Regulated information, Leuven, 24 October 2012 (after close of trading)
Claim by KBC Ancora minority shareholders dismissed.
On 24 October 2012, the Court of First Instance in Leuven dismissed the claims filed by minority shareholders in their entirety.
Four KBC Ancora shareholders filed a minority claim in December 2008 against the statutory manager of KBC Ancora and against Cera. The plaintiffs contested the purchase of 2.3 million KBC Group shares by KBC Ancora in March 2007, which was effected in the context of the splitting of the KBC Ancora shares. The plaintiffs also contested the purchase of 3.9 million KBC Group shares by KBC Ancora which was effected in mid-2007 in order to ensure that, together with Cera, its shareholding in KBC Group would exceed the 30% threshold as set out in the Law of 1 April 2007 on public takeover bids, which came into force in Belgium on 1 September 2007. The main objective of their claim was that the defendants should acquire the purchased shares at the acquisition price.
The claims by the plaintiffs were dismissed in their entirety by the Court.
