Administrative fines imposed by the CSSF for market manipulation infringements

(The information contained in this press release concerns facts which were investigated and sanctioned by the CSSF in accordance with the provisions of the Law of 9 May 2006 on market abuse. This law was repealed by the Luxembourg Law of 23 December 2016 on market abuse).

By decisions dated 6 April 2016 and 14 September 2016, the CSSF has sanctioned an issuer of shares (the “Issuer”) and three persons belonging or formerly belonging to its management (the “Responsible Managers”) for market manipulations on the shares of the Issuer admitted to trading on a regulated market in accordance with the provisions of the Law of 9 May 2006 on market abuse (the “Market Abuse Law”).

The CSSF investigation into the share dealings by the Issuer and/or its subsidiaries through their stock exchange transactions uncovered various instances of market manipulations infringing the prohibition set out under Article 11 of the Market Abuse Law and in particular false and misleading transactions as well as price positioning transactions within the meaning of Article 1(2)(a) of the Market Abuse Law.

These market manipulation practices took place through stock exchange transactions executed on behalf of the Issuer and/or its subsidiaries in the context of the Issuer’s share buy-back programme, such programme being implemented by the Issuer without reliance on the safe harbour that was provided by Commission Regulation (EC) No 2273/2003 of 22 December 2003 implementing Directive 2003/6/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards exemptions for buy-back programmes and stabilisation of financial instruments.

The Issuer and Responsible Managers were sanctioned by the CSSF for the abovementioned infringements of Article 11 of the Market Abuse Law with individual administrative fines ranging from EUR 25,000 to EUR 40,000 pursuant to Article 33 of the aforementioned law.