State aid rules have an important role in the European Union’s competition law. State interference in the common market is limited. State aid is generally prohibited, however there are certain exceptions. State aid measure is prohibited when following features are cumulative met: the existence of an undertaking, the imputability of the measure to the State, its financing through State resources, the granting of an advantage, the selectivity of the measure and its effect on competition and trade between Member States. European Commission assess compatibility of the state aid measure with internal market. In four cases that we analysed in the Master’s thesis, European Commission decided that the measures are compatible with internal market or that the measures do not constitute state aid.
Recapitalisation is one of the forms of the state aid and it is mainly used for restructuring undertakings in economic difficulties. The process of recapitalisation is complex due to different types of business entities and variety of assets; money, bonds, claims etc. A detailed analyses of the relevant legislation revealed that there is no duty for shareholders to recapitalise their company. Therefore there is no conflict between such duty and state aid rules.
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