hbb27 apr 2012 om 10:50
Annual General Meeting of Shareholders Adopts Financial Statements 2011
PR Newswire
THE HAGUE, Netherlands, April 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --
During its meeting of 23 April 2012, the Annual General Meeting of
Shareholders (AGM) adopted the financial statements for the year 2011 and
discussed the new capitalization and dividend policy. The AGM resolved to pay
out a dividend equal to 25% of the net profit over 2011 (EUR 256 million). In
addition the AGM appointed Messrs Theo Bovens and Jan Nooitgedagt members of
the Supervisory Board.
New capitalization and dividend policy
The financial crisis has resulted in considerably tighter capital requirements
for banks. The Basel Committee has proposed, among other things, to raise the
minimum standards for BIS tier 1 ratios and to impose a lower limit for the
leverage ratio, to be set at 3%. These new standards should come into effect
as of 2018. The proposals by the Basel Committee have been translated into
European directives and regulations (CRD-IV), of which a draft version was
published in 2011. It should be noted that this draft version does not yet
include any lower limit for the leverage ratio. The European Banking Authority
(the supervisory authority for the European banking sector) has been
commissioned to prepare an analysis of the minimum level of the ratio, also in
view of the various banks' different organisational models, by 2016 at the
latest.
With its ratio of 20%, BNG amply meets the tightened standard for the BIS tier
1 ratios. It does not however meet the proposed leverage ratio. In order to
achieve the equity growth that is necessary for that purpose, the bank will
have to retain a larger portion of its profits, possibly in combination with
the issue, in due course, of a relatively limited number of hybrid debt
securities that have the character of equity.
In view of the above and with due regard for the developments and expectations
at year-end 2011, the policy of BNG is to propose to the AGM on an annual
basis to set the dividend at 25% of the net profit. This policy should take
effect with the dividend payout for the 2011 financial year and will continue
to apply, in principle, during the entire transitional period until 2018. The
dividend policy will be reconsidered as soon as there is clarity regarding the
definitive form and level of the leverage ratio. The dividend policy will also
be reconsidered in the unlikely event that the projected trend in growth
and/or results does not materialise.
Appointments to Supervisory Board
The AGM has appointed Messrs Theo Bovens and Jan Nooitgedagt members of the
Supervisory Board.
Mr T.J.F.M. Bovens (1959) has been the Queen's Commissioner for the province
of Limburg since 2011. In 2006 he became Crown-appointed member and member of
the Executive Committee of the Social and Economic Council of the Netherlands.
Mr J.J. Nooitgedagt RA (1953) has been Chief Financial Officer and member of
the Management Board of AEGON N.V. since 2009.
Annual report 2011