Investors with a stake of 10% or more in a company will have to make their intentions known or face losing their voting rights under draft legislation drawn up by the finance ministry.

Shareholders will have to disclose whether they intend to take an active role in business strategy, whether they plan to reduce or increase their stake in the company and whether they propose the appointment of new management board members.
The draft law is based on the findings of the Frijns Commission which looked into the role of shareholders last year.
But finance minister Wouter Bos has deviated from the Commission’s recommendations in a number of areas, reports the Financieele Dagblad.
For example, the Commission called for shareholders to disclose their intentions if they own 3% of a company. Bos has upped the figure to 10% which is in line with international practice.
But under the new law, shareholders will have to declare their shareholding to the financial regulator AFM once this reaches 3% rather than the current threshold of 5%. Further reporting will be necessary if the shareholding is increased to 5% and 10%.
The draft legislation says too that a company is entitled to know the identity of its shareholders.