Ref. Ares(2022)5681974 - 10/08/2022
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR FINANCIAL STABILITY, FINANCIAL SERVICES AND CAPITAL
MARKETS UNION
The Director-General
Brussels,
fisma.a.2(2022)5728766
Ms Esther Menhard
Schönhauser Allee 6/7
10119 Berlin
Germany
by e-mail: ask+request-11465-
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxx
Subject:
Your application for access to documents – GESTDEM 2022/3537
Dear Ms Menhard,
We refer to your request dated 20 June 2022, in which you make a request for access to
documents, registered on 20 June 2022 under the above-mentioned reference number, in
which you ask for:
“All documents related to a meeting between the cabinet of Commissioner McGuinness,
cabinet of executive Vice-President Dombrovskis and Binance France on 22/04/2022. My
request includes e-mails, meeting minutes and other documents related to the meeting.”
The Commission services have identified the following documents:
1. E-mail meeting request - Ares(2022)3099644
2. Minutes meeting Binance 22 April 2022 - Ares(2022)3264249
Having examined the documents requested under the provisions of Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001 regarding public access to documents, I have come to the conclusion that
these documents may be partially disclosed.
Following an examination of document number 1 under the provisions of Regulation (EC)
No 1049/2001 regarding public access to documents and taking into account the opinion of
the third party, from which the document originates, I regret to inform you that the full
access to this document cannot be granted, as disclosure is prevented by the exception to the
right of access laid down in the first indent of Article 4(2) of this Regulation.
Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
The originator of the document (Binance) has been consulted in accordance with Article
4(4) of Regulation 1049/2001 with a view to assessing whether an exception provided for
in Article 4 of that Regulation is applicable.
Binance has objected the disclosure of the full text of the document because “
the
implementation measures referred to therein are highly commercially sensitive in terms
of their proprietary risk management procedures”.
The first indent of Article 4(2) provides that:
“The institutions shall refuse access to
a document where disclosure would undermine the protection of: - commercial interests
of a natural or legal person, including intellectual property……..
unless there is an
overriding public interest in disclosure.”
The exception laid down in Article 4(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 applies unless
there is an overriding public interest in disclosure of the document. You make no mention
of such an interest in your request, and we have not been able to identify it. For this
reason, the access to the relevant part of this document is prevented under Article 4(2) of
Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001.
Accordingly, partial access to the requested document should be granted.
In accordance with Article 4(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, personal data have
been redacted in both documents 1 and 2.
Article 9(1)(b) of the Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 on the protection of natural persons
with regard to the processing of personal data does not allow the transmission of these
personal data, except if you prove that it is necessary to have the data transmitted to you
for a specific purpose in the public interest and where there is no reason to assume that
the legitimate interests of the data subject might be prejudiced. In your request, you do
not express any particular interest to have access to these personal data or put forward
any arguments to establish the necessity to have the data transmitted for a specific
purpose in the public interest.
Consequently, I conclude that, pursuant to Article 4(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No
1049/2001, access cannot be granted to the personal data contained in the requested
documents, as the need to obtain access thereto for a purpose in the public interest has
not been substantiated and there is no reason to think that the legitimate interests of the
individuals concerned would not be prejudiced by disclosure of the personal data
concerned.
Please also note that document 2 (the minutes) was drawn up for internal use under the
responsibility of the relevant staff member. The document solely reflects the author’s
interpretation of the interventions made and does not set out any official position of the
third parties, to which it refers, who were not consulted on its content. It does not reflect
the position of the Commission and cannot be quoted as such.
In case you would disagree with this position, you are entitled, in accordance with Article
7(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001, to submit a confirmatory application requesting
the Commission to review this position.
Such a confirmatory application should be addressed within 15 working days upon
receipt of this letter to the Secretariat-General of the Commission at the following
address:
2
European Commission
Secretariat-General
Unit C.1. ‘Transparency, Document Management and Access to Documents’
BERL 7/076
B-1049 Brussels,
or by email t
o: xxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxxxxx.xx
Yours sincerely,
Electronically signed
John BERRIGAN
Attachments: E-mail meeting request - Ares(2022)3099644 and
Minutes meeting Binance 22 April 2022 - Ares(2022)3264249.
3
Electronically signed on 10/08/2022 14:51 (UTC+02) in accordance with Article 11 of Commission Decision (EU) 2021/2121