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22 1942

CENTRAL BANK ACT, 1942

PART V.

Deposits by Bankers.

Construction of references to holding oneself out as a banker.

41. —(1) For the purposes of this Part of this Act, a person shall (save as is otherwise provided by the next following sub-section of this section) be deemed to hold himself out as a banker—

(a) if, being a company or other corporate body carrying on any business whatsoever, the name of such body includes any of the words “bank”, “banker”, or “banking” or any word which is a variant or a derivative of any of those words, or

(b) if, being an individual, he carries on any business whatsoever under a name or title (other than his own name without any addition thereto) which includes any of the words “bank”, “banker”, or “banking” or any variant or derivative of any of those words, or

(c) if, being a partnership or other unincorporated body carrying on any business whatsoever, the name under which such body carries on such business (not being in the case of a partnership the name or names of one or more of the partners without any addition thereto) includes any of the words “bank” “banker”, or “banking” or any word which is a variant or a derivative of any of those words, or

(d) in any case, if by the use, in an advertisement, circular, business card, or other document, of any of the words “bank”, “banker”, or “banking” or any variant or derivative of those words or any phrase analogous thereto he holds himself out or represents himself as conducting or being willing to conduct banking operations with, for, or on behalf of members of the public.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing sub-section of this section, none of the following banks, that is to say, the Bank, the Post Office Savings Bank, and a trustee savings bank certified (whether before or after the passing of this Act) under the Trustee Savings Banks Act, 1863, shall be deemed to hold itself out as a banker within the meaning or for the purposes of this Part of this Act.

Obligation to make deposit in the High Court.

42. —(1) During the period of three years beginning on the 1st day of January next after the passing of this Act it shall not be lawful for any person to hold himself out as a banker unless he has deposited and keeps deposited in the High Court in accordance with this Part of this Act the sum of ten thousand pounds or, in the case of a person to whom an order under sub-section (3) of this section relates, the sum mentioned in such order.

(2) From and after the expiration of the period of three years mentioned in the foregoing sub-section of this section it shall not be lawful for any person to hold himself out as a banker unless he has deposited and keeps deposited in the High Court in accordance with this Part of this Act the sum of twenty thousand pounds or, in the case of a person to whom an order under sub-section (3) of this section relates, the sum mentioned in such order.

(3) The Minister, where satisfied that special considerations so warrant, may by order permit a person holding himself out as a banker to deposit and keep deposited in the High Court in accordance with this Part of this Act a sum less than that mentioned in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) of this section (whichever is applicable) but not less than five thousand pounds.

(4) The Minister may by order revoke or amend any order under this section.

(5) Every person who holds himself out as a banker in contravention of this section shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable,

(a) on conviction thereof on indictment, to a fine not exceeding five hundred pounds together with a further fine not exceeding twenty-five pounds for every day on which the offence is continued, or

(b) on summary conviction thereof, to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds together with a further fine not exceeding one pound for every day on which the offence is continued.

(6) Where a company or other corporate body commits an offence under this section, every director and every officer of such company or body who wilfully authorises or permits the offence shall also be guilty of the offence and be liable on conviction thereof to the penalty mentioned in the next preceding sub-section.

(7) Where a partnership or other unincorporated body commits an offence under this section, every member of such partnership or body shall be guilty of the offence and be liable on conviction thereof to the penalty mentioned in sub-section (5) of this section, unless he proves that he did not know and could not reasonably have known of such contravention.

General provisions in relation to deposits under this Part of this Act.

43. —(1) The following provisions shall apply and have effect in relation to deposits in the High Court made in pursuance of this Part of this Act, that is to say:—

(a) every such deposit shall be under the control of the High Court and shall be made with the privity of the Accountant of the Courts of Justice;

(b) the Accountant of the Courts of Justice shall issue free of charge on request to any person proposing to make or add to any such deposit the forms requisite for that purpose;

(c) any such deposit may, in lieu of being made wholly in money, be made wholly or partly by the deposit of securities authorised by rules of court for the investment of moneys under the control of the High Court;

(d) where any such deposit is made or held wholly or partly in money, such money or a specified part thereof shall, on the request and at the cost of the depositor, be invested in such securities authorised as aforesaid as the depositor shall specify;

(e) whenever any such deposit has been made, the Accountant of the Courts of Justice shall forthwith inform the Minister of the making of such deposit, the name of the person by whom such deposit was made, and the amount of such deposit, and whenever any such deposit has been added to the said Accountant shall forthwith inform the Minister of the making of such addition and of the amount thereof;

(f) the income derived from the securities of which any such deposit is wholly or partly composed shall be paid to the depositor;

(g) all or any of the securities of which any such deposit is wholly or partly composed shall, at the request and cost of the depositor, be varied into other securities authorised as aforesaid specified by the depositor or be converted into money;

(h) the depositor of any such deposit or his liquidator, personal representative, assignee, or other successor in title may at any time apply, in accordance with rules of court, for the return of such deposit or so much thereof as has not been paid out in pursuance of an order of the High Court under this Part of this Act;

(i) where any such application for the return of a deposit has been duly made, such deposit, or so much thereof as has not been paid out as aforesaid, shall, save as is otherwise provided by this Part of this Act, be returned in accordance with such application at the expiration of six months from the receipt of such application;

(j) whenever any such deposit, or so much thereof as aforesaid, has been returned in pursuance of the next preceding paragraph of this sub-section, the Accountant of the Courts of Justice shall forthwith inform the Minister of such return.

(2) On the 2nd day of January in every year subsequent to the year next after the year in which this Act is passed the Accountant of the Courts of Justice shall, in respect of every deposit maintained in the High Court under this Part of this Act which is wholly or partially composed of securities, ascertain the total current market value of the securities comprised in such deposit and shall forthwith send by post to the depositor of such deposit notice in writing stating the amount of the said total current market value so ascertained and the amount of the money (if any) comprised in such deposit, and also stating whether the aggregate amount (in this sub-section referred to as the actual amount) of the said total current market value and the said money (if any) exceeds, equals, or falls short of the amount (in this sub-section referred to as the proper amount) of the deposit required by this Part of this Act, and, where the actual amount of the deposit exceeds or falls short of the proper amount thereof, the amount of the excess or the deficit (as the case may be), and upon such notice being so sent such (if any) of the following provisions as is or are applicable shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) if the actual amount, exceeds the proper amount and the depositor, on or before the 2nd day of February next after the posting of the said notice, requests the return of the excess or a specified part of the excess of the actual amount over the proper amount, a sum equal to such excess or such specified part thereof (less the cost of any requisite sale of securities) shall forthwith be returned to the depositor;

(b) if the actual amount is less than the proper amount, the depositor may deposit in the High Court (by way of addition to the said deposit) an amount in money or in securities authorised by rules of court for the investment of moneys under the control of the High Court or partly in money and partly in such securities equal to the amount by which the actual amount falls short of the proper amount;

(c) where, in a case to which the next preceding paragraph of this sub-section applies, the depositor makes the additional deposit authorised by that paragraph on or before the 2nd day of February next after the posting of the said notice, the depositor shall be deemed to have maintained the deposit at the proper amount, but where, in any such case, the depositor fails to make such additional deposit on or before the said 2nd day of February the Accountant of the Courts of Justice shall forthwith inform the Minister of such failure.

(3) Rules of court may provide for all or any of the following things being done without an order of the High Court, that is to say:—

(a) the making of deposits under this Part of this Act and of additions to such deposits;

(b) the investment of money comprised in any such deposit;

(c) the payment to a depositor of the income derived from securities comprised in his deposit;

(d) the variation of all or any of the securities comprised in any such, deposit;

(e) the return under this section of any such deposit or part of any such deposit to the depositor.

Deposit on behalf of a company before its incorporation.

44. —Where a company is intended to be incorporated under the Companies Acts, 1908 to 1924, with, a name which includes any of the words “bank”, “banker”, or “banking”, or any word which is a variant or a derivative of any of those words, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) it shall be lawful for a deposit to be made in the High Court under this Part, of this Act on behalf and in the name of such intended company notwithstanding that such company has not been incorporated;

(b) an order under sub-section (3) of section 42 of this Act in relation to the amount of such deposit shall be capable of being made notwithstanding that such company has not been incorporated;

(c) the registrar of companies shall not give a certificate of incorporation in respect of such intended company unless or until such deposit has been so made on behalf and in the name of such intended company;

(d) when such intended company has been duly incorporated under the said Acts, the said deposit shall be deemed for all purposes to have been made by such company.

Payment of debts out of deposit.

45. —(1) Whenever a person (in this sub-section referred to as the creditor) obtains in any Court a judgment, order, or decree against a person (in this section referred to as the depositor) who has made and maintains a deposit in the High Court under this Part of this Act for the payment of a sum of money in discharge of a liability (whether liquidated or unliquidated) incurred by the depositor in the course of or in relation to the business carried on by him, the High Court may, if it so thinks proper on the application in a summary manner of the creditor, order that the said sum of money and the costs (if any) payable by the depositor to the creditor under the said judgment, order, or decree and also (if the High Court so thinks proper) the creditor's costs of such application be paid to the creditor out of the said deposit so maintained by the depositor.

(2) Whenever any money is paid, in pursuance of an order of the High Court made under the foregoing sub-section of this section, out of a deposit in the High Court under this Part of this Act, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a) the Accountant of the Courts of Justice shall forthwith inform the Minister of such payment;

(b) the said Accountant shall ascertain the amount of the balance of the said deposit remaining after such payment thereout and, if that balance is less than the proper amount of the said deposit under this Part of this Act, the said Accountant shall send by post to the depositor a notice in writing stating that the said balance falls short of the said proper amount and also stating the amount (in this sub-section referred to as the said deficiency) by which the said balance so falls short;

(c) for the purpose of the said ascertainment of the amount of the said balance, all (if any) securities comprised in the said deposit shall be valued at their respective current market values;

(d) when the said Accountant has sent to the depositor such notice as aforesaid, the depositor may deposit in the High Court (by way of addition to the said deposit) in money or in securities authorised by rules of court for the investment of moneys under the control of the High Court or partly in money and partly in such securities an amount equal to the said deficiency, and, if the depositor so deposits the said amount not more than fourteen days after the posting of the said notice, he shall be deemed to have maintained the said deposit at the amount required by this Part of this Act.