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Exchange rate for dividend payable on depository receipts in respect of underlying CFR SA ‘A’ shares ('CFR DRs’)
Compagnie Financiere Richemont SA Depositary Receipts
Issued by Richemont Securities SA ("Richemont Securities" or
"Richemont")
(Incorporated in Switzerland)
Share code: CFR
ISIN: CH0045159024
Depositary Receipt Code: CFR
RICHEMONT SECURITIES SA – EXCHANGE RATE APPLICABLE FOR DIVIDEND PAYABLE ON DEPOSITORY RECEIPTS IN RESPECT OF UNDERLYING COMPAGNIE FINANCIERE RICHEMONT SA 'A' SHARES ('CFR DRs')
The dividend payable to holders of Richemont Securities' CFR DRs resident in the South African Common Monetary Area ('SACMA') is derived from the dividend paid by Compagnie Financière Richemont SA, Switzerland ('CFR') to holders of Richemont 'A' shares. The CFR DR dividend payable to SACMA residents is payable in rand.
The Board of Directors has recommended a total dividend of CHF 1.80 per share. It is anticipated that this dividend will be approved by shareholders of CFR at the annual general meeting to be held on 13 September 2017 in Geneva. The dividend payable by CFR will be subject to Swiss withholding tax of 35 percent, resulting in a net dividend of CHF 1.170 per share.
Richemont Securities SA will operate a programme for South African tax residents, who will generally be eligible to recover 20 percent of the 35 per cent withholding tax levied on the CFR dividend. Full details of the programme will be mailed to holders of CFR DRs on 28 September 2017, at the time of the payment of the dividend. In the past, certain CFR DR Holders may have lost their opportunity to reclaim the withholding tax due to incorrect contact information being supplied to Strate. We suggest that CFR DR Holders contact their CSDP or stockbroker in advance of the payment to ensure the information held in the Strate system is correct. In completing last year's withholding tax reclaim, claimants may have included their email address. For all of those who provided this information, the withholding tax reclaim form will be sent by email to you. For those who did not provide email details we would ask you to contact Computershare at the following address WHT.Richemont@Computershare.co.za Once received Computershare will email the withholding tax reclaim form to you for your completion. We hope that this may alleviate the postal difficulties some claimants have experienced in the past. If you do not have an email address, please contact Computershare on 0861 100 935, to arrange a withholding tax reclaim form to be posted to you.
Following the increase in the South African dividends tax rate from 15 percent to 20 percent a revised binding class ruling has been obtained from the South African Revenue Service. In terms of this ruling, those depository receipt holders who are not exempt from the South African dividends tax will be subject to a rate of 5 percent South African tax because of the credit available in respect of the Swiss withholding tax paid. Those depository receipt holders who qualify for exemption from the South African tax (e.g. South African companies and non-residents of South Africa) must ensure that they have filed the relevant exemption forms with their brokers/ banks in order to ensure that no South African tax is withheld.
As CFR DR's trade in the ratio of 10 DRs to each Richemont 'A' share, the dividend entitlement per CFR DR is as follows:
Net dividend
Swiss in Swiss francs
Gross dividend withholding tax before South
per CFR DR at 35% African dividend
in Swiss francs in Swiss francs tax
Total 0.1800 (0.0630) 0.1170
The exchange rate applicable for the conversion of Swiss franc to rand for payment of the dividend is ZAR 13.49527: Swiss franc 1. Accordingly, the net dividend payable per CFR DR after South African dividend tax is ZAR 145.74892 cents, as set out in the table below:
Gross dividend Swiss withholding South African
Per CFR DR tax at 35% withholding tax Net dividend
in ZAR cents in ZAR cents at 5% in ZAR cents
Total 242.91486 (85.02020) (12.14574) 145.74892
Under the withholding tax recovery programme, qualifying SACMA residents will currently be entitled to recover the equivalent of CHF 0.036 per CFR DR. The amount recovered will be converted into rand and will be remitted to CFR DR holders who participate in the programme once the reimbursement of the tax has been received from the Swiss Federal Tax Authorities ('SFTA'). Your attention is drawn to the fact that the refunds are to be paid by the SFTA in Swiss francs. The Swiss francs received by Richemont Securities SA will be converted into rand at the rand: Swiss franc exchange rate ruling at the time of receipt. Bearing in mind the fluctuating rand: Swiss franc exchange rate, the effective rate used to arrive at the rand refund payment to CFR DR holders will differ from that applicable to the dividend payment itself.
The payment dates for the dividend in respect of the South African CFR DRs are anticipated to be as follows:
Last date to trade "cum dividend" Tuesday, 19 September 2017
Trading commences "ex-dividend"
from the commencement of business
on Wednesday, 20 September 2017
CFR DR dividend record date Friday, 22 September 2017
CFR DR dividend payment date Thursday, 28 September 2017
CFR DR holders may not dematerialise or rematerialise their holding of CFR DRs between Wednesday, 20 September 2017 and Friday, 22 September 2017 both days inclusive, nor will transfers to/from the South African branch register be permitted between 20 September 2017 and 22 September 2017 (both dates inclusive).
Richemont Securities SA Depository Receipts are issued subject to the terms of the Deposit Agreement entered into on 18 December 1992, most recently amended on 26 March 2014. By holding Depository Receipts, investors acknowledge that they are bound by the terms of the Deposit Agreement. Copies of the Deposit Agreement may be obtained by investors from Richemont Securities SA or Computershare Investor Services Proprietary Limited.
Richemont Securities may appoint a depository agent or other parties to assist in the administration of the depository receipt programme and may provide to such agents such information as it deems to be appropriate, including information relating to the identity of holders of depository receipts.
12 September 2017
Merchant bank and sponsor
RAND MERCHANT BANK (A division of FirstRand Bank Limited)
Date: 12/09/2017 11:10:00 Produced by the JSE SENS Department. The SENS service is an information dissemination service administered by the JSE Limited ('JSE').
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