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ALTIN sets strike price of put options for share buyback

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The Board of Directors of ALTIN AG has set the strike price of the put options to be issued as part of its share buyback programme at USD64. 

The strike price is set at a 13.6% premium above the closing share price on SIX Swiss Exchange on 23 February 2015.
 
Each share will receive 1 put option and 10 put options will entitle the holder to sell 1 ALTIN share at the exercise price (strike price) of USD 64 to ALTIN.
 
The ex-date for the put options is 27 February 2015, the date when the put options will start trading on SIX Swiss Exchange. The put options will be traded until 12 March 2015, thus allowing investors to sell their options on the market or to buy more options in order to sell more shares in the share buyback (subject to any legal restrictions applicable in their home jurisdiction). The exercise day for the put options is 13 March 2015, by noon CET. The results of the share buyback will be announced after the close of market on 13 March 2015. The settlement date for the delivery of repurchased shares and exercised put options against payment of the strike price (net of Swiss withholding tax) will be 17 March 2015. The repurchased shares will be cancelled after approval at the Annual General Meeting on 11 May 2015 and, if all options are exercised, this will effectively result in a 10% capital reduction.
 
The issuance of the put options presents several benefits to shareholders. First, shareholders will receive tradable options with a significant intrinsic value. By selling or exercising them (subject to any legal restrictions applicable in the shareholders’ home jurisdiction), shareholders will thus immediately receive a cash premium. Second, thanks to the capital reduction of up to 10%, the NAV per share will automatically increase. As the exercise period is short, the benefits for all shareholders will appear clearly and the impact on the discount should take place rapidly.
 
ALTIN's Board of Directors reaffirms its strong commitment to find efficient and sustainable ways to better align the share price of the company with its NAV and hence to reduce the discount in the best interest of all shareholders. If necessary, the Board may decide to further reduce capital through similar share buybacks.
 
Shareholders should check their tax status before opting between selling the put options and exercising them. Due to the Swiss withholding tax of 35% that will be deducted from the difference between the buyback price and the par value of the shares, it is expected that investors who cannot fully recover this withholding tax will prefer to sell the put options on the market rather than exercising them (ie most investors except Swiss institutional investors).

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