At the time of writing, the ECDB (SE Factsheets) provides information on 383 established and 18 planned SE. Since the last update (April 2009) four companies have been established according to the Directive (‘normal’ companies): Sword Group SE (FR), Unibail-Rodamco SE (FR), MAN SE (GE) and E.ON Energy Trading SE (GE). The German companies kept their two-tier corporate governance structure.

There are new companies in other countries as well. The Czech Republic is still very active in terms of establishing shelf SEs and selling them. Unfortunately little is known about the companies after being sold. This tendency seems to reach Slovakia too, since some of the legal firms extended their activity to the country and started to produce shelf SEs. To summarise the current numbers:

383 established SEs, of which:

• 91 normal (companies with employees and operation)

• 68 shelf (companies for selling, ‘on the shelf’)

• 183 UFO (companies presumably with operation and employees, however in general little or nothing to know about),

• 41 empty (companies with operation but without employees)

Source: European Company Database (ETUI SE Factsheets), 18.7. 2009, http://ecdb.worker-participation.eu