Joint Statement Re. ABN AMRO
Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC
06 June 2007
6 June 2007 - Fortis, RBS and Santander Announcement
Welcoming Monday's statement from the UNI Confederation of Trade Unions, Mr Neil
Roden, Group Director of Human Resources for RBS, confirmed that he would be
contacting UNI on behalf of Fortis, RBS and Santander (collectively, the
'Banks') to seek a meeting.
'We welcome the Trade Unions' positive engagement in the process and would hope
to maintain a constructive dialogue with them at all times. We understand the
demands that they are making and will work with them as closely as possible to
ensure that our proposals are understood clearly.'
Mr Michel Deboeck, Chief Human Resources Officer for Fortis, added, 'We have
very constructive working relationships with unions and works councils and I am
confident of our track record in building opportunities for people as our
business interests grow.'
For his part, Mr Jose Luis Gomez Alciturri, Head of Human Resources for
Santander, commented on the constructive communication currently being held with
the employee representative organisations. 'I believe it is especially important
to maintain a cooperative framework and appropriate dialogue with all social
partners in working to create profitable businesses within a stable environment
for employees.'
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Important Information
This announcement is made pursuant to article 9b(1) of the Dutch Decree on the
Supervision of the Securities Trade 1995.
In connection with the proposed offer for ABN AMRO, RBS expects to file with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the 'SEC') a Registration Statement on
Form F-4, which will constitute a prospectus, and the Banks expect to file with
the SEC a Tender Offer Statement on Schedule TO and other relevant materials.
INVESTORS ARE URGED TO READ ANY DOCUMENTS REGARDING THE PROPOSED OFFER IF AND
WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION.
Investors will be able to obtain a copy of such documents, 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 each Bank, without
charge, once they are filed with the SEC.
This communication 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. This press release is not an offer of securities for sale into the
United States. No offering of securities shall be made in the United States
except pursuant to registration under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
or an exemption therefrom.
Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement includes certain 'forward-looking statements'. These
statements are based on the current expectations of the Banks and are naturally
subject to uncertainty and changes in certain circumstances. Forward-looking
statements include any statements related to the benefits or synergies resulting
from a transaction with ABN AMRO and, without limitation, statements typically
containing words such as 'intends', 'expects', 'anticipates', 'targets',
'plans', 'estimates' and words of similar import. By their nature,
forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to
events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. There are a
number of factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
These factors include, but are not limited to, the presence of a competitive
offer for ABN AMRO, satisfaction of any pre-conditions or conditions to the
proposed offer, including the receipt of required regulatory and anti-trust
approvals, the successful completion of the offer or any subsequent compulsory
acquisition procedure, the anticipated benefits of the proposed offer (including
anticipated synergies) not being realized, the separation and integration of ABN
AMRO and its assets among the Banks and the integration of such businesses and
assets by the Banks being materially delayed or more costly or difficult than
expected, as well as additional factors, such as changes in economic conditions,
changes in the regulatory environment, fluctuations in interest and exchange
rates, the outcome of litigation and government actions. Other unknown or
unpredictable factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those
in the forward-looking statements. None of the Banks undertake any obligation to
update publicly or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent legally required.
Any offer made in or into the United States will only be made by the Banks and/
or RFS Holdings directly or by a dealer-manager that is registered with the SEC.
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Fortis N.V., Archimedeslaan 6, 3584 BA Utrecht, Netherlands; Fortis S.A./N.V.,
Rue Royale 20, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc, Head Office, Gogarburn, Edinburgh EH12
1HQ, UK. Registered Office, 36 St Andrew Square, Edinburgh EH2 2YB. Registered
in Scotland No 45551
Banco Santander Central Hispano, S.A., Ciudad Grupo Santander, Avenida de
Cantabria, s/n, 28660 Boadilla del Monte, Madrid, Spain
This information is provided by RNS
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