50However, as is clear from paragraphs 44 to 48 of this judgment, the Direction Order is not a measure taken by a governing body of a public limited liability company as part of its normal operation, but is an exceptional measure taken by the national authorities intended to prevent, by means of an increase in share capital, the failure of such a company, which failure, in the opinion of the referring court, would threaten the financial stability of the European Union. The protection conferred by the Second Directive on the shareholders and creditors of a public limited liability company, with respect to its share capital, does not extend to a national measure of that kind that is adopted in a situation where there is a serious disturbance of the economy and financial system of a Member State and that is designed to overcome a systemic threat to the financial stability of the European Union, due to a capital shortfall in the company concerned.
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