Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 54 Part 1.djvu/869

 54 STAT.] T76i CONG. , 3D SESS.-CH. 686-AUG. 22, 1940 to the public and issues face-amount certificates only to the holders of certificates previously issued pursuant to an obligation expressed or implied in such certificates. (h) It shall be unlawful for any registered face-amount certificate company which does not maintain the minimum certificate reserve on all its outstanding face-amount certificates issued prior to the effective date of this Act, in an aggregate amount calculated and adjusted as provided in section 28, to declare or pay any dividends on the shares of such company for or during any calendar year which shall exceed one-third of the net earnings for the next preceding calendar year or which shall exceed 10 per centum of the aggregate net earnings for the next preceding five calendar years, whichever is the lesser amount, or any dividend which shall have been forbidden by the Commission pursuant to the provision of the next sentence of this paragraph. At least thirty days before such company shall declare, pay, or distribute any dividend, it shall give the Commission written notice of its inten- tion to declare, pay, or distribute the same; and if at any time it shall appear to the Commission that the declaration, payment or distribu- tion of any dividend for or during any calendar year might impair the financial integrity of such company or its ability to meet its lia- bilities under its outstanding face-amount certificates, it may by order forbid the declaration, distribution, or payment of any such dividend. 835 Declaration of divi- dends. Prior notice to Com- mission. BANKRUPTCY OF FACE-AMOUNT CERTIFICATE COMPANIES SEc. 29. (a) Section 67 of an Act entitled "An Act to establish a uniform system of bankruptcy throughout the United States", approved July 1, 1898, as amended, is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: "f. (1) For the purposes of, and exclusively applicable to, this subdivision f (a) 'debtor' shall mean a face-amount certificate com- pany as defined in section 4 of the Investment Company Act of 1940; (b) 'face-amount certificate' shall mean a face-amount certificate as defined in section 2 of the Investment Company Act of 1940; (c) 'depositary' is a person or State agency with whom securities or other property of a debtor is deposited or to whom property of a debtor is transferred, in trust or otherwise, pursuant to the requirements of a State law or an agreement by the debtor providing for the distribu- tion of such property or its proceeds to creditors or security holders of the debtor in the event of the insolvency of the debtor or under other specified circumstances; (d) 'deposit creditor' is a creditor who, under the provisions of a State law or agreement providing for a deposit with or transfer to a depositary, has rights as to the securi- ties or property so deposited or transferred which exceed the rights of a general creditor; and (e) 'State agency' is an official or agency of a State designated to act as depositary or to distribute property, or the proceeds of property held by a depositary. "(2) Every deposit or transfer of securities or other property made by or on behalf of a debtor with or to any depositary for the benefit or protection of or to secure the holder of any security sold by or on behalf of the debtor on or after January 1, 1941, shall be voidable as against the trustee of such debtor if the property of the estate is insufficient for the full payment and discharge of all claims on account of all face-amount certificates sold by or on behalf of the debtor, and such deposit or transfer and every lien created thereby shall thereupon be avoided by the trustee subject to the provisions of paragraph 3 of this subdivision f. 't(3) In the event any deposit or transfer described in paragraph 2 of this subdivision f shall be avoided the trustee shall segregate Liens and fraudu- lent transfers. 30 Stat. 564. 11.S.C. 107; Supp. V, i 107. Definitions. "Debtor." Ante, p. 799. "Face-amount cer- tificate." Ante, p. 792. "Depositary. " "Deposit creditor." "State agency." Deposits, etc., for benefit of security holders, voidability. Segregation of prop- erty.

�