Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, section 85

Contravention of prohibition relating to public offer of securities

Part VI Official Listing

F673 (1). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F673 (2). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(3)A person who contravenes [F674 regulation 12 of the Public Offers and Admissions to Trading Regulations 2024 (prohibition of public offers of relevant securities)F674] is guilty of an offence and liable—

(a)on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months or a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or both;

(b)on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or a fine or both.

(4)A contravention of [F675 regulation 12 of the Public Offers and Admissions to Trading Regulations 2024F675] is actionable, at the suit of a person who suffers loss as a result of the contravention, subject to the defences and other incidents applying to actions for breach of statutory duty.

F676 (5). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F676 (6). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F676 (6A). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F676 (7). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F677 (8). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .F671]

Read section 85 in the full Act → Cases (4)

Cases considering section 85 (4)

Financial Services Authority v Sinaloa Gold Plc & Ors

[2011] EWHC 144 (Ch) · 25 January 2011

The court found a triable issue that shares had been offered without an approved prospectus and that Mr Hoover may have been knowingly concerned in the contravention (see paras [20]; [22]).

Alexander Gorbachev v Andrey Grigoryevich Guriev

[2024] EWHC 2174 (Comm) · 26 September 2024

Applies the statutory prohibition on offering securities to the public without an approved and available prospectus. The provision formed part of the court’s assessment of the legal significance of accurate beneficial-ownership disclosures in the PhosAgro IPO prospectus (see paras [243]-[249]).

ClientEarth, R (on the application of) v Financial Conduct Authority

[2023] EWHC 3301 (Admin) · 13 December 2023Defines

Confirms the statutory requirement that transferable securities generally cannot be offered to the public without an approved prospectus. (see para [8])

What each judgment says about section 85 is in the case-law panel in the full Act.

Explanatory note

177.This section makes it a criminal offence for a person to offer new securities to the public in the United Kingdom before a prospectus has been published.  This offence only applies where listing rules require the publication of a prospectus before particular new securities are admitted to the official list.

All the explanatory notes for the Act

Amendments and notes

8 notes from legislation.gov.uk

Amendments

  1. F671Ss. 84-87R and cross-headings substituted for ss. 84-87 (1.7.2005) by The Prospectus Regulations 2005 (S.I. 2005/1433), reg. 2(1), Sch. 1 para. 5
  2. F672S. 85 heading heading substituted (30.1.2024 for specified purposes, 19.1.2026 in so far as not already in force) by The Public Offers and Admissions to Trading Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/105), reg. 2(2)(3), Sch. 3 para. 6(2) (with regs. 48-50); S.I. 2025/1078, reg. 5(b) (with reg. 12)
  3. F673S. 85(1)(2) omitted (30.1.2024 for specified purposes, 19.1.2026 in so far as not already in force) by virtue of The Public Offers and Admissions to Trading Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/105), reg. 2(2)(3), Sch. 3 para. 6(3) (with regs. 48-50); S.I. 2025/1078, reg. 5(b) (with reg. 12)
  4. F674Words in s. 85(3) substituted (30.1.2024 for specified purposes, 19.1.2026 in so far as not already in force) by The Public Offers and Admissions to Trading Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/105), reg. 2(2)(3), Sch. 3 para. 6(4) (with regs. 48-50); S.I. 2025/1078, reg. 5(b) (with reg. 12)
  5. F675Words in s. 85(4) substituted (30.1.2024 for specified purposes, 19.1.2026 in so far as not already in force) by The Public Offers and Admissions to Trading Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/105), reg. 2(2)(3), Sch. 3 para. 6(5) (with regs. 48-50); S.I. 2025/1078, reg. 5(b) (with reg. 12)
  6. F676S. 85(5)-(7) omitted (30.1.2024 for specified purposes, 19.1.2026 in so far as not already in force) by virtue of The Public Offers and Admissions to Trading Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/105), reg. 2(2)(3), Sch. 3 para. 6(6) (with regs. 48-50); S.I. 2025/1078, reg. 5(b) (with reg. 12)
  7. F677S. 85(8) omitted (31.12.2020) by virtue of The Prospectus (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/1234), regs. 1(4), 4 (with savings in S.I. 2019/680, reg. 11 (as amended by S.I. 2019/1234, reg. 29(2))); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1) this amendment is subject to savings and/or transitional provisions, see the commentary.

Modifications

  1. C309S. 85(3)(4) applied (25.2.2026 for specified purposes) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Cryptoassets) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 2026/102), regs. 1(2)(3), 16 (with regs. 53-56)