Order subject to penalty imposed on Zonnepanelendelen B.V. due to capital shortfall
De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) imposed an order subject to penalty on Zonnepanelendelen B.V. (ZPD) on 8 May 2026. DNB found that ZPD had failed to meet its minimum capital requirements. ZPD was thus in non-compliance with Article 7(1), in conjunction with Article 11, of the Investment Firms Regulation (IFR). The purpose of the order subject to penalty was to compel ZPD to restore compliance with the IFR. ZPD has rectified its capital shortfall.
© DNB
Summary of the decision
Investment firms must have sufficient own funds at all times.
DNB established that ZPD had failed to comply with this requirement since at least 31 December 2025.
In order to put an end to the non-compliance, DNB imposed an order subject to penalty.
ZPD has rectified its capital shortfall and has not forfeited any penalty payments.
Capital requirements
Investment firms such as ZPD must at all times have sufficient own funds to absorb losses and ensure their financial soundness. Minimum capital requirements help to protect customers and foster confidence in the financial markets.
Non-compliance
DNB has established that, when calculating its minimum capital requirement, ZPD wrongly deducted certain costs from the fixed overheads requirement. Following a correction to this calculation, the applicable minimum capital requirement was considerably higher than ZPD had assumed. As a result, ZPD had not had sufficient own funds to meet the statutory minimum capital requirements since at least 31 December 2025.
As part of its intention to impose an order subject to penalty, DNB gave ZPD the opportunity to rectify the shortfall. As the shortfall had not yet been rectified by the compliance deadline, DNB proceeded to impose an order subject to penalty.
Order subject to penalty
DNB’s enforcement approach is primarily aimed at putting an end to non-compliance. An order subject to penalty obliges a firm to remedy non-compliance within a specified period. If the firm fails to do so (in good time), it may be liable to pay penalties.
DNB considered an order subject to penalty necessary to bring the non-compliance to an end as soon as possible. Moreover, DNB has taken into account that this is a prudential standard with which an investment firm must comply at all times. This measure is in line with DNB’s enforcement policy regarding kapitaal- en liquiditeitsvereisten. Under this policy, DNB will, in principle, impose an order subject to penalty if an institution fails to meet the applicable minimum capital or liquidity requirements.
Shortfall rectified
Following the imposition of the order subject to penalty, ZPD submitted additional information and revised financial data revealing that ZPD had rectified the capital shortfall by the compliance deadline set by DNB. Consequently, ZPD has not forfeited any penalty payments.
Current status
© DNB
Please find below the full decision imposing the order subject to penalty, with the exception of confidential information. For further information, please contact DNB’s Information Desk at telephone number 0800 - 020 1068 (free of charge) or +31 20 524 9111 (if calling from abroad).
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