Current Report no. 4 (2017)

Polish Financial Supervision Authority individual recommendation concerning the Bank Zachodni WBK S.A. 2016 profit distribution

The Management Board of Bank Zachodni WBK S.A. ("the Bank") hereby advises that on 10 March 2017 it received a recommendation from the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) to increase own funds by retaining the entire profit earned between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2016. The recommendation was issued in relation to the KNF's opinion of 6 December 2016 concerning banks' dividend policies in 2017.

Justifying its recommendation, KNF notes that as at 31 December 2016, considering the key criteria of the KNF Dividend Policy, the Bank met the requirements to qualify for payment of 50% dividend from the profit earned between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2016, both on an unconsolidated and consolidated level.

However, after application of additional criteria defined by KNF in its dividend policy, taking into account the Bank's significant portfolio of currency housing loans for households, the dividend rate was adjusted to 0% (nil).

In this context, the Bank has been found as falling short of the criteria that would qualify it for payment of a dividend from the profit in respect of 2016.

Legal basis:
§ 17 (1) of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 on market abuse (MAR).