Regulated information - price sensitive: Update on negotiations amended Fortis settlement

Ageas and the claimant organisations have been working intensively on an amended settlement that would address the main concerns of the Amsterdam Court of Appeal as expressed in its interim decision of 16 June 2017. No agreement has been reached yet and therefore an extension of the filing period was requested to the Court.

In order to reach such an amended settlement, Ageas has decided to make a final additional effort of EUR 100 million.

Since the publication of the interim decision, Ageas and the claimant organisations have intensively been discussing solutions for the Court's concerns. However, no final agreement was reached within the timeframe proposed by the Court. Hence, an extension was requested. In this context, all parties have decided to diligently continue the discussions and to work towards a reasonable and balanced solution for all stakeholders.

Ageas has decided to make a final additional effort of EUR 100 million, which should allow to address the Court's main concerns, and to take into account the previous commitments made.

Once a comprehensive agreement has been finalised and filed, Ageas will inform the market.

Bart De Smet, CEO Ageas, commented: "For all our stakeholders and for the Group, we remain committed to finding a reasonable and workable solution to the past. Consequently, an extension of the filing period was requested and Ageas is prepared to make an extra financial effort. I'm confident that all parties will endeavour to work hard the coming weeks to reach an amended and balanced agreement designed to respond to the main concerns of the Court."

Ageas is a listed international insurance Group with a heritage spanning 190 years. It offers Retail and Business customers Life and Non-Life products that meet their specific needs, not just for today but also for tomorrow. Ageas, one of the largest insurance companies in Europe, is mainly active in Europe and Asia, which together make up the majority of the global insurance market. Through a combination of wholly owned subsidiaries and long term partnerships with strong financial institutions and key distributors, Ageas operates successful insurance businesses in Belgium, the UK, Luxembourg, France, Italy, Portugal, Turkey, China, Malaysia, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Singapore, and the Philippines. In most of the countries where it operates, Ageas is among the market leaders. Ageas has more than 40,000 employees, and inflows amounted to around EUR 32 billion (all figures at 100%) in 2016.