16. Restricted cash

Restricted cash amounted to €10.7 million on 31 December 2014, and decreased to €7.9 million on 31 December 2015. This decrease is related to (a) the release of the €3 million bank guarantee issued in 2013 for the rental of the new premises in France which expired on 30 June 2015 following the move to the new offices, (b) the payment of a claim to Charles River by decrease of the escrow account, and (c) a €0.7 million bank guarantee issued in September 2015 for the rental of new premises in the Netherlands (to replace the current premises) which will expire on 1 October 2025. Restricted cash on 31 December 2015 is related to €0.3 million and €0.7 million bank guarantees on real estate lease obligations in Belgium and in the Netherlands respectively, and to €6.9 million escrow account containing part of the proceeds from the sale of the service division in 2014 for which the release will be possible after final agreement between the parties on the exposure regarding one outstanding claim. An amount of €0.3 million has been accrued in March 2015 based on a preliminary estimate of the exposure.