Herman Verwilst to step down from Fortis Board of Directors
Fortis announces that Herman Verwilst will step down as a member of
the Executive Committee and as executive member of the Board of
Directors after the General Meeting of Shareholders of Fortis SA/NV
on 2 December. His career with Fortis has spanned 15 years.
The Board of Directors would like to thank Mr Verwilst for the
important contribution he has made to the development of Fortis. Mr
Verwilst has held various positions in the group over the past 15
years. In all these position he has always keenly guarded the
interests of all stakeholders.
Alain Deschênes will also step down from the Executive Committee. The
Board of Directors would like to thank him for his valuable
contribution over the past three years.
Herman Verwilst will receive a severance payment of EUR 800,000. This
sum is equal to his basic annual salary and is in line with the
provisions of the Code Tabaksblat (the Dutch corporate governance
code) and legislation on severance payments to directors of public
companies now being drafted in Belgium.
Fortis previously stated that should Mr Verwilst's contract be
terminated prematurely, he would receive a gross cash payment of up
to EUR 4.8 million (three times his total annual remuneration, i.e.
basic salary plus bonus). This was a consequence of past agreements
between Fortis and Mr Verwilst, which now no longer apply. The
present arrangement is considered by all parties to be appropriate
and in the interests of Fortis.
Severance payments to other members of the Fortis Executive Committee
who have stepped down since October 2008 also amount to no more than
one year's basic salary.
Fortis holding (Fortis SA/NV and Fortis N.V.) will, after the
conclusion of the deal with BNP Paribas, include only (1)
international insurance activities, (2) a 66% stake in a structured
credit portfolio entity and (3) financial assets and liabilities of
various financing vehicles.
The international insurance activities (Fortis Insurance
International) are located in UK, France, Hong Kong, Luxembourg
(Non-Life), Germany, Turkey, Russia, and Ukraine, and in joint
ventures in Luxembourg (Life), Portugal, China, Malaysia, India and
Thailand.
Fortis holding is therefore no longer involved in any banking
activities, and once the deal with BNP Paribas is concluded, will
concern only international insurance activities.
Press Contacts:
Brussels: +32 (0)2 565 35 84 Utrecht: +31 (0)30 226 32 19
Investor Relations:
Brussels: +32 (0)2 565 53 78 Utrecht: +31 (0)30 226 65 66
This announcement was originally distributed by Hugin. The issuer is
solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
