WISeKey Appoints Jean-Pierre Pennacino as Chief Operating Officer and Alexander Zinser as Chief Legal Officer

WISeKey International Holding SA / WISeKey Appoints Jean-Pierre Pennacino as Chief Operating Officer and Alexander Zinser as Chief Legal Officer . Processed and transmitted by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

WISeKey Appoints Jean-Pierre Pennacino as Chief Operating Officer and Alexander Zinser as Chief Legal Officer

 Zug/Geneva, April 11, 2018 - Wisekey International Holding Ltd (WIHN.SW) ("WISeKey"), a leading cybersecurity and IoT company, announced today the appointment of Jean-Pierre Pennacino as Chief Operating Officer, and Alexander Zinser as Chief Legal Officer.

Jean-Pierre Pennacino brings more than two decades of leadership positions in finance and process improvement for the semiconductor and smartcard business segments, working for companies such as Motorola Semiconductor (Freescale), STMicroelectronics and Gemplus (Gemalto). Also, Mr. Pennacino has extensive M&A experience working with a variety of companies, from fast growing to turn-arounds. Before joining WISeKey, Mr. Pennacino served as CFO of a leading European scrap metal recycling company. Mr. Pennacino is a graduate of Audencia - Nantes business School, and is a French Chartered Accountant.

In his new role, Mr. Pennacino will be responsible for the overall operations of WISeKey, its strategic direction, expansion of mPKI and semiconductors services and solutions offered to clients and will be reporting directly to Carlos Moreira, WISeKey's Chairman and CEO.

Alexander Zinser has more than 15-years of legal and compliance affairs experience for the semiconductor, life sciences, FMCG and manufacturing industry, working for rapidly growing companies such as Agilent Technologies, Reynolds American and Guardian Industries. Mr. Zinser started his professional career at the law firm Graf von Westphalen in Frankfurt having studied law in Passau, Birmingham, Vienna, Strasbourg and Munich and he holds a Ph.D and also an Executive MBA from the University of St. Gallen (HSG).

Mr. Zinser will oversee all legal and compliance matters pertaining to the Wisekey organization.

These two new senior positions reflect the evolution of WISeKey into a global organization following the complete integration of the recently acquired companies into its vertical platform, and the next phase of its growth and expansion as the Company continues to further streamline end-to-end sales process, expand cross selling opportunities, and improve efficiencies and collaboration between international offices/teams (Switzerland, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Belgium, U.K., The Netherlands, U.S.A, India, Singapore, Japan, Bermuda and Taiwan) of 170 people.  WISeKey's office in Geneva will continue to operate as the global operational hub of the group, while Zug and St Gallen teams have been fully integrated into the Swiss operations.

Carlos Moreira, Chairman and CEO of WISeKey, commented: "We are delighted to welcome Jean-Pierre and Alexander to our team. Their expertise will be of great value to WISeKey as we continue executing our growth strategy, following the successful integration of our recent acquisitions."

About WISeKey:

WISeKey (SIX Swiss Exchange: WIHN) is a leading global cybersecurity company currently deploying via a Virtual Platform large scale digital identity ecosystems. WISeKey's Swiss based cryptographic Root of Trust ("RoT") and IoT Microchips provide secure authentication and identification, in both physical and virtual environments, for the Internet of Things, Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence. The WISeKey RoT serves as a common trust anchor to ensure the integrity of online transactions among objects and between objects and people. For more information, visit www.wisekey.com.

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Disclaimer:
This communication expressly or implicitly contains certain forward-looking statements concerning WISeKey International Holding Ltd and its business. Such statements involve certain known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of WISeKey International Holding Ltd to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. WISeKey International Holding Ltd is providing this communication as of this date and does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
This press release does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities, and it does not constitute an offering prospectus within the meaning of article 652a or article 1156 of the Swiss Code of Obligations or a listing prospectus within the meaning of the listing rules of the SIX Swiss Exchange. Investors must rely on their own evaluation of WISeKey and its securities, including the merits and risks involved. Nothing contained herein is, or shall be relied on as, a promise or representation as to the future performance of WISeKey.

Wang Wei is the Founding Chairman of China Mergers and Acquisitions Association (CMAA) and serves as the Chairman of China M&A Group.  During his career, Mr. Wang has organized and supervised IPO underwritings of over 40 Chinese companies in domestic and overseas markets, and has provided guidance and advisory services on restructuring, financing, and M&A activities to many other leading companies in China. He has worked for a number of international corporations, including Nomura Securities Co., Ltd. in Tokyo, the World Bank in Washington D.C. and the Chase Bank in New York.  He serves as economic advisor in several ministerial and provincial governments in China, as well as independent director for several public companies.

Mr. Wang received his bachelor's degree in accounting and master's degree in finance in China, and a Ph.D. in economics from Fordham University in the United States. He has authored several books and journal articles, and is a frequent lecturer at universities in China, including CEIBS and Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business.

Mr. Wang has received several awards including: "Top Five Chinese Investment Bankers" by Talents magazine, "The Most Influential Independent Director" by Directors & Boards magazine, and "The Most Influential Investment Banker" by China Finance Network.  He received the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award from The M&A Advisor in New York, the 2013 Social Innovator Award from The Wall Street Journal, and the 2015 IFFM Financial Literacy Award.

Mr. Wang has been a member of Shanghai Stock Exchange Corporate Governance Advisory Committee since 2007. He founded the Chinese Museum of Finance (Group) in 2010, an organization that currently runs 6 museums in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenyang and Suzhou.   He was elected Chairman of Asia Mergers & Acquisitions Association (AMAA) and Co-chairman of International Federation of Finance Museums (IFFM) in November 2015. In January 2017, he became a director of the Board of the Global Blockchain Business Council (GBBC), founded by 25 countries.  

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WISeKey International Holding SA
General-Guisan-Strasse 6 Zug Switzerland

ISIN: CH0314029270;