Fist launced in 2002. The main amendments to the revised Code 2015 concern the implementation of the Recommendation of the EU Commission of 9 April 2014 on the quality of corporate governance reporting („comply or explain“) and take into account the new comment letter of AFRAC (Austrian Financial Reporting and Auditing Committee) on the drafting and auditing of corporate governance reports pursuant to §243b Austrian Business Code (Unternehmenshandbuch, UGB). Therefore, the Austria Code of Corporate Governance has achieved its ambition to always be one the most modern European standards. The new guidelines relating to the explanations and the statement of reasons for departures from the Code place a greater stress on the principle of comply or explain. Companies are in compliance with the Code even if they do not adhere to the rules but instead state clearly, precisely and in detail the reasons for the deviation. The new recommendations on the layout of the Corporate Governance Report and the upgrade of the voluntary external evaluation to a C-Rule have further improved the quality of the information and make it easier to reach informed decisions. The C-Rules of Code as amended in January 2015 apply to the financial years that start after 31 December 2014. The revised Code promotes sustainable corporate management and transparency and also serves to strengthen the trust placed by investors in exchange-listed companies.