A commercial pledge is a security right which is registered in the Commercial Pledge Register in accordance with the procedure set out in the Commercial Pledge Law.

The subject matter of a commercial pledge may be:

• a movable tangible or intangible asset (including rights of claim) owned by a merchant or another legal person;
• assets subject to registration (such as a vehicle, agricultural machinery, livestock herd, trademark, patent, or industrial design), as well as an undertaking as an aggregate of assets, shares, stocks, and bonds, which may constitute the subject matter of a commercial pledge regardless of the ownership of such assets.

The subject matter of a commercial pledge may not be a ship, a financial instrument recorded in a financial instruments account, credit claims within the meaning of the Financial Collateral Law, financial funds, or a claim arising from a cheque or a bill of exchange. Furthermore, it is prohibited to pledge or otherwise encumber with proprietary rights the shares of the basic capital of a sworn advocate’s law office.