Page "Porsche" Paragraph 29

On 26 March 2007, Porsche took its holding of Volkswagen AG shares to 30. 9 %, triggering a takeover bid under German law.

Porsche then formally announced in a press statement that it did not intend to take over Volkswagen Group ( it would set its offer price at the lowest possible legal value ) but intended the move to avoid a competitor taking a large stake, and to stop hedge funds dismantling Volkswagen Group, which is Porsche's most important partner.

Porsche's move comes after the European Union moved against a German law that protected Volkswagen AG from takeovers.

Under the so-called " Volkswagen Law ", any shareholder with more than 20 % of the voting rights has veto power over any corporate decision in the annual general meeting – in effect, any shareholder in VW AG cannot exercise more than 20 % of the firm's voting rights, regardless of their level of stock holding.

( The local state government of Lower Saxony owns 20. 1 % of the shares.

) However, the European Court of Justice ruled against the law, potentially paving the way for a takeover.