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BERENBERG BANK

Berenberg Bank, founded in 1590, is Germany’s oldest private bank and one of the oldest banks in the world. Today, it is a German private bank of the first order. It manages assets worth EUR 22 Billion and employs 900 staff, mainly in Germany but also abroad, who all subscribe to the corporate values of “Commitment, Reliability and Responsibility”.

Private banking activity is enjoying great success in terms of customer advice and management. The Bank has been rewarded with numerous awards. It was picked as the best private banks in Germany by “Euromoney” magazine, and again this year it won the highest “summa cum laude” awarded by “the Elite of Asset Managers” report. Furthermore, the “Thomson Extel Survey” summarising 7,400 expert opinions chose Berenberg as Germany’s best broker and best financial analyst.

In 2009, the Bank’s growth continued. Thanks to its conservative attitude to risk-taking policy and its excellent reputation, the number of customers increased still further this year. Net profit is up 38% to be established at EUR 65.1 million.

At the beginning of February, the press reported negotiations in progress for the sale of 25% of Berenberg Bank’s shares by the German regional bank NordLB. The information obtained at present has no influence on the accounts as at 31 December 2009 because, to date, the transaction has not taken place. Available information is furthermore limited and, moreover, the valuation adopted for this transaction could be appreciably influenced by circumstances specific to the parties involved. For those reasons, the price could be lower than the valuation by Compagnie du Bois Sauvage appearing in its accounts. The possible impact of the transaction on the valuation of Berenberg in the Compagnie du Bois Sauvage accounts will be analysed if and when the transaction materialises.€