Registration Document Banco Popolare
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REGISTRATION DOCUMENT BANCO POPOLARE Società Cooperativa 3 February 2009 This text represents a Registration Document (the “Registration Document”) for the purposes of Directive 2003/71/EC (the “Prospectus Directive” and has been drawn up in conformity with Article 14 of Regulation 2004/809/EC) (the “809 Regulation”). This Registration Document contains information on Banco Popolare Società Cooperativa (the “Issuer” or “Banco Popolare”) in its capacity from time to time as the issuer of one or more series of securities with a minimum denomination of Euro 50,000 - or its equivalent in another currency - (the ”Securities”). This Registration Document must be read together with any other information incorporated by reference herein, with the informative note on the Securities containing the information relating to the Securities (the “Securities Note”) drawn up pursuant to the provisions of the Prospectus Directive. Taken as a whole, the Registration Document and the related Securities Note will constitute the “Prospectus” (the “Prospectus”) for a series of securities for the purposes of the Prospectus Directive. This Registration Document was filed with the Luxembourg Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (“CSSF”) (the competent authority for Luxembourg pursuant to the Prospectus Directive) on 3 February 2009 and was approved by the latter on 3 February 2009 pursuant to Directive 2003/71/EC. It provides information on Banco Popolare in its capacity as issuer of debt securities and derivative securities for the 12 months following that date. Compliance with the obligation to publish this Registration Document does not imply any judgment on the part of the CSSF in relation to the quality of the data and information relating to it. Any investment in Securities involves risk. The Investor is invited to read the Chapter “Risk Factors”. This Registration Document and any information incorporated by reference herein are available for inspection by the public at the Issuer’s Registered Office and General Management offices situated at Piazza Nogara 2, Verona. They can also be found on the Issuer’s Internet site at www.bancopopolare.it and on the Internet site of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange at www.bourse.lu INDEX 1. PERSONS WITH MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITY ............................................... 4 1.1 INDICATION OF PERSONS WITH RESPONSIBILITY....................................................... 4 1.2 DECLARATION OF RESPONSIBILITY ............................................................................ 4 2. LEGAL AUDITORS OF ACCOUNTS............................................................................. 5 2.1 AUDITORS OF THE BANCO POPOLARE GROUP’S PRO-FORMA DOCUMENTATION .... 5 2.2 AUDITORS OF THE BANCO POPOLARE ........................................................................ 5 3. RISK FACTORS................................................................................................................. 7 3.1 RISK CONNECTED TO SHAREHOLDING IN ITALEASE................................................... 7 3.2 RISKS CONNECTED TO PAYMENTS TO “SUBPRIME” CUSTOMERS............................ 7 3.3 RISKS CONNECTED TO POSITIONS IN “OVER THE COUNTER, PLAIN VANILLA” DERIVATIVES............................................................................................................................. 7 3.4 RISK CONNECTED TO THE RATING ASSIGNED TO THE ISSUER.................................. 8 3.5 RISK FACTORS CONNECTED TO LITIGATION............................................................... 8 4. SELECTED FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC DATA REFERRING TO THE ISSUER ............................................................................................................................................. 12 5. INFORMATION RELATING TO THE ISSUER ........................................................... 14 5.1 HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE ISSUER.......................................................... 14 5.2 LEGAL AND COMMERCIAL NAME................................................................................ 14 5.3 PLACE OF REGISTRATION AND RELATED NUMBER .................................................. 15 5.4 DATE OF INCORPORATION AND COMPANY DURATION ............................................. 15 5.5 OTHER INFORMATION................................................................................................. 15 5.6 RECENT EVENTS OF RELEVANCE FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF THE SOLVENCY OF THE ISSUER............................................................................................................................. 15 6. PANORAMIC VIEW OF ACTIVITIES ........................................................................... 16 6.1 MAIN ACTIVITIES......................................................................................................... 16 6.2 MAIN MARKETS........................................................................................................... 17 7. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE............................................................................... 19 7.1 THE BANCO POPOLARE GROUP ................................................................................ 19 8. INFORMATION ON FORECAST TRENDS................................................................. 21 8.1 CHANGES IN PROSPECTS OF THE ISSUER ................................................................ 21 8.2 INFORMATION ON TRENDS, UNCERTAINTIES, DEMANDS, COMMITMENTS OR KNOWN FACTS ..................................................................................................................................... 21 9. FORECAST OR ESTIMATE OF PROFITS ................................................................. 31 10. ADMINISTRATIVE, MANAGEMENT AND SUPERVISORY BODIES AND TOP MANAGEMENT........................................................................................................................ 32 10.1 BOARD OF MANAGEMENT, GENERAL MANAGERS AND THE SUPERVISORY BOARD ................................................................................................................................. 32 2 10.2 CONFLICT OF INTEREST ......................................................................................... 36 10.3 OPERATIONS WITH CORRELATED PARTIES........................................................... 36 11. MAIN SHAREHOLDERS ............................................................................................ 37 11.1 PARTIES HOLDING CONTROLLING SHAREHOLDINGS IN THE ISSUER................... 37 11.2 SHAREHOLDER AGREEMENTS ............................................................................... 37 12. FINANCIAL INFORMATION ...................................................................................... 38 12.1 FINANCIAL INFORMATION RELATING TO PREVIOUS ACCOUNTING PERIODS....... 38 12.2 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS ........................................................................................ 39 12.3 AUDITING OF THE FINANCIAL INFORMATION ......................................................... 39 12.4 DATE OF THE MOST RECENT FINANCIAL INFORMATION........................................ 39 12.5 HALF-YEARLY FINANCIAL INFORMATION ............................................................... 39 12.6 CONSOLIDATED QUARTERLY RESULTS FOR THE FIRST NINE MONTHS OF 2008 . 40 12.7 COURT AND ARBITRATION PROCEEDINGS ............................................................ 40 12.8 SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE ISSUER’S FINANCIAL SITUATION ......................... 40 13. IMPORTANT CONTRACTS....................................................................................... 41 14. INFORMATION FROM THIRD PARTIES, EXPERT OPINIONS AND DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST. ........................................................................................ 42 14.1 THE ISSUER’S RATING............................................................................................ 42 15. INFORMATION INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE........................................... 44 16. DOCUMENTS AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC ....................................................... 46 3 1. PERSONS WITH MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITY 1.1 Indication of Persons with Responsibility Banco Popolare Società Cooperativa with its Registered Office in Piazza Nogara 2, Verona, hereby accepts responsibility for the information contained in this Registration Document. 1.2 Declaration of Responsibility Banco Popolare hereby declares that it has exercised all reasonable diligence required of it in the drawing up of this Registration Document and that the information contained in it, so far as coming within its knowledge, conforms with the relevant facts and does not have omissions of such a nature as to alter its meaning. 4 2. LEGAL AUDITORS OF ACCOUNTS As described elsewhere in this Registration Document, the Issuer has been formed from a merger between the “Banco Popolare di Verona e Novara S.c.a.r.l.” ("BPVN") and the “Banca Popolare Italiana - Banca Popolare di Lodi Soc. Coop.” ("BPI") and it is the group holding company of the Banco Popolare Group (the “Group”) A more detailed description of this process will be found in Section 4.1. ”History and Development of the Issuer”. 2.1 Auditors of the Banco Popolare Group’s Pro-forma Documentation Reconta Ernst & Young S.p.A. (“E&Y”), with its Registered Office in Via G.D. Romagnosi n. 18/A, Rome, registered on the Auditors’ Register maintained by Consob pursuant to Resolution 10831 of 16 July 1997, and member of ASSIREVI – (Associazione Nazionale Revisori Contabili), was appointed