMPANIES, etc.) UNWILLIGNESS OF STAKEHOLDERS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE TRANSFORMATION PROCEDURE STRONG CRITICISM THROUGH THE PERIOD OF TRANSFORMATION COMMITMENT TO REFORMS HAD EXCELLENT RESULTS FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION TOTAL SIMPLIFICATION OF COMPANY LAW AND BUSINESS REGISTER PROCEDURES TOTAL ACCEPTANCE OF TRANSFORMATIONS FROM THE COMPANIES GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI) – LESSONS FROM TRANFORMATIONS15

HVALA ZA VAŠU POZORNU GREEK BUSINESS REGISTER (GEMI)16