Cheshire and Nationwide Building Societies: merger confirmation hearing
12th November 2008The Financial Services Authority (FSA) today announced the arrangements for the hearing of the proposed transfer of the engagements of Cheshire Building Society to Nationwide Building Society.
The confirmation hearing will be held at Town Hall, Macclesfield, Cheshire, SK10 1AH on Thursday 20 November 2008 starting at 11.00 am.
The purpose of such hearings is to give interested parties an opportunity to make oral representations and to enable the FSA to make such inquiry as it considers necessary, both of the societies and of those making oral representations.
Fifty persons have made written representations to the FSA and six notices of intention to make oral representations have been received. Only those persons who have given the FSA due notice of their intention to do so may make oral representations at the hearing.
There is a presumption that the hearing will be open to the general public and to the media, but those making representations and the societies themselves will have the right to ask that all or part of it should not be public. Therefore the hearing will begin in private to give an opportunity for objections to be made to holding the proceedings in public. If the FSA does not uphold any such objection, the public and the media will be admitted before the main proceedings begin.
No photography, video or audio recording will be permitted during the hearing.
At the end of the hearing the FSA will reserve judgement. It will publish a written decision, including its findings on the points made in the written and oral representations, at a later date. A detailed procedural Guidance Note covering the conduct of the hearing has been sent to those who have made representations.
