Commentary Part 17: a Company’s Share Capital Chapter 10: Reduction of Share Capital Section 643: Solvency statement
958.A solvency statement made under section 643 must be made by all of the directors. If one or more of the directors is unable or unwilling to make this statement, the company will not be able to use the solvency statement procedure to effect a reduction of capital unless the dissenting director or directors resign (in which case the solvency statement must be made by all of the remaining directors).
959.The solvency statement must be in the “prescribed form” and “prescribed” in this context means prescribed by the Secretary of State in regulations or by order made under the Act.
960.The solvency statement must state the date on which it is made and the name of each director of the company but there is no requirement that the directors must all be in the same location when they make this statement. The registrar will be able to make rules under section 1068 as to the form of the solvency statement.
961.In forming their opinions, the directors must take account of all the company’s liabilities including contingent and prospective liabilities (see subsection (2)). So, in circumstances where a company holds redeemable preference shares which, for the purposes of the accounting standards that applied to the company on the date that the directors made the solvency statement, are treated as liabilities, a proposed redemption or purchase of these shares in the relevant period should be treated as a contingent or prospective liability.
962.If the directors make a solvency statement without having reasonable grounds for the opinions expressed in it, and that statement is subsequently delivered to the registrar, every director who is in default commits an offence (see subsection (4)). The penalty for this offence is set out in subsection (5).