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Further
information can be obtained from:
Press
Relations: +31 20 6288900
Investor
Relations: +31 20 6287835
This
press
release is also available on the internet:
www.abnamro.com
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Amsterdam,
13 August
2007
ABN
AMRO
Offer update 13 August
ABN
AMRO notes the announcement of the Ministry of Finance today regarding
the
Barclays offer for all outstanding ABN AMRO shares. The Minister
has decided to
grant Barclays a declaration of no objection for its offer.
The
declaration is subject to certain conditions. These conditions
are included in
the announcement of the Ministry of Finance on: www.minfin.nl.
This
decision is based on positive advice from De Nederlandsche Bank,
the Dutch
Central Bank, which is available on: www.dnb.nl.
Barclays has
made an announcement regarding this decision on its website www.merger.barclays.com.
Press
contact:
+31206288900
IR
contact : +31206287835
This
is an
announcement pursuant to article 9b paragraph 1 of the Dutch Securities
Markets
Supervision Decree (Besluit toezicht effectenverkeer 1995).
This
document shall
not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer
to buy any
securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities, in any jurisdiction
in
which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior
to registration
or qualification under the securities laws of any such
jurisdiction.
Cautionary
statement regarding forward-looking statements
This
announcement
contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements
are statements
that are not historical facts, including statements about our beliefs
and
expectations. Any statement in this announcement that expresses
or implies our
intentions, beliefs, expectations or predictions (and the assumptions
underlying
them) is a forward-looking statement. These statements are based
on plans,
estimates and projections, as they are currently available to the
management of
ABN AMRO Holding N.V. (“ABN AMRO”). Forward-looking statements therefore speak
only as of the date they are made, and we take no obligation to
update publicly
any of them in light of new information or future events.
Forward-looking
statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of
important
factors could therefore cause actual future results to differ materially
from
those expressed or implied in any forward looking statement. Such
factors
include, without limitation, the outcome of the offers for our
business by
Barclays PLC (“Barclays”) and the consortium of Fortis, RBS and Santander (the
“Consortium”); the completion of our proposed disposition of LaSalle; the
conditions in the financial markets in Europe, the United States,
Brazil and
elsewhere from which we derive a substantial portion of our trading
revenues;
potential defaults of borrowers or trading counterparties; the
implementation of
our restructuring including the envisaged reduction in headcount;
the
reliability of our risk management policies, procedures and methods;
the outcome
of ongoing criminal investigations and other regulatory initiatives
related to
compliance matters in the United States and the nature and severity
of any
sanctions imposed; and other risks referenced in our filings with
the US
Securities and Exchange Commission. For more information on these
and other
factors, please refer to Part I: Item 3.D “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on
Form 20-F filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission
and to any
subsequent reports furnished or filed by us with the US Securities
and Exchange
Commission. The forward-looking statements contained in this announcement
are
made as of the date hereof, and the companies assume no obligation
to update any
of the forward-looking statements contained in this announcement.
Additional
Information
On
July 30, 2007, ABN AMRO filed a Solicitation/Recommendation Statement
on
Schedule 14D-9 with the US Securities and Exchange Commission in
which it
advised the ABN AMRO shareholders that the ABN AMRO Managing Board
and the ABN
AMRO Supervisory Board are not currently in a position to recommend
either the
offer launched by the Consortium or the potential offer by Barclays
and that ABN
AMRO will further engage with both parties with the aim of continuing
to ensure
a level playing field and minimizing any of the uncertainties currently
associated with the offers and with a view to optimizing the attractive
alternatives available to ABN AMRO's shareholders.
Barclays
has filed
with the US Securities and Exchange Commission a Registration Statement
on Form
F-4 (as amended) which contains a prospectus. Barclays expects
to file with the
US Securities and Exchange Commission additional amendments to
such Registration
Statement as well as a Tender Offer Statement on Schedule TO and
other relevant
materials. In addition, ABN AMRO expects that it will file with
the US
Securities and Exchange Commission a Solicitation/Recommendation
Statement on
Schedule 14D-9 in respect of the potential offer by Barclays and
other relevant
materials. Such documents, however, are not currently available.
INVESTORS
ARE URGED
TO READ ANY DOCUMENTS REGARDING THE POTENTIAL TRANSACTIONS IF AND
WHEN THEY
BECOME AVAILABLE, BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION.
Investors
will be
able to obtain a free copy of such filings without charge, at the
SEC's website
(http://www.sec.gov) once such documents are filed with the SEC.
Copies of such
documents may also be obtained from Barclays and ABN AMRO, without
charge, once
they are filed with the SEC.
The
publication and distribution of this document and any separate
documentation
regarding the intended offer, the making of the intended offer
and the issuance
and offering of Barclays ordinary shares may, in some jurisdictions,
be
restricted by law. This document is not being published and the
intended offer
is not being made, directly or indirectly, in or into any jurisdiction
in which
the publication of this announcement and the making of the intended
offer would
not be in compliance with the laws of that jurisdiction. Persons
who come into
possession of this announcement should inform themselves of and
observe any of
these restrictions. Any failure to comply with these restrictions
may constitute
a violation of the securities laws of that jurisdiction.