§ 31A-4-10a — Stockholder inspection of books and records

West Virginia § 31A-4-10a

• Jurisdiction: West Virginia
• Ch. 31A: BANKS AND BANKING
• Art. 4: BANKING INSTITUTIONS AND SERVICES GENERALLY

Text

(a) Any stockholder or group of stockholders of a state banking institution, holding of record the number of voting shares of such bank specified below, upon making written demand stating a proper purpose, shall have the right to examine, in person or by agent or attorney, at any reasonable time or times, nonconfidential portions of its books and records of account, minutes and record of stockholders and to make extracts therefrom. Such right of examination is limited to a stockholder or group of stockholders holding of record:

(1) Voting shares having a cost of not less than $100,000 or constituting not less than one percent of the total outstanding voting shares: Provided, That such stockholder or group of stockholders have held of record such voting shares for a period of at least six months before making such written demand; or

(2) Not less than five percent of the total outstanding voting shares.

(b) Except as provided in subsection (a) of this section and in section ten of this article with respect to inspection of a list of stockholders, no stockholder or group of stockholders of a state banking institution shall have any other right under this section or common law to examine its books and records of account, minutes and record of stockholders.

(c) The right to examination authorized by subsection (a) of this section and any right to inspect the list of stockholders provided by a bank's bylaws to an extent greater than that authorized under section ten of this article may be denied to any stockholder or group of stockholders upon the refusal of any such stockholder or group of stockholders to furnish such institution, its transfer agent or registrar an affidavit that such examination or inspection is not desired for any purpose which is in the interest of a business or object other than the business of the institution, that such stockholder has not within the five years preceding the date of the affidavit sold or offered for sale, and does not now intend to sell or offer for sale, any list of stockholders of the bank or of any other bank or bank holding company, and that such stockholder has not within said five-year period aided or abetted any other person in procuring any list of stockholders for purposes of selling or offering such list for sale.

(d) Notwithstanding any provision of this section or any common law, no stockholder or group of stockholders shall have the right to obtain, inspect or copy any portion of any books or records of a state banking institution containing:

(1) A list of depositors in, borrowers from or customers of such banking institution;

(2) The addresses of the banking institution's depositors, borrowers or customers;

(3) Individual deposit or loan balances or records of the banking institution's depositors, borrowers or customers; or

(4) Any data from which such information could be reasonably constructed.

(e) For purposes of this section, a confidential record includes, but is not limited to:

(1) Any document or information relating to a nonpublic market strategy or plan of the bank;

(2) Any document or information relating to matters declared confidential under state or federal law, including, but not limited to, bank regulatory reports;

(3) Any document or information relating to a proposed merger, acquisition or sale of assets which has not yet been disclosed to the public by the bank, including any document or information which constitutes inside information for purposes of state or federal securities law; and

(4) Any document or information deemed by the bank as proprietary relating to the loan policy established by the bank.

Legislative History

1998 Reg. Sess., SB442