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Aareal Bank AG

Quarterly Report May 30, 2018

11_10-q_2018-05-30_30a31c43-6a43-4d6f-aea6-df47b27cc467.pdf

Quarterly Report

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Aareal Bank Group – Interim Report 1 January to 31 March 2018

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017

Key Indicators

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 2017

Results
Operating profit (€ mn) 67 71
Consolidated net income (€ mn) 44 47
Consolidated net income allocated to
ordinary shareholders (€ mn)1)
39 38
Cost/income ratio (%)2) 49.5 53.1
Earnings per ordinary share (€)1) 0.65 0.63
RoE before taxes (%)1) 3) 9.7 9.6
RoE after taxes (%)1) 3) 6.3 6.1
31 Dec 2017
24,641 25,088
2,932 2,924
41,307 41,908
11,464 11,785
19.2 19.6
21.8 22.1
29.8 30.0
13.5 13.4
2,771 2,800
31 Mar 2018
Fitch Ratings
Deposit rating A- A-
long-term (outlook: stable) (outlook: stable)
Issuer default rating BBB+ BBB+
long-term (outlook: stable) (outlook: stable)
short-term F2 F2
Mortgage AAA AAA
Pfandbrief rating (outlook: stable) (outlook: stable)
Public Sector AAA AAA
Pfandbrief rating (outlook: stable) (outlook: stable)
Moody's
Bank deposit dating A3 A3
long-term (outlook: stable) (outlook: stable)
Issuer rating
long-term Baa1 Baa1
short-term P-2 P-2
Mortgage
Pfandbrief rating Aaa Aaa
Sustainability7)
MSCI AA AA
oekom prime (C) prime (C)
Sustainalytics 70 70

1) The allocation of earnings is based on the assumption that net interest payable on the AT1 bond is recognised on an accrual basis.

2) Structured Property Financing segment only

3) On an annualised basis

4) Excluding € 0.7 billion in private client business (31 December 2017: € 0.8 billion) and € 0.5 billion in local authority lending business by former Westdeutsche ImmobilienBank AG (former WestImmo) (31 December 2017: € 0.5 billion)

5) The calculation of regulatory indicators takes into account the proposal of the Management Board and the Supervisory Board for the appropriation of profits for the financial year 2017. The appropriation of profits is subject to approval by the Annual General Meeting.

6) Underlying RWA estimate, given a 72.5% output floor based on the final Basel Committee framework dated 7 December 2017, subject to the out-standing EU implementation as well as the implementation of additional regulatory requirements (EBA requirements, TRIM, etc.).

7) Please refer to our website (www.aareal-bank.com/en/responsibility/reporting-on-our-progress/) for more details.

This report contains rounded numbers, which may result in slight differences when aggregating figures and calculating percentages.

Contents

Key Indicators 2
Interim Group Management Report 4
Report on the Economic Position 4
Risk Report 16
Report on Expected Developments and Opportunities 24
Consolidated Interim Financial Statements 31
Statement of Comprehensive Income 31
Statement of Financial Position 33
Statement of Changes in Equity 34
Statement of Cash Flows (condensed) 35
Notes (condensed) 36
Basis of Accounting 36
Notes to the Statement of Comprehensive Income 57
Notes to the Statement of Financial Position 61
Notes to Financial Instruments 69
Segment Reporting 72
Other Notes 75
Executive Bodies of Aareal Bank AG 77
Offices 78
Financial Calendar 80
Locations/ Imprint 81

Interim Group Management Report

Report on the Economic Position

Macro-economic environment

The positive economic momentum of the previous year continued in the first quarter of 2018. Nonetheless, there was increased volatility on the capital and financial markets, reflecting interest rate hikes in the US and numerous factors concerning political uncertainty. Leading indicators also signalled that economic momentum could slow down in some regions.

Economy

In the euro zone, real economic output growth in the first quarter of 2018 was slightly lower than in the previous quarter; yet the growth rate was markedly higher compared to the same period of 2017. Various sentiment indicators, however, declined from the high levels of the previous year. Within the euro zone, growth in the Netherlands and Spain was above the euro zone average, whilst in Germany and France it was slightly below. Political uncertainty arose as a result of the Italian parliamentary elections in February, which strengthened eurosceptic parties and made it more difficult to form a government. There were no significant economic effects in the first quarter, with the Italian economy growing slightly slower than the euro zone as a whole.

Overall economic growth in the European Union (EU) was on a par with the euro zone during the first quarter of 2018. As in the previous year, growth in Poland was markedly stronger than in the euro zone; likewise, the Swedish growth rate clearly outperformed the euro zone level, and was markedly higher than the figure for the first quarter of the previous year.

Economic growth in the UK remained stable. Whilst negotiations surrounding the planned exit of the UK from the European Union at the end of March 2019 have yielded initial agreements, such as a 21-month transition period, during which the UK will continue to have access to the EU internal

market, numerous other issues remain unresolved at this stage. This led to prevailing uncertainty, and to weakness in the construction sector.

Real growth in the US was positive, but fell short of expectations during the first quarter of 2018 due to slower growth in consumer spending as well as seasonal effects. The trend of weak first quarters from previous years therefore continued. Nonetheless, the underlying strength of the economy remained. However, protectionist measures – targeting China in particular – exacerbated political uncertainty.

The Chinese economy continued to grow strongly, even though the growth rate remained slightly below the comparable figure for the previous year. In response to US import duties, China also imposed import duties on a number of US products.

Labour markets benefited from the generally healthy economy. In the euro zone, unemployment rates continued to fall slightly during the first quarter of 2018, whilst theyremained stable, at a low level, in the UK and the US.

Financial and capital markets, monetary policy and inflation

Higher volatility, in some cases rising interest rates and exchange rate fluctuations shaped the first quarter on the capital and financial markets. The introduction of trade barriers at the end of March, starting in the US, led to significant price losses on global stock markets.

In the first quarter, the ECB continued its expansionary policy, but, in line with its decision from the previous year, reduced the monthly purchase volume of assets to € 30 billion per month within the framework of its quantitative easing objective. The Bank of England did not adjust its monetary policy in the first quarter. The US Federal Reserve (Fed) increased its Fed Funds corridor on 21 March 2018, by a further 25 basis points to 1.50 %-1.75 %. The Fed thus continued to normalise its monetary policy in moderate steps.

The US dollar lost modest ground against the euro during the first quarter, closing the period at a slightly lower level compared to the 2017 year-end. The British pound appreciated marginally against the euro during the same period. The Canadian dollar and the Swedish krona continuously lost value during the first quarter of 2018.

Short-term interest rates1) exhibited significant differences between different currencies throughout the first quarter, not least due to differences in monetary policy. In the euro zone, they remained slightly negative compared to the end of the previous year. In British pounds and Canadian dollars, rates rose slightly over the same period. However, in US dollars they increased strongly compared to the end of the previous year. Swedish krona rates declined slightly from the 2017 year-end, remaining in negative territory.

Long-term interest rates2) in the currency areas that are relevant to Aareal Bank rose steadily at the start of 2018 compared with the end of the previous year. Towards the end of the first quarter, euro zone and Swedish krona rates fell back to the levels seen at the end of 2017 – whereas US dollar, Canadian dollar and British pound rates were markedly higher at the end of the first quarter, compared to the 2017 year-end.

In the US and the UK, ten-year government bond yields rose markedly between the 2017 year-end and the end of the first quarter. In Germany, they initially rose, but then fell back to the level of the year-end 2017 at the close of the first quarter 2018. Yields on Italian government bonds did not suffer any adverse effects despite the outcome of the parliamentary elections in Italy. By the end of the quarter, they had in fact dropped slightly compared with the end of the previous year.

Inflation in the euro zone and the UK fell slightly in the first quarter compared to the final quarter of 2017. In the UK, it clearly exceeded the level of the euro zone, where it was well below the ECB's target of just under 2 %. In the US, however, the rate of inflation rose to well over 2 %.

Regulatory environment

The environment in which banks are operating continues to be defined by highly dynamic regulatory requirements, as well as by changes in banking supervision. This includes, in particular, the implementation of the final draft of the Basel III framework into EU law, which was endorsed by the Basel Committee's Group of Governors and Heads of Supervision (GHOS) on 7 December 2017. In addition, the amendments to BaFin's Minimum Requirements for Risk Management (MaRisk) – including the new German Banking Supervisory Requirements for IT (BAIT), the EU Commission's proposals to revise supervisory regimes (CRR, CRD IV, BRRD and SRMR) as well as the EBA consultation paper "Guidelines on PD estimation, LGD estimation and the treatment of defaulted exposures" – will all lead to further regulatory changes. In addition, the amendments proposed by the ECB, EBA and the EU Commission on the treatment of non-performing loans must also be taken into account.

The ECB's Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process (SREP) ensures a common approach on the supervisory review of banks, within the framework of Pillar 2. The SREP is built around a business model analysis, an assessment of governance, as well as of the capital and liquidity risks. The results of the individual areas are aggregated in a score value, from which the ECB derives supervisory measures on holding additional capital and/ or additional liquidity requirements. Aareal Bank's Total SREP Capital Requirement (TSCR) has been at 9.75 % thus far in 2018, comprising the total capital ratio of 8 % for Pillar 1 as well as a (Pillar 2) capital requirement of 1.75 % from the ECB's Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process (SREP). In addition, Aareal Bank is required to hold a (phased-in) capital conservation buffer of 1.875 %, plus a countercyclical capital buffer of 0.113 % forecast for the end of the year. Aareal Bank's pure

1) Calculated on the basis of 3-month Euribor or the corresponding

LIBOR or other comparable rates for other currencies

2) Based on the 10-year swap rate

SREP CET1 requirement has been at 8.24 % thus far in 2018, comprising 4.5 % for Pillar 1, the above-mentioned Pillar 2 requirement of 1.75 % as well as the capital conservation buffer (1.875 %) and countercyclical capital buffer forecast for the end of the year (0.113 %) (also mentioned above). No further liquidity requirements were imposed upon Aareal Bank.

Sector-specific and business developments

Structured Property Financing segment

Development of the volume of commercial property transactions1) was inconsistent across the different regions in the first quarter of 2018. Volumes in North America declined slightly yearon-year, whilst a marked decline was seen in Europe. In contrast, significantly higher volumes were observed in Asia.

Very low top yields continue to be observed on numerous commercial property markets around the world. However, the markets for prime rents are in some cases in different phases of their business cycles. In North America, average rental growth is flattening out. By contrast, average rental growth was higher in Europe where high rental

* Including Germany

volumes in the office property market supported developments in particular.

Competition in the financing of existing commercial properties remained fierce in many markets. Margins were under pressure in the European markets in the first quarter as well as in the US, remaining however on a higher level in the US than in Europe. Pricing levels on the US market are also influenced by the market for commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS). The volume in this segment increased slightly year-on-year during the first quarter, but remained generally low.

In a highly competitive and uncertain business environment, Aareal Bank generated new business2) of € 1.5 billion in the first quarter of 2018 (Q1 2017: € 1.8 billion). Newly-originated loans amounted to € 1.0 billion (Q1 2017: € 1.2 billion).

At 67.0 % (Q1 2017: 45.7 %), North America accounted for the largest share of new business in 2018, followed by Europe with 33.0 % (Q1 2017: 53.0 %). No new business was generated in Asia (Q1 2017: 1.3 %). The higher share in North America is due to the strategic expansion of our financing portfolio there.

Europe

In Europe, the volume of commercial property transactions declined markedly in the first quarter of 2018 compared with the relatively high prior-year figure. There were differences within the respective countries: In the UK, it remained stable, whilst declines were observed in Germany, France, Italy and Spain. Whilst REIT structures were clear net buyers, cross-border investors were light net buyers, with private and institutional investors slightly on the net sellers' side.

Rents for first-class commercial properties in the European economic centres showed a largely stable to slightly rising trend in the first quarter of 2018 compared with the end of the previous year.

1) Office, retail, logistics and hotel property markets were analysed.

2) New business, excluding former WestImmo's private client business and local authority lending business

In the office property segment, slight increases were visible in some markets such as Berlin and Milan. In contrast, prime rents for logistics and retail properties remained largely stable.

Prime yields1) in office and retail properties remained largely stable, while there was a slight decline in the first quarter of 2018 compared with the end of 2017 in the case of prime commercial logistics properties, including in Milan, Rome and the Midlands region in the UK.

The hotel markets in the European economic centres painted a largely positive picture during the first quarter of 2018. Occupancy ratios rose in most markets, compared to the first quarter of 2017 – in some cases even strongly. The indicator of average revenues per available room (which is important for hotel markets) also recorded an increase in most markets. Occupancy figures as well as average revenues per available hotel room in London and Munich were down slightly yearon-year during the first quarter.

Aareal Bank originated new business of € 0.5 billion (Q1 2017: € 0.9 billion) in Europe during the first quarter of 2018. The largest share by far was transacted in Western Europe, followed by Southern and Northern Europe; the volume of new business originated in Eastern Europe was low.

North America

Transaction volumes in the North American commercial property markets were down slightly from the previous year's level during the first quarter of 2018. Investor interest remained high despite rising interest rates. Whilst the majority of private investors were net buyers, REIT structures were clearly on the sellers' side.

Rents for office and retail properties were virtually stable on a national average in the US, compared to the final quarter of 2017. There were marginal differences in the regional centres. The growth in office property rents stagnated for example in New York, San Francisco and the metropolitan region of Washington, D.C. Slight increases, on the other hand, were observed in Chicago, Dallas

and Los Angeles. Rents for retail properties decreased slightly in New York City, whilst slightly rising in San Francisco.

The first quarter of 2018 was characterised by a largely constant yield development. On a national average, investment yields in the US hardly moved – compared to the year-end 2017 – for office and retail properties.

In the US, average occupancy rates for hotel properties remained stable year-on-year at the beginning of the year. Average revenue per available hotel room on the other hand climbed slightly, compared to the beginning of 2017. In Canada, occupancy rates rose slightly, whilst average revenue per available hotel room increased significantly.

Aareal Bank originated new business of € 1.0 billion in North America during the first quarter of 2018 (Q1 2017: € 0.8 billion), primarily in the US and, to a minor extent, in Canada.

Asia

Transaction volumes in the Asia/Pacific region were up significantly year-on-year during the first quarter of 2018. Cross-border investors were the most active, and were clearly on the net buyer side. In contrast, as in the previous years, private investors sold more properties than they purchased (net).

Rents for first-class office and retail properties in the metropolitan areas of Beijing and Shanghai were virtually unchanged from year-end 2017.

Investment yields for newly-acquired, high-quality office property were stable in Beijing, whilst a slight decrease was evident in Shanghai. Retail property showed the reverse picture, with a slight decline in Beijing and stable development in Shanghai.

1) Falling yields are associated with rising property market values, whilst rising yields correspondingly produce falling values, all other things remaining equal.

The hotel markets in these two cities performed very differently in the first quarter of 2018 compared with the same period last year. While average earnings per available hotel room and occupancy rates rose slightly in Beijing, both these figures were slightly negative in Shanghai.

Aareal Bank concluded no new business in Asia in the first quarter of 2018 (previous year: negligible new business).

Consulting/Services segment

Bank division Housing Industry

The housing and commercial property industries continue to be a stable market segment. Strong tenant diversification leads to consistent rental income.

At the beginning of the year, the housing industry focused on the necessity to build additional affordable housing space, and to also strengthen the focus on rural areas, besides the shortage of housing in conurbations. However, according to the Federation of German Housing and Real Estate Enterprises (Bundesverband deutscher Wohnungsund Immobilienunternehmen – "GdW"), the provision of affordable housing is being obstructed by bottlenecks concerning plots as well as planning and approval capacity. Overall, the GdW sees slowing momentum in residential construction, which is why the association has welcomed the establishment of a Construction Committee at the lower chamber of German parliament (the Bundestag). The association hopes that this will provide strong impetus for a functioning housing market – for example, through a reduction of construction rules, tax relief, and easier approval for serial or modular construction.

The German residential rental market continued to see stable development. Rents offered were approx. 3.1% higher throughout Germany in January 2018 than in the first quarter of 2017.

In the new financial year of 2018, the Bank's Housing Industry division strengthened its market position as a result of acquiring new customers. We are also continuously expanding our client

base in the energy and waste disposal industries, especially through interface products (such as BK 01 eConnect and BK 01 immoconnect) facilitating cross-sector collaboration amongst our client groups. Examples include accounting documentation and invoicing of energy supplies. This brought in more business partners from the housing industry – managing just under 25,000 residential units between them – for the payments and deposit-taking businesses.

At present, more than 3,700 business partners throughout Germany are using our process-optimising products and banking services. In line with the "Aareal 2020" programme for the future, the volume of deposits from housing industry clients totalled just under € 10.2 billion in the first quarter of 2018 (Q4 2017: € 10.4 billion). All in all, this reflects the strong trust our clients place in Aareal Bank.

Aareon

Aareon's contribution to consolidated operating profit amounted to € 6 million during the period under review (Q1 2017: € 7 million).

Numerous additional customers, among them key accounts, opted for Wodis Sigma in Germany in the first quarter of 2018. Among these new customers, there are still many previous GES customers who opted to change to Wodis Sigma within the framework of Aareon's migration campaign. As expected, the favoured version is the one that uses Wodis Sigma as a service from the exclusive Aareon Cloud. Aareon is still implementing a large number of migration projects, which are developing on schedule. The business volume of SAP® solutions and Blue Eagle developed as expected. In the commercial property business, mse – acquired effective 1 October 2017 – rolled out the RELion ERP solution for a major enterprise. In the Netherlands, new users for the Tobias AX ERP solution included a major housing enterprise – which also opted for multiple digital solutions of Aareon Nederland. With regard to the commercial property market, a major new customer has signed a contract for Kalshoven Automation's (formerly Kalshhoven Groep) ERP solution

Smart World for its clients. Aareon Nederland entered into a cooperation agreement with Valid-Sign, a PropTech enterprise, for validating digital signatures. The solution can be integrated into numerous applications and helps simplify pro-

cesses.

Within the area of add-on products, Aareon was able to extend its outsourcing business in Germany, in particular. BauSecura's insurance business has been running at the previous year's level. Outsourcing activities in the Netherlands were a key contributor to higher sales revenues for add-on products in the international business. Following the full acquisition of the Dutch company SG2ALL B.V. in 2016, it was merged into Aareon Nederland on 1 January 2018, together with its outsourcing business.

Aareon is now targeting new markets, such as utilities, and is currently developing a solution for other utilities, housing enterprises and metering service providers, which will digitalise the processes involved in moving house.

Financial Position and Financial Performance

Financial performance

Group

In the first quarter of the financial year, consolidated operating profit amounted to € 67 million (Q1 2017: € 71 million).

Net interest income totalled € 133 million, an expected reduction from the previous year (Q1 2017: € 154 million). This was largely due to the portfolio decline seen in the previous year, reflecting – amongst other factors – the scheduled reduction of the former WestImmo and Corealcredit portfolios, as well as exchange rate fluctuations.

Due to seasonal effects, the result from loss allowance amounted to € 0 million (Q1 2017: € 2 million).

REMS (Real Estate Management System). Kalshoven was taken over by Aareon last year. In France, demand for consulting offers is growing, thanks to mergers of housing enterprises. Despite intense competition in the UK, Aareon UK succeeded in winning a tender for QL.net. Likewise, Aareon Sverige won two key tenders with its Incit Xpand ERP solution, including in the commercial property market.

The digital solutions of Aareon Smart World will be expanded throughout the Group, as part of the digital transformation process. On the one hand, this will be effected through Aareon's own research and development team, and the associated transfer of knowledge throughout the Group – and on the other hand, through cooperations with Prop-Tech companies that have developed solutions providing added value to Aareon Smart World stakeholders. The digital solutions involved boosting the cross-border development of Aareon CRM in particular. In Germany, marketing of the CRM App – which a major pilot client has already rolled out into production – started in the fourth quarter of 2017. The app simplifies customer relationship management between housing companies and tenants.

Business volumes with digital solutions continued to increase year-on-year. In Germany, the Mareon service portal, Aareon Archiv kompakt, Aareon CRM (tenant portal) and Aareon Immoblue Pro (management of potential tenants) solutions were in particular demand. These offers benefit from migration activities involving ERP products. In the Netherlands, multiple customers opted for digital solutions, and there were further production rollouts. Customers in France signed agreements for the digital Aareon solutions, such as the digital customer relationship management system Aareon CRM. In the UK, more customers signed agreements for the digital Aareon solutions. In Scandinavia, additional customers opted for the tenant portal. The trend towards self-service solutions also prevailed here.

Aareon also cooperates with PropTech companies, in order to expand the integrated offer of Aareon

Consolidated net income of Aareal Bank Group

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Net interest income 133 154
Loss allowance 0 2
Net commission income 50 48
Net derecognition gain or loss 6 10
Net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl) 3 -1
Net result on hedge accounting -2 -3
Results from investments accounted for using the equity method
Administrative expenses 128 139
Net other operating income/expenses 5 4
Operating profit 67 71
Income taxes 23 24
Consolidated net income 44 47
Consolidated net income attributable to non-controlling interests 1 5
Consolidated net income attributable to shareholders of Aareal Bank AG 43 42

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Net commission income increased to € 50 million (Q1 2017: € 48 million), which was mainly due to higher sales revenue at Aareon.

The € 6 million net gain on derecognition of loan receivables (Q1 2017: € 10 million) declined due to lower effects from early repayments.

The net gain from financial assets (fvpl) and on hedge accounting in the amount of € 1 million (Q1 2017: € -4 million) mainly results from exchange rate fluctuations.

At € 128 million (Q1 2017: € 139 million), administrative expenses were reduced as expected, thanks to lower running costs.

Overall, this resulted in consolidated operating profit of € 67 million for the first quarter (Q1 2017: € 71 million). Taking into consideration tax expenses of € 23 million and non-controlling interest income of € 1 million, consolidated net income attributable to shareholders of Aareal Bank AG amounted to € 43 million (Q1 2017: € 42 million).

Assuming the pro rata temporis accrual of net interest payments on the AT1 bond, consolidated net income allocated to ordinary shareholders stood at € 39 million (Q1 2017: € 38 million). Earnings per ordinary share amounted to € 0.65 (Q1 2017: € 0.63) and annualised return on equity (RoE) before taxes to 9.7 % (Q1 2017: 9.6 %).

Structured Property Financing segment

Operating profit in the Structured Property Financing segment amounted to € 75 million during the first three months of the financial year (Q1 2017: € 77 million).

Segment net interest income of € 136 million showed an expected decline from the previous year (Q1 2017: € 157 million). This was largely due to the portfolio decline seen in the previous year, reflecting – amongst other factors – the scheduled reduction of the former WestImmo and Corealcredit portfolios, as well as exchange rate fluctuations.

Structured Property Financing segment result

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Net interest income 136 157
Loss allowance 0 2
Net commission income 1 1
Net derecognition gain or loss 6 10
Net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl) 3 -1
Net result on hedge accounting -2 -3
Results from investments accounted for using the equity method
Administrative expenses 74 89
Net other operating income/expenses 5 4
Operating profit 75 77
Income taxes 26 26
Segment result 49 51

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Due to seasonal effects, the result from loss allowance amounted to € 0 million (Q1 2017: € 2 million).

The € 6 million net gain on derecognition of loan receivables (Q1 2017: € 10 million) declined due to lower effects from early repayments.

The net gain from financial assets (fvpl) and on hedge accounting in the amount of € 1 million (Q1 2017: € -4 million) mainly results from exchange rate fluctuations.

At € 74 million (Q1 2017: € 89 million), administrative expenses were reduced as expected, thanks to lower running costs.

Overall, operating profit for the Structured Property Financing segment was € 75 million (Q1 2017: € 77 million). Taking income tax expenses of € 26 million into consideration (Q1 2017: € 26 million), the segment result was € 49 million (Q1 2017: € 51 million).

Consulting/Services segment

Sales revenue generated in the Consulting/Services segment developed positively during the first three months of 2018, totalling € 56 million (Q1 2017: € 54 million), driven particularly by Aareon's higher sales revenues. The persistent low interest rate environment continued to burden margins from the deposit-taking business that are reported in sales revenues.

Staff expenses rose to € 37 million (Q1 2017: € 35 million).

Other items were roughly unchanged from the previous year's levels.

Overall, segment operating profit for 2018 was € -8 million (2016: € -6 million). Aareon's contribution was € 6 million (Q1 2017: € 7 million).

Taking income tax expenses into consideration, the segment result for the first three months of the year was € -5 million (Q1 2017: € -4 million).

Consulting/Services segment result

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 2017
€ mn
Sales revenue 56 54
Own work capitalised 1 1
Changes in inventory 0
Other operating income 1 1
Cost of materials purchased 9 9
Staff expenses 37 35
Depreciation, amortisation and impairment losses 4 3
Results from investments accounted for using the equity method
Other operating expenses 16 15
Interest and similar income/expenses 0 0
Operating profit -8 -6
Income taxes -3 -2
Segment result -5 -4

Financial position

Consolidated total assets as at 31 March 2018 amounted to € 41.3 billion, after € 41.9 billion as at 31 December 2017.

Asset/liability structure1) as at 31 March 2018 (31 December 2017)

2) Excluding € 0.7 billion in private client business (31 December 2017: € 0.8 billion) and € 0.5 billion in local authority lending business by former Westdeutsche ImmobilienBank AG (former WestImmo) (31 December 2017: € 0.5 billion)

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Property financing portfolio

The volume of Aareal Bank Group's property financing portfolio1) stood at €24.6 billion as at 31 March 2018, down by approx. 1.8 % from the year-end level 2017 (€ 25.1 billion). This was due in particular to the scheduled reduction of the non-strategic business, and to currency fluctuations.

At the reporting date (31 March 2018), Aareal Bank Group's property financing portfolio was composed as follows, compared with year-end 2017.

Portfolio allocation by region and continent changed only selectively compared with the end of the previous year. Whilst the German and Eastern European portfolio shares declined by around 1.1 percentage points, respectively, the North American portfolio share rose by about 1.3 percentage points, remaining relatively stable for all other regions.

Also the breakdown of the portfolio by property type changed only marginally during the reporting period. The share of hotel property increased by 1.2 percentage points compared to year-end 2017, whilst the share of office property was reduced by 1.3 percentage points. The share of other property types in the overall portfolio remained almost unchanged compared to the year-end 2017.

All in all, the high degree of diversification by region and property type within the property financing portfolio was maintained during the period under review.

Property financing volume1) (amounts drawn)

Average LTV of property financing1) by region (%) 31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 Germany Western Europe Northern Europe Southern Europe Eastern Europe North America Asia

Note that the loan-to-value ratios are calculated on the basis of drawdowns and market values, including supplementary collateral with sustainable value, excluding defaulted property financings.

1) Excluding former WestImmo's private client business and local authority lending business

1) Excluding former WestImmo's private client business and local authority lending business Note that the loan-to-value ratios are calculated on the basis of drawdowns and market values, including supplementary collateral with sustainable value, excluding defaulted property financings.

Securities portfolio

As at 31 March 2018, the nominal volume of the securities portfolio2) was € 8.0 billion (31 December 2017: € 8.3 billion). The securities portfolio comprises three asset classes: public-sector borrowers, covered bonds and Pfandbriefe, as well as bank bonds. 99 % of the overall portfolio is denominated in euro. 99 % of the portfolio has an investment grade rating.3) More than 75 % of the portfolio fulfils the requirements for "High Quality Liquid Assets" (as defined in the Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR)).

Financial position

Funding and equity

Funding

Aareal Bank Group has remained very solidly funded throughout the first three months of the 2018 financial year. Total long-term refinancing as at 31 March 2018 amounted to € 22.2 billion (31 December 2017: € 22.8 billion), comprising Pfandbrief issues as well as senior unsecured and subordinated issues. As at the reporting date, Aareal Bank also had € 9.3 billion at its disposal in deposits generated from the business with the housing industry (31 December 2017: € 9.2 billion). Money market liabilities amounted to € 4.8 billion (31 December 2017: € 4.8 billion).

The Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) exceeded 150 % on the reporting days during the period under review.

Aareal Bank Group raised € 0.7 billion on the capital market during the first quarter of 2018, including a benchmark mortgage Pfandbrief transaction of € 0.5 billion with a term of 6.3 years. The remaining € 0.2 billion were covered by senior unsecured issues.

Since we conduct our business activities in a range of foreign currencies, we have secured our foreign currency liquidity over the longer term by means of appropriate measures.

Equity

Aareal Bank Group's total equity as disclosed in the statement of financial position amounted to € 2,932 million as at 31 March 2018 (31 December 2017: € 2,924 million), comprising € 300 million in the Additional Tier 1 (AT1) bond and € 2 million in non-controlling interests.

2) As at 31 March 2018, the securities portfolio was carried at € 9.6 billion (31 December 2017: € 9.9 billion).

3) The rating details are based on the composite ratings.

For further information on the transitional effects resulting from the introduction of IFRS 9, please refer to the section "First-time application of IFRS 9 Financial Instruments" in the "Basis of Accounting" section of the Notes.

The regulatory measurement of risk-weighted assets (RWAs) in the area of credit risks is based on both the Advanced Internal Ratings-Based Approach (AIRBA), and on the standardised approach (CRSA). This is subject to various realignments, ("Basel IV", EBA requirements), or a review of underlying approved internal models (TRIM). We cannot rule out any increases which might occur in this context and which may be substantial.

Regulatory indicators1)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017
€ mn
Common Equity Tier 1 (CET 1) 2,200 2,305
Tier 1 (T1) 2,500 2,600
Total capital (TC) 3,421 3,536
%
Common Equity Tier 1 ratio (CET 1 ratio) 19.2 19.6
Tier 1 ratio (T1 ratio) 21.8 22.1
Total capital ratio (TC ratio) 29.8 30.0
Common Equity Tier 1 ratio (CET1 ratio) – Basel IV (estimated)2) 13.5 13.4

1) The proposal of the Management Board and the Supervisory Board for the appropriation of profits for the financial year 2017 was taken into

account for the calculation of regulatory indicators. The appropriation of profits is subject to approval by the Annual General Meeting. 2) Underlying RWA estimate, given a 72.5% output floor based on the final Basel Committee framework dated 7 December 2017, subject to the outstanding EU implementation as well as the implementation of additional regulatory requirements (EBA requirements, TRIM etc.).

Analysis of risk-weighted assets (RWA)

31 March 2018

EAD Risk-weighted assets (RWA) Regulatory capital
AIRBA CRSA Total requirements
€ mn
Credit risks 43,491 8,351 1,312 9,663 773
Companies 26,770 6,270 701 6,971 558
Institutions 3,034 358 14 372 30
Public-sector entities 11,895 0 27 27 2
Other 1,792 1,723 570 2,293 183
Market price risks 180 14
Credit Valuation Adjustment 210 17
Operational risks 1,411 113
Total 43,491 8,351 1,312 11,464 917

31 December 2017

EAD Risk-weighted assets (RWA) Regulatory capital
AIRBA CRSA Total requirements
€ n
Credit risks 44,141 8,577 1,432 10,009 801
Companies 27,539 6,400 778 7,178 574
Institutions 3,065 376 14 390 31
Public-sector entities 11,664 0 21 21 2
Other 1,873 1,801 619 2,420 194
Market price risks 134 11
Credit Valuation Adjustment 209 17
Operational risks 1,433 114
Total 44,141 8,577 1,432 11,785 943

Risk Report

Aareal Bank Group Risk Management

The Annual Report 2017 contains a comprehensive description of Aareal Bank Group's risk management approach, including the corresponding organisational structure and workflows in the lending and trading businesses, as well as the methods and procedures used for measuring and monitoring risk exposure. Within the scope of this interim report, we will once again briefly outline the key components of our risk management structure, together with the key developments during the period under review. The business policy set by the Management Board, and duly acknowledged by the Supervisory Board, provides the conceptual framework for Aareal Bank Group's risk management. Taking this as a basis, and strictly considering the Bank's risk-bearing capacity, we have formulated detailed strategies for managing the various types of risk. These risk strategies, as well as the Bank's business strategy, are adapted to the changed environment at least once a year, adopted by the Management Board, and duly acknowledged by the Supervisory Board. Suitable risk management and risk control processes are deployed to implement the risk strategies, and to ascertain the Bank's ability to bear risk. A monthly internal risk report is prepared for all material types of risk, and submitted to the Bank's Management Board and Supervisory Board.

Risk-bearing capacity and risk limits

The Bank's ability to carry and sustain risk is a core determining factor governing the structure of its risk management system. To ascertain its uninterrupted risk-bearing capacity, Aareal Bank Group has adopted a dual management approach whereby its risk management is primarily based on the assumption of a going concern. This approach ensures that risk positions are only established to an extent that the institution's continued existence will not be threatened should the risks materialise. A secondary management process ensures that risk positions are only established to an extent that even in the event of liquidation there will still be sufficient potential risk cover in order to service all liabilities (the "gone concern" approach). The statements below relate to the going-concern approach which the Bank has implemented as a primary management process.

In accordance with this approach, potential risk cover is determined using data derived from the income statement and from the statement of financial position; this derivation also forms the basis for determining regulatory capital. The risk-bearing capacity concept is based on the conservative planning of Tier 1 capital until the next year-end date, and the subsequent year-end, respectively. This involves setting aside the maximum amount of own funds required as potential risk cover to offset risks without causing a breach of minimum requirements pursuant to the Capital quarter. We are also currently working intensively on the implementation of the ECB's guideline on the Internal Capital Adequacy Assessment Process (ICAAP), published for consultation.

We adopt a conservative stance with respect to setting risk limits. The aggregation of individual limits is based on the assumption that no risk-mitigating correlation effects exist amongst different types of risk. Taking into account the prior deduction of a minimum Tier 1 ratio of 7.75 % of RWA, the value-at-risk models used to quantify risks are based on a confidence interval of 95 % and a one-year holding period (250 trading days). A monthly report provides information regarding the utilisation of individual limits for the material types of risk, as well as on the overall limit utilisation.

Since aggregate risk cover is an inadequate measure to assess the risk-bearing capacity for liquidity risk, we have defined special tools for managing this type of risk. These tools are described in detail in the section "Liquidity risks".

The reduction of regulatory capital, in the course of the changeover to IFRS 9, has an identical impact on aggregate risk cover. Given the use of planned Tier 1 capital, this effect was already accounted for as at 31 December 2017. The regular rolling forward of aggregate risk cover to the planning date of

ness risks).

Requirements Regulation (CRR). Aareal Bank has set Tier 1 (T1) capital (as defined by the CRR) at a level of 7.75 % of forecast risk-weighted assets (RWA) as a deductible, in accordance with regulatory requirements. Only free own funds exceeding this level are applied as potential risk cover, of which a further 10 % is deducted. This deduction is not applied to risk limits, but retained for risk types that cannot be quantified (for example, busi-

31 December 2019 will take place during the second

Risk-bearing capacity of Aareal Bank Group as at 31 March 2018 – Going-concern approach –

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017
€ mn
Own funds for risk cover potential 2,623 2,623
less 7.75% of RWA (Tier 1 capital (T1)) 870 870
Freely available funds 1,753 1,753
Utilisation of freely available funds
Credit risks 307 265
Market risks 189 145
Operational risks 85 86
Investment risks 21 21
Other risks 174 173
Total utilisation 775 690
Utilisation as a percentage of freely available funds 44% 39%

Credit risks

Definition

Aareal Bank defines credit risk – or counterparty credit risk – as the risk of losses being incurred due to (i) a business partner defaulting on contractual obligations; (ii) collateral being impaired; or (iii) a risk arising upon realisation of collateral. Both credit business and trading activities may be subject to counterparty credit risk. Counterparty credit risk exposure from trading activities may refer to risk exposure vis-à-vis counterparties or issuers. Country risk is also defined as a form of counterparty credit risk.

Risk measurement and monitoring

Aareal Bank's structural organisation and business processes are consistently geared towards effective and efficient risk management. Regulatory requirements are fully taken into account for the organisation of operations and workflows in the credit and trading businesses.

Processes in the credit and trading businesses are designed to consistently respect the clear functional division of Sales units ("Markt") and Credit Management ("Marktfolge"), up to and including

Gross carrying amounts as at 31 March 2018 in € bn Commercial property finance business with mandatory rating € 25.8 bn Business not subject to mandatory rating1) € 0.9 bn Loans and advances to sovereign states and local authorities € 6.8 bn Loans and advances to financial institutions € 2.4 bn

Breakdown of on- and off-balance sheet business by rating procedure

1) Including the private client business of former WestImmo

senior management level. The independent Risk Controlling division is responsible for identifying, quantifying and monitoring all material risks at portfolio level, and for maintaining a targeted risk reporting system.

Aareal Bank employs different risk classification procedures tailored to the requirements of the respective type of business for the initial, regular, or event-driven assessment of counterparty credit risk. Forward-looking as well as macro-economic information is taken into consideration for risk classification procedures, and in the valuation of collateral. The respective procedures and parameters are subject to permanent review and adjustment. Responsibility for development, quality assurance, and monitoring implementation of procedures, is outside the Sales units.

Methods used to measure, control and monitor concentration and diversification effects on a portfolio level include two different credit risk models. Based on these models, the Bank's decision-makers are regularly informed of the performance and risk content of property financing exposures, and of business with financial institutions. The models in question allow the Bank to include in particular, rating changes and correlation effects in the assessment of the risk concentrations.

Within the process-oriented monitoring of individual exposures, the Bank uses various tools to monitor exposures on an ongoing basis: besides the tools already described, this includes rating reviews, monitoring of construction phase loans, the monitoring of payment arrears, and the regular, individual analysis of the largest exposures. The intensity of loan coverage is oriented upon the credit risk exposure. Intensified handling triggers recognition of loss allowance, in the amount of lifetime expected credit loss for the financial instrument concerned (Stage 2).

The following tables provide a breakdown of gross carrying amounts of on-balance sheet as well as off-balance sheet credit business, money-market business, and capital markets business, by rating

class and loss allowance stages. Figures are based on Aareal Bank Group's internal default risk rating classes. The default definition follows Article 178 of the CRR.

On-balance sheet commercial property lending with mandatory rating

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 fvpl Total
€ mn
Class 1
Class 2 68 68
Class 3 364 364
Class 4 1,482 1,482
Class 5 2,617 27 2,644
Class 6 3,140 14 58 3,212
Class 7 3,576 3 131 3,710
Class 8 5,451 87 53 5,591
Class 9 3,091 45 2 3,138
Class 10 1,504 7 114 1,625
Class 11 319 108 56 483
Class 12 485 21 506
Class 13 246 65 311
Class 14 3 3
Class 15
Defaulted 1,487 26 1,513
Total 22,100 531 1,487 532 24,650

On-balance sheet loans to financial institutions

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 fvpl Total
€ mn
Class 1
Class 2 1,384 1,384
Class 3 25 25
Class 4 55 55
Class 5 2 2
Class 6 1 1
Class 7 406 406
Class 8 326 143 469
Class 9 3 25 28
Class 10 30 30
Classes 11-18
Defaulted
Total 2,232 168 2,400

On-balance sheet loans and advances to sovereign states and local authorities

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 fvpl Total
€ mn
Class 1 1,557 1,557
Class 2 1,496 1,496
Class 3 1,781 1,781
Class 4 344 344
Class 5 57 57
Class 6 182 182
Class 7 119 119
Class 8 6 72 78
Class 9 133 1,046 1,179
Classes 10-20
Defaulted
Total 5,675 1,118 6,793

Off-balance sheet commercial property lending with mandatory rating

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 fvpl Total
€ mn
Classes 1-3
Class 4 37 37
Class 5 24 24
Class 6 346 346
Class 7 159 159
Class 8 230 9 239
Class 9 116 116
Class 10 122 122
Class 11 15 15
Class 12 2 10 12
Class 13-15
Defaulted 97 97
Total 1,051 19 97 1,167

Monthly reporting covers the material aspects of credit risk; it is supplemented by detailed information – which also fully covers specific credit portfolio developments (broken down by country, property and product type, risk classes, and collateral categories, for example), in line with regulatory requirements – at least on a quarterly basis. Risk concentrations are being taken into account in particular.

Trading activities are generally restricted to counterparties for whom the requisite limits are in place. All trades are immediately taken into account for the purposes of borrower-related limits. Compliance with limits is monitored in real time by Risk Controlling. Persons holding position responsibility are informed about relevant limits and their current usage, regularly and without delay.

est rates, equity prices, exchange rates, and implied volatilities. All relevant parameters are covered by our management and monitoring tools.

as hedging instruments. Spread risks between the various yield curves (e. g. government, Pfandbrief and swap curves) are taken into account. The risk exposure from bonds that is not related to market price or interest rate risks is managed as part of "specific risk", in particular, credit and liquidity risk exposure of the bond portfolio.

Derivative financial instruments are primarily used

Risk measurement and monitoring

Risk Controlling informs the members of the Management Board responsible for Treasury and risk monitoring about the risk position and the market price risk exposure on a daily basis.

Value-at-risk (VaR) has been broadly accepted as the predominant method for measuring general market price risk. The VaR for market price risk quantifies the exposure as a negative divergence from the current aggregate value of the Bank's financial transactions. This absolute amount indicates the potential loss incurred before countermeasures take effect. Since this is a statistical approach, the forecast for the potential loss that may be incurred within a specific period of time is for a given confidence interval only.

A variance-covariance approach (delta-normal method) is used throughout the Group to determine the VaR indicator. Determined on a daily basis for the Group and all its operating units, the VaR figure takes into account the correlation between individual risk types. Statistical parameters used in the VaR model are calculated directly from a 250day historical data pool maintained within the Bank. The loss potential is determined applying a 95 % confidence interval and a 250-day holding period.

By their very nature, VaR calculations are based on numerous assumptions regarding the future development of the business, and the related cash flows. Key assumptions used include current account balances which are factored into calcula-

In principle, Aareal Bank pursues a "buy and manage" strategy in managing its credit portfolio – with the primary objective of holding the majority of loans extended on its balance sheet until maturity; at the same time, targeted exit measures are deployed for actively managing the portfolio and the risks involved.

In summary, during the period under review, the existing set of tools and methods continued to enable the Bank to adopt suitable risk management or risk mitigation measures, where required, at an early stage.

Country risks

Our comprehensive approach to risk management also includes measuring and monitoring country risk exposure. When defining country risk, in addition to the risk of sovereign default or default of state entities, Aareal Bank also considers the risk that a counterparty could become unable to meet its payment obligations as a result of government action, despite being willing and able to pay, due to restrictions being imposed on making payments to creditors (transfer risk). Country risk exposure is managed using a cross-divisional process. The respective country limits are determined on the basis of a country risk assessment by the Bank's senior management. The Risk Controlling division is responsible for the continuous monitoring of country limits and limit utilisation, and for periodical reporting.

Market price risks

Definition

Market price risk is broadly defined as the threat of losses due to changes in market parameters. Aareal Bank Group's market price risk exposure predominantly comprises interest rate risks, whilst currency risks are largely eliminated through hedges. Commodities are irrelevant for the Bank's business. Hence, the primary market price risk exposures are related to the relevant risk parameters of intertions for a period of up to five years, using the average residual amount of deposits observed in the past. Loans are taken into account using their fixed-interest period (for fixed-rate exposures), or using their expected maturity (variable-rate exposures). Aareal Bank Group's consolidated equity is not taken into account as a risk-mitigating item. This tends to overstate VaR, demonstrating the conservative approach adopted in our risk measurement processes.

The limit set for the VaR figure is derived from the analysis of the Bank's risk-bearing capacity, which is carried out at least once a year. Limits are defined at Group level, as well as for the individual Group entities. Being authorised to maintain a trading

book, Aareal Bank AG has defined an additional trading book limit, plus a separate value-at-risk limit for fund assets held.

When interpreting the VaR figures stated below, it should be taken into account that these refer to the overall portfolio (thus including all non-trading positions as defined in IFRSs). In the course of the introduction of IFRS 9, the going-concern approach now also needs to incorporate migration risks emanating from potential stage migrations. At present, the related risks from securities are reflected in the specific interest rate risk. We will be revising our risk taxonomy during the course of the year, implementing the ECB's ICAAP guideline. This will change the breakdown of market risk.

MAX MIN Mean Limit
€ mn
Reporting period (full previous year), 95%, 250-day holding period
Aareal Bank Group – general market price risk 120.1 (173.6) 110.8 (119.6) 114.6 (143.3) – (–)
Group VaR (interest rates) 72.3 (127.6) 61.8 (71.6) 66.3 (97.1) – (–)
Group VaR (FX) 87.3 (98.8) 78.3 (68.9) 83.0 (84.3) – (–)
VaR (investment fund and equities) 3.5 (4.8) 3.2 (2.1) 3.4 (3.8) 20.0 (20.0)
Aggregate VaR in the trading book 0.0 (0.0) 0.0 (0.0) 0.0 (0.0) 5.0 (5.0)
Group VaR (specific risks) 159.3 (79.8) 142.2 (62.0) 150.3 (73.0) – (–)
Group funding risk 9.6 (26.2) 1.9 (3.0) 5.2 (14.7) – (–)
Aggregate VaR – Aareal Bank Group 209.0 (204.6) 184.4 (141.2) 194.2 (175.6) 390.0 (390.0)

The corresponding risk parameters for a one-day holding period are provided below:

MAX MIN Mean Limit
€ mn
Reporting period (full previous year), 95%, 1-day holding period
Aareal Bank Group – general market price risk 7.6 (11.0) 7.0 (7.6) 7.2 (9.1) – (–)
Group VaR (interest rates) 4.6 (8.1) 3.9 (4.5) 4.2 (6.1) – (–)
Group VaR (FX) 5.5 (6.3) 5.0 (4.4) 5.3 (5.3) – (–)
VaR (investment fund and equities) 0.2 (0.3) 0.2 (0.1) 0.2 (0.2) 1.3 (1.3)
Aggregate VaR in the trading book 0.0 (0.0) 0.0 (0.0) 0.0 (0.0) 0.3 (0.3)
Group VaR (specific risks) 10.1 (5.0) 9.0 (3.9) 9.5 (4.6) – (–)
Group funding risk 0.6 (1.7) 0.1 (0.2) 0.3 (0.9) – (–)
Aggregate VaR – Aareal Bank Group 13.2 (12.9) 11.7 (8.9) 12.3 (11.1) 24.7 (24.7)

Aggregate VaR – Aareal Bank Group

Group-wide limits are being continuously monitored as part of the analysis of the Bank's risk-bearing capacity. These limits remained unchanged during the quarter under review; no limit breaches were detected.

Backtesting

The quality of forecasts made using this statistical model is checked through a weekly backtesting process. The quality of the statistical procedure used to measure risk is checked using a binomial test, whereby daily profits and losses from market fluctuations are compared with the upper projected loss limit (VaR) forecast on the previous day (known as "clean backtesting"). In line with the selected confidence level of 95 %, only a small number of events are expected to break out of the VaR projection (≤17 for a 250-day period). Three negative outliers at Group level occurred during the last 250 trading days, affirming the high forecasting quality of the VaR model we use.

Trading book

Being authorised to maintain a trading book, Aareal Bank AG is the Group entity that is in a position to assign transactions to the trading portfolio as defined by the German Banking Act. Given that no such trades were concluded during the period under review, trading book risks played a negligible role in the overall risk scenario during the quarter under review.

Liquidity risks

Liquidity risk in the narrower sense is defined as the risk that current or future payment obligations cannot be met in full or on time. Aareal Bank Group's liquidity risk management system is designed to ensure that the Bank has sufficient cash and cash equivalents to honour its payment obligations at any future point in time. The risk management and monitoring processes have been designed to cover refinancing and market liquidity risks in addition to liquidity risk in the narrower sense.

General market price risk and specific risk during 2018

1) Risk calculations adjusted to IFRS 9 in January 2018

Treasury is responsible for managing liquidity risks. Risk Controlling prepares a daily liquidity report submitted to responsible members of the Management Board.

The appropriateness of the Bank's liquidity is assessed in a liquidity report prepared using an internal liquidity risk model: the aggregate of all potential cash inflows and outflows over a threemonth period is compared to the liquidity stock. There were no liquidity shortages throughout the period under review. Further details are provided in the comments on the Bank's liquidity in the section on "Refinancing and Equity".

Operational risks

The Bank defines operational risk as the threat of losses caused by inappropriate internal procedures, human resources and systems (or their failure), or through external events. This definition also includes legal risks. To the extent that they are caused by operational risks, model, strategic and reputational risks are also taken into consideration within this type of risk. Systemic risks (or their impact on operational risks) are not affected by this.

Aareal Bank's legal department compiles all information concerning any legal disputes involving Aareal Bank Group, whether in or out of court. The involvement of the legal department is based on corresponding Group-wide guidelines. The Bank's decentralised operating legal entities, as well as the legal departments of subsidiaries submit quarterly as well as event-driven reports on legal risks identified to Aareal Bank's legal department, which reports to the Management Board, also (at least) on a quarterly basis. Moreover, information about legal risks is included in operational risk reporting. Aareal Bank's policy for managing and monitoring operational risks is geared to achieving a risk-minimising or loss-limiting effect at an early stage, by employing a pro-active approach. The Risk Report in the 2017 Annual Report contains a detailed description of controlling tools employed by the Bank to manage operational risk, plus the relevant responsibilities.

The current analysis conducted using these control instruments has shown that the Bank is not exposed to disproportionate operational risks; nor did it indicate any material risk concentration.

Operational risk management also includes the reporting to the Bank's Management Board about outsourced activities and processes.

Investment risks

We define investment risk as the threat of unexpected losses incurred due to an impairment of the investment's carrying amount, or a default of loans extended to investees. The concept of investment risk also encompasses additional risks arising from contingencies vis-à-vis the relevant Group entities.

Due to the special character of some exposures (e. g. marketing risks), special methods and procedures are employed to deal with investment risk. All relevant Group entities are subject to regular audits, including a review and assessment of their risk situation. There were no significant changes in investment risk during the period under review.

Report on Expected Developments and Opportunities

Macro-economic environment

Developments for the economy, as well as for financial and capital markets, are exposed to diverse risks and threats – which also have an impact on the commercial property markets. The economic forecast as at the end of March 2018 was characterised by significant uncertainty, such as geopolitical risks, protectionist economic policies, and changing monetary policy.

The low interest rate environment – combined with expected low inflation – continues to be a risk factor in many markets, as it harbours risks for financial stability of a systemic dimension, should it persist for a longer period. Low interest rates can lead to a misallocation of investment capital, possibly resulting in asset-price bubbles. Moreover, market participants are encouraged to take on higher levels of risk. Sudden or excessive changes in interest rates may trigger a revaluation and changes in investor behaviour, potentially leading to a collapse in asset prices. Emerging economies in particular will have to face capital outflows, and may have to raise their own interest rates. Although financial market players are expecting interest rates to rise further in the US, the impact – in parallel with a decline in the Federal Reserve's balance sheet – is as yet unclear. Turmoil in the financial and capital markets may still hurt the global economy. A longer-lasting period of low interest rates complicates an exit from such an environment, heightening the risks for the financial and capital markets. In this context, traditional central bank policy may lose its impact. Low interest rates may also entice a scaling back of reform and consolidation efforts in various sectors.

In the US, we see increased political uncertainty, which might prevent or delay measures to stimulate growth. If this should occur, economic developments might turn out to be weaker. Therefore, simultaneous corrections could occur on those financial and capital markets where expectations of such growth stimulus had led to currency or price increases.

A major risk factor in Europe is the impact of the UK's exit from the EU (Brexit) – in spite of the transitory period agreed upon. We continue to see significant economic risks from this – both for the UK and for the EU. Differences about the EU's future orientation might cause further uncertainty; in this context, political uncertainty in Spain also needs to be mentioned. A separation of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia from the Kingdom of Spain might have negative economic consequences, which are as yet difficult to assess. Furthermore, the formation of a government in Italy is seen as an uncertainty factor. The tense political situation in Turkey is a risk burdening the country's economy.

The sovereign debt crisis might still raise its head again in Europe: the problem of high levels of indebtedness continues to exist. Diverging monetary policy between the US and the euro zone, as well as political reorientation, could also heighten that risk.

In China, there is continued danger that the sharp increase in levels of private debt could lead to a pronounced market correction. Despite a slight

easing of price pressure on the residential property market, the danger of a far-reaching market correction still exists.

Economy

Despite the numerous uncertainty factors and burdens mentioned above, economic momentum – which already prevailed in 2017, driven by strong consumer spending and robust investment – is set to continue this year. The growth rate of real global economic output is expected to slightly exceed the levels seen during 2017. In this context, global trade is expected to provide support, in spite of protectionist measures – which will especially benefit emerging market economies. Moderate inflation in the industrial countries is likely to provide additional support for purchasing power. Still, developments will differ across the regions. Moreover, risks and uncertainty factors, were they to materialise to a substantial extent, could mute the economic development, or even cause recessive tendencies in certain regions.

We anticipate growth in the euro zone in 2018 to be slightly weaker than in 2017 – albeit remaining high in historical comparison. In line with our projections for the region as a whole, most of the euro zone countries relevant to Aareal Bank should show moderate to good economic development. In this connection, we must assume that growth rates in the Netherlands and in Spain will remain high, albeit short of the previous year's levels. We expect stable and robust growth in Germany and France. The Italian economy is likely to continue its recovery, with growth in line with the previous year.

In 2018, the economic development of the EU as a whole is anticipated to be similar to that of the euro zone countries. For the UK, we expect economic growth in line with last year's levels. Brexit will continue to be a burden. The Polish economy is expected to continue growing strongly, albeit at a slightly weaker rate than in the previous year. Economic growth in Denmark and Sweden is forecast to be markedly weaker than in 2017, but still at a good level.

The Turkish economy is expected to show a significantly lower growth rate than in the previous year. Due to the political situation, the outlook is clouded by a high degree of uncertainty. We expect the economy in Russia to exhibit positive growth in 2018, at a comparable level than in the previous year.

In the US, economic growth in this year is anticipated to be slightly more dynamic than the year before, thanks to strong exports and high levels of investment, alongside robust consumption. Whilst uncertainty remains concerning the direction of economic policy, the tax reform adopted in December 2017 is nonetheless likely to provide clearly positive impulses. Protectionist policies might have a dampening effect, on the other hand. In Canada, we anticipate robust, yet slightly lower growth in real economic output, compared to the previous year.

Following a year influenced by non-recurring effects in China, we expect the trend of slowing real GDP growth rates to continue. Factors influencing economic development in China are the targeted reduction of over-capacity in heavy industry and the transition to an overall lower investment ratio. We are still witnessing uncertainty with regard to the increase of macro-economic debt. Moreover, protectionist measures might provide a burden to cross-regional trade as well.

Against a background of a positive economic development, we expect most labour markets across the euro zone as well as in other European countries to register slowly decreasing or virtually stagnating unemployment rates for 2018. The US unemployment rate is also likely to decline slightly.

Financial and capital markets, monetary policy and inflation

The risks and uncertainty factors we have listed so far also apply to the financial and capital markets this year: were they to materialise to a substantial extent, they might cause turbulence on the financial and capital markets. Given this framework, we expect volatility to remain moderate overall – in

spite of higher levels during the first quarter of 2018. We continue to expect that financial and capital markets will remain receptive towards securities issues and refinancings.

The ECB's decision – taken in the previous year – to expand its asset-buying programme, as well as further measures, underscored our expectation that the very expansive monetary policy pursued in the euro zone would remain intact. In this context, there is a possibility that the ECB will terminate its asset-buying programme in the autumn. In contrast, further interest rate hikes are expected in the US, whilst the Fed will likely continue the reduction of its balance sheet. Given the prospect of interest rate adjustments, as indicated by the Bank of England, the likelihood of an increase in UK key interest rates during 2018 has risen. Given the UK's exit from the EU and forecast economic developments, any change is expected to be moderate.

The continued normalisation of monetary policy in the US suggests that further gradual interest rate hikes are on the horizon for this year. Although this may place upside pressure on interest levels in the euro zone and other EU countries, European interest rate levels are expected to remain very low during the remainder of the year given the ECB's very loose monetary policy stance.

Euro zone inflation is expected to be roughly in line with the levels seen in 2017 – accordingly, we assume the euro zone inflation rate to remain clearly below 2% for the full year 2018. The average inflation rate in the US for the full year is anticipated to be slightly higher than in the euro zone, but likely to remain at the previous year's level. In China, inflation is likely to return to a rate just over 2 %.

Regulatory environment

The trend towards a tighter regulatory framework in the banking business is set to persist during the coming years. For instance, the finalisation of the Basel III framework, adopted by the Basel Committee's Group of Governors and Heads of

Supervision (GHOS), will bring about extensive changes to the approaches used for determining risk-weighted capital requirements (a concept known as "Basel IV").

EBA has also finalised its Guidelines related to the Internal Capital Adequacy Assessment Process (ICAAP) and the Internal Liquidity Adequacy Assessment Process (ILAAP). In addition, the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) has developed expectations regarding the structure of ICAAP and ILAAP based on a multi-year plan. These expectations are set to be specified in more detail in 2018.

Furthermore, the Target Review of Internal Models within Pillar 1 has not yet been completed.

Regulators have yet to come up with final details for some of these additional regulatory requirements; hence, various technical standards, guidelines and regulations still have to be finalised. Moreover, EBA has published guidelines for PD and LGD estimates, and on the treatment of defaulted exposures, which must be implemented by the end of 2020.

To facilitate the timely implementation, we have already continued to pursue the individual issues in numerous projects – devoting considerable resources to this task.

The volatility of requirements presents an additional challenge for institutions: besides the new requirements mentioned by way of example, this volatility is particularly a function of the concrete specifications for instruments implemented by the ECB and/or the national supervisory authorities. For instance, the capital buffers to be set on a national level (the anticyclical buffer and the buffer for systemic risks), or the annual results of the Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process (SREP) for individual banks, can only be planned to a certain extent. Moreover, these instruments may lead to changes in a bank's individual capital requirements, at short notice.

Sector-specific and business developments

Structured Property Financing segment

During the year 2018, commercial property will continue to be a sought-after asset class in many markets. Global transaction volumes are therefore expected to remain high. Given the shortage of available first-class properties on offer, and rising total revenue requirements, investor interest in properties outside the top segment will likely increase compared to previous years. Investor demand is thus expected to continue supporting market values1) of commercial property this year. Nonetheless, commercial property markets are also exposed to major risks and threats. An excessively sharp interest rate hike – originating from the US – may have a negative effect on performance. Moreover, other uncertainty factors and risks in the macro-economic environment are also relevant for commercial property markets.

Several factors will impact the market value of commercial property during the remainder of the year. Whilst the stable economy and the prevailing low interest rate environment will support property values, political uncertainty and a potentially significant interest rate increase can reduce values. Expansive monetary policy in numerous currency areas supports the upward trend in market values, which has now been intact for a very long time. Still, market cycles have not been invalidated. This means that cyclical downturns are possible as well.

We anticipate a largely stable development in the market values of commercial property in many markets this year.

We expect a stable development of market values in most European countries in 2018, including Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden. For Germany, France and Spain on the other hand, we consider

1) Assessments of individual sub-markets and properties may deviate from the general description of developments on commercial property markets outlined below.

slightly positive growth to be possible. The situation in the UK is subject to uncertainty because of the Brexit vote. Market values could fall in some sub-markets, although we anticipate a stable development overall. Political unknowns in Turkey lead to uncertainty, which may have a negative impact on the market values of commercial property. We believe property values in Russia will stabilise in the current year due to the slight economic recovery.

In the US, backed by the relatively positive economic outlook, values are expected to show a slightly positive trend. Increasing interest rates pose certain risks for this development. In Canada, we see a probability for a stable performance.

In China, market values for commercial property are expected to remain stable.

The trends described above are expected to apply to office, retail and logistics properties.

We expect a slightly positive development overall in 2018 on the hotel markets of Europe's most significant economic centres. Looking at occupancy ratios, we see potential for further slight increases in numerous markets, including in Berlin and Paris. Likewise, we expect average revenues per available hotel room to further improve in most markets – in Paris and Madrid, for example. The difficult political situation in Turkey will continue to have negative implications for the hotel markets. Occupancy ratios in London are highly likely to show a slight decline, to still elevated levels – whereas we consider a possibility of average revenues per available hotel room to slightly rise year-on-year.

We believe a slight improvement on average in revenues per available room is likely in the US, with stable or slightly lower occupancy ratios. In Canada, we anticipate increases for both indicators – albeit short of the momentum seen in the previous year, which was driven by the 150th anniversary celebrations of the foundation of the Canadian Confederation.

In Asia, we anticipate occupancy ratios and average revenues per available room to remain stable throughout 2018 in the hotel markets of many metropolitan areas.

The intense competition in commercial property financing is also likely to persist in many markets during the current year, so that we assume that lenders will be willing to lower margins. We anticipate a virtually stable development in loan-tovalue ratios across the various regions. Banks are expected to continue adhering to their preference for financing first-class properties in top locations. Investors' readiness to finance properties outside top locations will increase.

We have incorporated various market aspects and our "Aareal 2020" programme for the future, amongst other factors, in our assessment of anticipated new business volumes for the current year. For the Structured Property Financing segment, we are targeting new business of between € 7 billion and € 8 billion for the 2018 financial year, whereby the focus is set to remain on the high-margin US market. Aareal Bank Group's property financing portfolio – including the private client business and local authority lending business of former West-Immo – should amount to between € 25 billion and € 28 billion at the end of 2018, subject to currency fluctuations. Within the framework of our "Aareal 2020" programme for the future, syndication is set to be one of the instruments for managing the portfolio, and managing risk. Syndication is a suitable tool here, which also offers scope for providing larger-scale financing solutions.

The forecasts are based on the assumption that the macro-economic risks and uncertainty factors described above will not materialise to a significant extent, or only in a manageable manner: otherwise, they might influence business development, for example, in terms of new business.

Consulting/Services segment

Bank division Housing Industry

We expect the development for the German housing and commercial property industries to be characterised by a high degree of stability in the current year, thanks mainly to largely constant

rental returns and long-term financing structures. Demand for new housing and the completion of corresponding properties in urban areas is still significantly higher than in rural areas. Moreover, the prevailing urbanisation trend is likely to further boost demand for housing in the major cities and their surrounding areas. Hence, it is fair to expect further rent increases – with a stagnation of rent levels only feasible in rural areas.

We see good opportunities during 2018 to acquire new clients and to intensify the business relationships with our existing client base. This also applies to utilities and the waste disposal industry. In addition, in line with our "Aareal 2020" programme for the future, we are investing into the expansion of the "Housing Industry Ecosystem", the cross-sector development of interface products, and the expansion to adjacent ecosystems. We will also examine cooperations with Fintech and Proptech companies.

We expect the volume of deposits taken to remain on a high level. The persistent low interest rate environment, which is relevant for the results from our deposit-taking business, will continue to burden segment results. However, the importance of this business goes way beyond the interest margin generated from the deposits, which is under pressure in the current market environment. This is because the deposits from the housing industry represent a strategically important additional source of funding for Aareal Bank.

Aareon

Aareon will continue in 2018 to pursue the growth strategy based on its strategy programme integrated in the "Aareal 2020" programme for the future. Both sales revenue and Aareon's contribution to consolidated operating profit are expected to rise significantly. Key success factors are the expansion of digital solutions within the Aareon Smart World portfolio, strengthening the ERP business, and growing activities targeting the commercial property markets in the Netherlands and in Germany. Furthermore, the structural organisation in the UK and Sweden are set to be optimised, with a view to more intensively exploiting the inherent potential

regarding the existing customer base in these countries.

In Germany, Aareon anticipates higher sales revenues in the ERP business, especially from the acquisition of the mse companies and the continued migration of GES customers to Wodis Sigma. Likewise, stronger demand is seen for digital solutions such as Immoblue Pro, Aareon CRM in conjunction with the tenant app, as well as for mobile services. Moreover, Aareon envisages being able to maintain the previous year's positive trend in the outsourcing business, and to achieve further increases.

Sales revenue generated from ERP products in the international business will be slightly above the previous year's levels, whilst they are expected to remain unchanged year-on-year in France, the Netherlands and the UK. Incit Xpand, the solution for the Scandinavian markets, is a growth driver here.

Sales revenues from digital solutions will also be significantly up year-on-year in the international business: in the UK, the CRM solution 360° Tenant Portal and a new release of the mobile solution are expected to generate additional demand. In the Netherlands, besides CRM solutions, growth is envisaged in the digital solutions Facilitor (for facility management), Trace & Treasury (for the management of assets), and ShareWorX (for case management). In France, the Building Relationship Management (BRM) and Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) solutions – newly-developed in 2017 – are expected to generate growth.

Based on the explanations outlined above, Aareon envisages a marked overall increase in sales revenue, as well as profits, for 2018. Aareon's contribution to consolidated operating profit is expected to amount to approximately € 40 million.

Business strategy

Aareal Bank Group's strategy focuses on sustainable business success. With its Group-wide "Aareal 2020" programme for the future, the Bank is addressing the challenges of the future. In an

environment characterised by technological change, altered client needs and fiercer competition, this programme allows us to secure our strong foundation while also leveraging new revenue potential. Aareal Bank developed an extensive strategic roadmap for the implementation of "Aareal 2020", including various initiatives and projects for the further development of the Group. One of the top priorities is unlocking new revenue potential in both segments; another is to adapt structures and processes to its stakeholders' requirements in a digital world.

Group targets

We anticipate the challenging business environment to prevail during the current financial year – with continued low interest rates in Europe, and strong competitive and margin pressure on key target markets. Against this background, we will continue to adhere to our business policy with a strict focus on risks and returns. We will further accelerate our strategic development, within the framework of the "Aareal 2020" programme for the future, in order to safeguard the Group's longterm success – in a business environment that is set to remain highly challenging in the future.

We anticipate consolidated net interest income for the full year 2018 between € 570 million and € 610 million, including the net result from the derecognition of financial assets and liabilities not measured at fair value through profit or loss – which will be reported separately, in accordance with IFRS 9, as of 2018. Allowance for credit losses is expected to remain in a range between € 50 million and €80 million. Net commission income, whose importance for the Group is continuously rising due to the expansion of business activities in the Consulting/Services segment, is anticipated to rise further, to between € 215 million and € 235 million. Administrative expenses are expected to decline to between € 470 million and € 500 million.

Against this background, we expect consolidated operating profit for the current year to be in a range between € 260 million and € 300 million; this is in line with the previous year's figure, adjusted for the positive non-recurring effect related to Corealcredit. We envisage RoE before taxes of between 9.5 % and 11.0 % for the current financial year, with earnings per share between € 2.60 and € 3.00. We affirm our medium-term target RoE of around 12 % before taxes.

We will continue the reduction of non-strategic portfolios in the Structured Property Financing segment during 2018. At the same time, our core credit portfolio is planned to grow in line with respective market conditions. Overall, Aareal Bank Group's property financing portfolio – including the private client business and local authority lending business of former WestImmo – is expected to remain stable, amounting to between € 25 billion and € 28 billion at the end of 2018, subject to currency fluctuations. We are targeting new business between € 7 billion and € 8 billion for the current year, with a continued focus on the high-margin US market. In the Consulting/Services segment, we expect our IT subsidiary Aareon to provide a markedly higher contribution of approximately € 40 million to consolidated operating profit.

Subject to further regulatory changes, Aareal Bank considers a target CET1 ratio (post-finalisation of Basel III – so-called "Basel IV") of around 12.5 % to be appropriate. The Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) is expected to be at least 150 %.

Consolidated Interim Financial Statements Statement of Comprehensive Income

Income Statement

Note 1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Interest income from financial assets (ac and fvoci) 156 177
Interest income from financial assets (fvpl) 6
Interest income from financial liabilities (ac) 2 1
Market-driven modification gains 1 n/a
Interest expenses from financial liabilities (ac) 26 21
Interest expenses from financial liabilities (fvpl) 2 n/a
Interest expenses from financial assets (ac) 3 3
Market-driven modification losses 1 n/a
Net interest income 1 133 154
Loss allowances excluding credit-driven net modification gain or loss 0 2
Credit-driven net modification gain or loss n.a.
Loss allowance 2 0 2
Commission income 60 57
Commission expenses 10 9
Net commission income 3 50 48
Net gain or loss on the derecognition of financial assets (ac) 6 10
Net gain or loss on the derecognition of financial liabilities (ac) 0
Net gain or loss on the derecognition of financial assets (fvoci)
Net derecognition gain or loss 4 6 10
Net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl) 5 3 -1
Net result on hedge accounting 6 -2 -3
Results from investments accounted for using the equity method
Administrative expenses 7 128 139
Net other operating income/expenses 8 5 4
Operating profit 67 71
Income taxes 23 24
Consolidated net income 44 47
Consolidated net income attributable to non-controlling interests 1 5
Consolidated net income attributable to shareholders of Aareal Bank AG 43 42
Earnings per share (EpS)
Consolidated net income attributable to shareholders of Aareal Bank AG2) 43 42
of which: allocated to ordinary shareholders 39 38
of which: allocated to AT1 investors 4 4
Earnings per ordinary share (in €)3) 0.65 0.63
Earnings per AT1 unit (in €)4) 0.04 0.04

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

2) The allocation of earnings is based on the assumption that net interest payable on the AT1 bond is recognised on an accrual basis.

3) Earnings per ordinary share are determined by dividing the earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders of Aareal Bank AG by the weighted average of ordinary shares outstanding during the financial year (59,857,221 shares). Basic earnings per ordinary share correspond to diluted earnings per ordinary share.

4) Earnings per AT1 unit (based on 100,000,000 AT1 units with a notional amount of € 3 each) are determined by dividing the earnings attributable to AT1 investors by the weighted average of AT1 units outstanding during the financial year. Earnings per AT1 unit (basic) correspond to (diluted) earnings per AT1 unit.

Statement of Comprehensive Income

Reconciliation from Consolidated Net Income to Total Comprehensive Income

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Consolidated net income 44 47
Items that will not be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss
Changes in the reserve from remeasurements of defined benefit plans 3
Remeasurements 4
Taxes -1
Changes in the reserve from the measurement of equity instruments (fvoci)
Gains and losses from equity instruments (fvoci)
Transfers to retained earnings
Taxes
Items that are reclassified subsequently to profit or loss
Changes in the reserve from the measurement of debt instruments (fvoci) -5 -2
Gains and losses from debt instruments (fvoci) -7 -2
Reclassifications to the income statement
Taxes 2 0
Changes in the reserve from hedges of net investments 4 2
Gains and losses from hedges of net investments 5 3
Reclassifications to the income statement
Taxes -1 -1
Changes in hedging reserves -16
Profit/loss from derivatives used to hedge future cash flows -24
Reclassifications to the income statement
Taxes 8
Changes in the reserve from foreign currency basis spreads 0
Gains and losses from foreign currency basis spreads 0
Reclassifications to the income statement
Taxes 0
Changes in currency translation reserves -7 -3
Profit/loss from translating foreign operations' financial statements -7 -3
Reclassifications to the income statement
Taxes
Other comprehensive income -8 -16
Total comprehensive income 36 31
Total comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interests 1 5
Total comprehensive income attributable to shareholders of Aareal Bank AG 35 26

Statement of Financial Position

€ mn
Assets
Financial assets (ac)
9
33,761
33,715
38,438
Cash funds (ac)
2,501
2,081
1,786
Loan receivables (ac)
25,440
26,316
29,767
Money market and capital market receivables (ac)
5,730
5,225
6,800
Receivables from other transactions (ac)
90
93
85
Loss allowance (ac)
10
-540
-540
-554
Financial assets (fvoci)
11
4,277
5,424
5,948
Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci)
4,273
5,422
5,947
Equity instruments (fvoci)
4
2
2
Financial assets (fvpl)
12
2,964
2,449
2,984
Loan receivables (fvpl)
532
196

Money market and capital market receivables (fvpl)
250


Positive market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl)
1,327
1,926
2,481
Positive market value of other derivatives (fvpl)
855
327
502
Investments accounted for using the equity method
7
7
0
Intangible assets
13
153
153
126
Property and equipment
14
251
253
252
Income tax assets
68
52
68
Deferred tax assets
82
99
134
Other assets
15
284
296
312
Total
41,307
41,908
47,708
Equity and liabilities
Financial liabilities (ac)
16
36,188
36,630
40,587
Money market and capital market liabilities (ac)
25,525
26,109
29,935
Deposits from the housing industry (ac)
9,315
9,164
9,191
Liabilities from other transactions (ac)
111
92
95
Subordinated capital (ac)
1,237
1,265
1,366
Financial liabilities (fvpl)
17
1,533
1,703
3,181
Negative market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl)
1,250
1,479
2,529
Negative market value of other derivatives (fvpl)
283
224
652
Provisions
18
570
570
680
Income tax liabilities
31
29
71
Deferred tax liabilities
17
19
28
Other liabilities
19
36
33
32
Equity
20, 21, 22
2,932
2,924
3,129
Subscribed capital
180
180
180
Capital reserves
721
721
721
Retained earnings
1,781
1,798
1,734
AT1 bond
300
300
300
Other reserves
-52
-77
-48
Non-controlling interests
2
2
242
Total
41,307
41,908
47,708
Note 31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171) 31 Dec 20161)

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format; recognised amounts of the previous period as at 1 January 2017 correspond to the recognised amounts as at 31 December 2016

Statement of Changes in Equity

Equity
as at
1 Jan 20181)
Adjustment
due to
first-time
application
of IFRS 9
Adjusted
equity as at
1 Jan 2018
Total
compre
hensive
income for
the period
Payments
to non
controlling
interests
Dividends AT1
coupon
Other
changes
Equity
as at
31 Mar 2018
€ mn
Subscribed capital 180 180 180
Capital reserves 721 721 721
Retained earnings 1,798 -60 1,738 43 1,781
AT1 bond 300 300 300
Other reserves -77 33 -44 -8 -52
Reserve from remeasurements
of defined benefit plans
-91 -91 -91
Reserve from the measurement
of equity instruments (fvoci)
0 0 0
Reserve from the measurement
of debt instruments (fvoci)
24 29 53 -5 48
Reserve from hedges of net
investments
7 7 4 11
Hedging reserves -1 1
Reserve from changes in the
value of foreign currency basis
spreads
3 3 0 3
Currency translation reserve -16 -16 -7 -23
Total 2,922 -27 2,895 35 2,930
Non-controlling interests 2 2 1 -1 2
Equity 2,924 -27 2,897 36 -1 2,932
Other reserves
€ mn Sub
scribed
capital
Capital
reserves
Retained
earnings
AT1 bond Reserve from
remeasurements
of defined
benefit plans
Revaluation
surplus
Hedging
reserves
Currency
translation
reserves
Total Non
controlling
interests
Equity
Equity as at
1 January 2017 180 721 1,734 300 -100 29 17 6 2,887 242 3,129
Total comprehensive
income for the period
42 3 -2 -16 -1 26 5 31
Payments to non
controlling interests
-5 -5
Dividends
AT1 coupon
Other changes -8 -8 -241 -249
Equity as at
31 March 2017
180 721 1,768 300 -97 27 1 5 2,905 1 2,906

Statement of Cash Flows (condensed)

€ mn 2018 20171)
Cash and cash equivalents as at 1 January 2,081 1,786
Cash flow from operating activities 448 -685
Cash flow from investing activities 0 5
Cash flow from financing activities -28 -42
Total cash flow 420 -722
Effect of changes in exchange rates 0 0
Cash and cash equivalents as at 31 March 2,501 1,064

Notes (condensed)

Basis of Accounting

Legal framework

Aareal Bank AG is a listed public limited company incorporated under German law, with its registered office in Wiesbaden, Germany. It is the parent company of an international property finance and services group.

This quarterly financial report for the period ended 31 March 2018 was prepared pursuant to the provisions of section 37w of the German Securities Trading Act (Wertpapierhandelsgesetz – "WpHG") in conjunction with section 37y no. 2 of the WpHG and was approved for publication by the Management Board on 4 May 2018. It comprises the present interim condensed consolidated financial statements, as well as an interim group management report.

Aareal Bank AG prepares its condensed interim consolidated financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) applicable within the European Union (EU) as at the reporting date, in connection with the provisions pursuant to section 315e (1) of the German Commercial Code (Handelsgesetzbuch – "HGB"). In particular, the interim consolidated financial statements comply with the requirements for interim financial reporting set out in IAS 34. The reporting currency is the euro (€).

Reporting entity structure

Subsidiaries of Aareal Bank AG are included in the consolidated financial statements by way of full consolidation. Companies over which Aareal Bank AG may exercise a significant influence ("associates") are included in the consolidated financial statements, using the equity method.

There were no changes to the basis of consolidation during the period under review.

Accounting Policies

Accounting standards

Recognition and measurement within Aareal Bank Group are based on accounting policies applied consistently throughout the Group. The consolidated financial statements are prepared on a going concern basis.

We generally apply accounting policies – and the presentation of financial statements – consistently, in order to ensure the comparability of financial statements over time. The classification format was adjusted within the framework of the first-time application of IFRS 9.

Information is presented in accordance with the principle of materiality. Minor differences may occur regarding the figures stated, due to rounding.

The Bank observes the general prohibition of setting off assets against liabilities. To the extent that the criteria of IAS 12.74 are met, deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities are offset. If the requirements set out in IAS 32.42 are met, financial assets and liabilities are reported on a net basis.

Income and expenses are recognised on an accrual basis and recorded in the income statement in the period to which they relate.

Interest income and expenses are recognised using the effective interest method. In the case of impaired receivables, interest income and expenses are recognised only up to the amount of the net carrying amount. Interest from derivatives designated for hedge accounting and economic hedging relationships is included in net interest income. Negative interest from financial assets and positive interest from financial liabilities are reported separately in the income statement. These assets and liabilities are deposits as well as money market and securities repurchase transactions.

Dividend income is recognised when there is a corresponding legal title.

Commission income and expenses include revenue from the provision of goods or services in the ordinary course of business. This mainly refers to IT consulting projects, trainings, licence and maintenance agreement as well as hosting or outsourcing services. Revenue recognition is assessed on the basis of the 5-step model. If the performance obligation is not satisfied over time, it is satisfied at a certain point in time.

The presentation of the financial position and the financial performance in the consolidated financial statements depends on the recognition and measurement methods underlying the preparation of the financial statements, as well as on estimates and assumptions made by the management in relation to uncertain future events. Any assessments required for recognition and measurement are prepared in line with the relevant accounting standards. Estimates and assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors, such as planning and current expectations and forecasts with respect to the occurrence of future events. The estimates and assessments themselves as well as the underlying assessment factors and estimation techniques are reviewed regularly and compared with actual outcome. In our view, the parameters used are relevant and reasonable.

The most significant estimates and assumptions of the management primarily refer to the calculation of provisions, loss allowances and provisions in the lending business, the measurement of goodwill, property and tax assets and liabilities. We refer to the item-specific disclosures in this section for information related to the estimates and assumptions actually made within the context of recognition and measurement.

An asset is recognised in the statement of financial position when it is probable that an associated future economic benefit will flow to the Company and the asset can be measured reliably.

A liability is recognised if it is probable that an outflow of resources embodying economic benefits will be required to settle the obligation and when the settlement amount of the liability can be measured with sufficient reliability.

Changes in accounting policies

Unless specifically indicated otherwise, the accounting policies applied in the preparation of the consolidated financial statements 2017 were also applied in the preparation of these condensed interim consolidated financial statements, including the calculation of comparative figures.

The following financial reporting standards (IASs/IFRSs) were required to be applied for the first time in the reporting period:

IFRS 9 Financial Instruments

IFRS 9 Financial Instruments introduces new rules for the accounting of financial instruments, and generally replaced IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement as at 1 January 2018. We present the changes in the chapter "First-time application of IFRS 9 Financial Instruments" in this section.

IFRIC 22 Foreign Currency Transactions and Advance Consideration

The objective of this interpretation is to clarify the accounting treatment of transactions that include the receipt or payment of consideration in a foreign currency.

IFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers

IFRS 15 governs the recognition of revenue from contracts with customers based on a uniform model. The standard supersedes the current revenue recognition provisions set out in IAS 11 and IAS 18 as well as the related interpretations. IFRS 15 has to be applied by all companies that enter into contracts with customers for the delivery of goods or the provision of services unless these contracts are within the scope of other standards. Accordingly, amongst other things, financial instruments and other contractual rights or obligations within the scope of IAS 39 or IFRS 9 are excluded from the scope of IFRS 15. The core principle of IFRS 15 for revenue recognition is that an entity has to recognise revenue when the performance obligations assumed are satisfied, i.e. when control over the goods and services has been transferred. Revenue has to be recognised in an amount that reflects the consideration that the entity expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. IFRS 15 introduces a 5-step model based on which the amount and the timing of revenue recognition are determined. In addition, the standard requires additional disclosures, including, amongst other things, a disaggregation of total revenue, performance obligations, a reconciliation of opening and closing balances of contractual net assets and liabilities as well as significant judgements and estimates. Aareal Bank Group has reviewed the effects of the new standard on the consolidated financial statements by analysing the relevant standard contracts on the basis of the 5-step model. Within the Group, these changes mainly affect Aareon. Aareon has adjusted its processes. The modified retrospective approach did not have any material consequences for Aareal Bank Group.

Annual Improvements Cycle 2014 – 2016

Within the scope of the Annual Improvements Cycles, the IASB publishes clarifications and minor changes to the existing standards IFRS 1, IFRS 12 and IAS 28.

Amendments to IAS 40: Transfers of Investment Property

The amendments clarify the provisions regarding transfers to or from investment property. The amendments mainly refer to the question whether property under construction or in development that was previously classified as inventory can be reclassified to the investment property category when there is evidence of a change in use.

Clarifications to IFRS 15: Revenue from Contracts with Customers

In April 2016, the IASB issued the final version of the amendment standard IFRS 15. The amendment includes clarifications regarding various rules set out in IFRS 15, and also simplifications concerning the transition to the new standard. The clarifications refer to the identification of the service obligations from a contract, the assessment as to whether a company acts as principal or agent of a transaction, and the assessment as to whether revenue from a licence granted has to be recognised either as at a particular reporting date or during a specific period. The simplifications refer to options regarding the presentation of contracts that are either completed at the beginning of the earliest period presented, or which were modified prior to the beginning of the earliest period presented. This is to reduce the complexity and costs of the transition to the new standard.

Amendments to IFRS 2: Classification and Measurement of Share-based Payment Transactions

In June 2016, the IASB issued amendments to IFRS 2 that clarify classification and measurement of share-based payment transactions. The amendments relate to the following areas: (i) accounting for cash-settled share-based payment transactions that include a performance condition, (ii) the classification of share-based payment transactions with a settlement feature for withholding tax obligations and (iii) accounting for modifications of share-based payment transactions that change the classification from "cash-settled" to "equity-settled".

Amendments to IFRS 4: Applying IFRS 9 Financial Instruments with IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts

In September 2016, the IASB issued amendments to IFRS 4. The amendments refer to the first-time application of IFRS 9 by insurers. Due to different effective dates for IFRS 9 and the new standard for insurance contracts, without these amendments, results will be more volatile for a transitional period; in addition, conversion efforts will be doubled.

Except for IFRS 9, the revised standards did not have any material consequences for the consolidated financial statements of Aareal Bank Group.

Revised International Financial Reporting Standards Issued endorsed Effective date
Annual Improvements Cycle 2014-2016 December 2016 February 2018 Financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2017
and 1 January 2018, respectively
IAS 40 Transfers of Investment Property December 2016 March 2018 Financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2018
IFRS 2 Classification and Measurement of
Share-based Payment Transactions
June 2016 February 2018 Financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2018
IFRS 9 Prepayment Features with Negative Compensation October 2017 March 2018 Financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2019

The following financial reporting standards (IASs/IFRSs) were endorsed by the EU:

Aareal Bank Group did not opt for early application of these standards in 2018, which are required to be applied in future financial years.

Aareal Bank Group is currently reviewing the effects of the application of the new and amended financial reporting standards on the consolidated financial statements.

First-time application of IFRS 9 Financial Instruments

IFRS 9 Financial Instruments introduces new rules for the accounting of financial instruments, and generally replaced IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement from 1 January 2018. The firsttime application had an effect of € -27 million (after taxes) on equity carried on the statement of financial position, and of € -17 million on regulatory equity (full Basel III implementation pursuant to Directive 2013/36/EU and Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and the Council). The effect of first-time application comprises various individual effects.

Under the new model for classification and measurement of financial assets, the subsequent measurement of financial assets is based on three categories with different measurement methods and different recognition methods related to changes in value:

  • "Financial assets measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method",
  • "Financial assets at fair value through other comprehensive income", and
  • "Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss".

The classification to the measurement categories is based on the criteria of business model and contractual characteristics of the financial assets (the so-called "SPPI criterion"). The allocation of financial instruments to the business models was made as at 1 January 2018. The major portion of the financial instruments was allocated to the "amortised cost" measurement category. We recorded a positive overall effect of € 28 million (after taxes) from the transition on the revaluation surplus, due to the reversal of the revaluation surplus from securities reclassified in accordance with IAS 39, and from changes in the measurement category of individual securities (to fvpl, because the SPPI criterion is not met, or due to an assignment to the residual business model). In addition, adjustments during the contract term that lead to a change in the contractual cash flows, but that are not of an extent that the previous financial asset is derecognised and a new financial asset is recognised, will result in non-substantial modifications. In this case, the carrying amount of a financial asset is adjusted and a modification gain or loss is determined. The transition effect from market-driven modifications amounted to € -6 million (after taxes). Credit-driven modification effects are included in the effects resulting from the allocation of items into the Stage 3 category of loss allowances.

There are special rules for equity instruments as there is an option to measure these either through other comprehensive income or through profit or loss. This did not have any transition effect.

The accounting rules for financial liabilities do not result in any material changes. An exception to this is the inclusion of changes from own credit risk in case of financial liabilities measured at fair value through profit or loss. These changes may not be recognised through profit or loss, but through other comprehensive income. The Group currently does not have any financial liabilities measured at fair value.

The new rules for impairment (expected credit loss model) replaced the previous incurred credit loss model. The objective of this is an earlier measurement and recognition of loss allowances. IFRS 9 prescribes three stages which are used to determine the amount of the loss allowances to be recognised and the recognition of interest. Financial assets are allocated to Stage 1. Twelve-month expected credit losses are recognised for these assets. If the credit risk increases significantly, the loss allowance is increased to the total amount of lifetime expected credit losses (Stage 2). If there is objective evidence of impairment in relation to a financial asset, a loss allowance at an amount equal to the expected credit losses over the entire remaining term also has to be recognised and, in addition, interest revenue has to be recognised

based on the net carrying amount (Stage 3). The impairment model set out in IFRS 9 has to be applied to financial assets of the categories "Measured at amortised cost" and "Measured at fair value through other comprehensive income" as well as to loan commitments and financial guarantees. In addition, lease receivables and trade receivables are covered by the new impairment rules. To the extent that financial instruments are measured at fair value through profit or loss, no loss allowance is recognised for such financial instruments; instead, they are reported at their net carrying amount.

Portfolio-based allowances for credit losses were already recognised within the Group under IAS 39. Calculation under Stage 1 in accordance with IFRS 9 continues to be on the basis of a twelve-month loss. In Stage 2, additions to loss allowances were recognised due to the recognition of a loss allowance at an amount equal to the expected credit losses over the entire remaining term. The transition effect for Stage 1 and Stage 2 amounted to approximately € -27 million (after taxes).

Specific allowances for credit losses pursuant to IAS 39 were recognised where estimated future cash flows fall below the carrying amount of a loan receivable. This methodology was developed further into a probability-weighted multi-scenario analysis. The transition effect amounted to € -22 million (after taxes) for Stage 3.

Hedge accounting rules were changed by establishing a closer relationship between the entity's risk management strategy, the reasons for entering into hedging instruments and the recognition of hedging relationships in the entity's financial statements. Non-derivative items may also be included in hedge accounting; net positions are now also eligible for designation as hedges. A voluntary discontinuation of hedge accounting – so-called de-designation – is no longer permitted under the new regulations. Hedging relationships may only be discontinued when the objective of risk management has been changed. In contrast, the new IFRS 9 allows for an adjustment of hedging relationships if this is necessary (rebalancing). The requirements regarding effectiveness have also been simplified: only qualitative assessments of effectiveness and prospective effectiveness tests have to be performed. In addition, foreign currency basis spreads may be recognised as part of the costs of the hedge. Changes in the fair value due to this component are recognised directly in equity in the reserve from foreign currency basis spreads. Due to the separation of the macro hedge accounting project from IFRS 9 and its postponement, the application of the new hedge accounting rules in IFRS 9, for the time being, allows for the continued application of special rules for – fair value hedge accounting for portfolio hedges of interest rate risks in IAS 39. The Group does not currently use this option. The Group uses the simplifications under micro-hedge accounting and for foreign currency basis spreads. This did not have any transition effect on equity.

IFRS 9 comprises comprehensive disclosure requirements, above all in the area of impairments, leading to numerous new requirements. The disclosures on financial instruments continue to be based on IFRS 7, which was amended and significantly extended in the context of the publication of IFRS 9.

Due to the introduction of IFRS 9 and in order to increase the transparency of the financial statements, the classification format was adjusted. The following table (p. 42) shows a reconciliation of the financial instruments by measurement categories under IAS 39 to IFRS 9 (before taxes).

IAS 39

Revaluation

IAS 39
31 Dec 2017
classified
31 Dec 2017
Reclassi
fication
OCI Retained
earnings
IFRS 9
1 Jan 2018
€ mn
Financial assets (ac)
Cash funds (ac) 2,081 2,081
from cash funds (lar)
2,081
Loan receivables (ac) 26,316 25,885
from loans and advances to banks (lar)
5
from loans and advances to customers (lar)
26,311
27
less loan receivables (fvpl) -458
Money market and capital market receivables (ac) 5,225 6,087
from loans and advances to banks (lar)
774
from loans and advances to customers (lar)
1,338
from non-trading assets (lar, htm)
3,113
63
plus money market and capital market receivables (fvoci) 1,594 -41
less money market and capital market receivables (fvoci) -505
less money market and capital market receivables (fvpl) -249
Receivables from other transactions (ac) 93 2 95
from other (financial) assets (lar)
93
Financial assets (fvoci)
Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci) 5,422 4,343
from non-trading assets (afs)
5,422
plus money market and capital market receivables (ac) 505 10
less money market and capital market receivables (ac) -1,594
Equity instruments (fvoci) 2 2
from non-trading assets (afs)
2
Financial assets (fvpl)
Loan receivables (fvpl) 196 604
from loans and advances to customers (hft)
196
plus (net) loan receivables (ac) 408
Money market and capital market receivables (fvpl) 2 251
plus money market and capital market receivables (ac) 249
Positive market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 1,926 1,387
from positive market value of derivative hedging instruments (hft)
1,926
less positive market value of other derivatives (fvpl) -539
Positive market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 327 866
from trading assets (hft)
327
plus positive market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 539
Total 41,588 -48 32 29 41,601
IAS 39 Revaluation
IAS 39 classified Reclassi Retained IFRS 9
31 Dec 2017 31 Dec 2017 fication OCI earnings 1 Jan 2018
€ mn
Financial liabilities (ac)
Money market and capital market liabilities (ac) 26,109 26,109
from liabilities to banks (lac) 1,914
from liabilities to customers (lac) 16,601
from certificated liabilities (lac) 7,594
Deposits from the housing industry (ac) 9,164 9,164
from liabilities to customers (lac) 9,164
Liabilities from other transactions (ac) 92 92
from other (financial) liabilities (lac) 92
Subordinated capital (ac) 1,265 1,265
Subordinated capital (lac) 1,265
Financial liabilities (fvpl)
Negative market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 1,479 1,318
from negative market value of derivative hedging instruments (hft) 1,479
less negative market value of other derivatives (fvpl) -161
Negative market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 224 385
from trading liabilities (hft) 224
plus negative market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 161
Total 38,333 38,333
IAS 39 Revaluation
IAS 39
31 Dec 2017
classified
31 Dec 2017
Reclassi
fication
OCI Retained
earnings
IFRS 9
1 Jan 2018
€ mn
Loss allowance on financial assets (ac)
Loan receivables (ac) -540 -571
from loans and advances to customers (lar)
-540
-81
less loan receivables (fvpl) 50
Money market and capital market receivables (ac) -20
from non-trading assets (lar, htm) -15
plus money market and capital market receivables (fvoci)
-5
Receivables from other transactions (ac) -2
from other (financial) assets (lar)
-2
Provisions for unrecognised lending business -4 -6
from provisions in the lending business for unrecognised items
-4
-2
Loss allowance in reserves from debt instruments (fvoci)
Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci) 0
from non-trading assets (afs)
0
Total
-544
-544 48 -103 -599

The total transition effect of € -27 million (after taxes) recognised under equity comprises the revaluation effects disclosed in other comprehensive income and retained earnings of € -42 million, less tax effects of € 15 million.

Within the scope of the first-time application, non-trading assets (afs) were allocated to the "hold" business model and since then have been measured at amortised cost. Debt securities held on the reporting date were carried at € 1,555 million; their fair value amounted to € 1,527 million. The difference of € -28 million would have been recognised in the revaluation surplus under IAS 39.

Currency translation

Individual line items in the financial statements of each Group entity are measured on the basis of the currency of the primary economic environment the respective entity operates in ("functional currency").

The consolidated financial statements are prepared in euro, being both the functional and the reporting currency.

Monetary assets and liabilities denominated in a foreign currency, unsettled cash market/spot transactions and non-monetary items measured at fair value are all translated to the functional currency on the basis of the ECB reference rate prevailing on the balance sheet date. Non-monetary items measured at amortised cost are translated using historical rates. Foreign exchange forward transactions are measured at the forward exchange rate prevailing on the balance sheet date.

Currency translation adjustments on monetary assets and liabilities must be recognised in income. Depending on the relevant measurement category, currency translation adjustments on non-monetary items are either recognised directly in equity (in the currency translation reserves), or recognised in the income statement (in net trading income).

Financial statements of consolidated subsidiaries, which are presented in a currency other than the euro, are translated at the ECB reference rate prevailing at the reporting date. Translation differences are recognised in equity, in the currency translation reserves.

Determination of fair value

The determination of fair value is governed by IFRS 13 and applies to financial instruments and non-financial assets or liabilities. In accordance with IFRS 13.9, the fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The determination of the fair value is based on the principal market for the asset or liability or, in the absence of a principal market, the most advantageous market for the asset or liability. Another factor to be taken into account is whether Aareal Bank can enter into a transaction for the relevant asset or liability at the price in that market at the measurement date. The principal market is the market with the greatest volume and the highest level of activity for the asset or liability to which Aareal Bank has access. In the absence of a principal market for the financial instrument, the most advantageous market is used to determine the fair value. The most advantageous market is the market that maximises the amount that would be received to sell the asset, or minimises the amount that would be paid to transfer the liability.

Fair value hierarchy

In accordance with IFRS 13.72 et seqq., the fair value determination is based on the fair value hierarchy pursuant to which the inputs used are classified into various hierarchy levels on the basis of their respective market proximity and objectivity. The fair value of assets and liabilities is allocated to Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy if it is determined on the basis of unadjusted qualifying prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. Fair values determined using inputs other than qualifying prices included within Level 1 that are observable for the financial instrument, either directly or indirectly, are included in Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy. Fair values determined using valuation techniques where one or more material inputs are not based on observable market data are assigned to Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy. The estimation uncertainties as regards fair value measurement increase the higher the level is.

The property and public-sector loans included in loan receivables are measured using the discounted cash flow method for the purpose of the determination of fair value. Discounting of future cash flows of a transaction is based on transaction-specific risk-adjusted interest rates. These are derived on the basis of a virtually risk-free market interest rate for each currency depending on the relevant term, taking into account add-ons for risks specific to the counterparty as well as credit costs. In the case of loans subject to fixed interest rates, the contractually agreed payments are used as future cash flows. The future cash flows for floating-rate loans are derived using the future forward interest rates, taking into account the relevant spread for customer-specific terms and conditions.

In case of debt securities and promissory note loans for which no current market price is available, the fair value is determined on the basis of comparable market prices to the extent possible. To this end, qualifying prices on active markets for largely identical securities or qualifying prices on inactive markets for identical or similar securities are used by adjusting the last available market price or the current fair value of another largely identical instrument, to take into account any changes in risk or new information known as at the measurement date. In the absence of comparable market prices for debt securities and promissory note loans, they are measured through an analysis of future payments using the fully-capitalised earnings value approach, where the inputs are based on observable market data. These approaches include the discounted cash flow (DCF) method which is used to determine the present value of contractual cash flows until the expected end of the term. The present value is determined based on the benchmark curve applicable for the relevant market, taking into account mark-ups based on credit quality and liquidity. The valuation model used for options included in the transaction is the commonly used Black-Scholes model or appropriate numerical procedures.

The fair value of OTC derivatives as well as of OTC hedging derivatives is determined on the basis of sector-specific standardised measurement models, such as the present value method or option pricing models. These techniques are based on inputs of active markets, such as interest rates, yield curves and credit spreads. The fair value of foreign exchange forwards is generally based on current forward exchange rates quoted on active markets.

Amortised cost is an adequate estimate of fair value for cash funds, other loan receivables as well as short-term money market receivables and liabilities.

Day-one gains or losses

As a rule, the transaction price equals the fair value at initial recognition. In contrast, there can be differences between the initial fair value determined using a valuation technique and the transaction price. These so-called day-one gains or losses may only be recognised immediately when all the inputs on which the valuation parameters are based are observable in the market. Otherwise, the difference has to be amortised through profit or loss over the term of the transaction. Adjustments for specific counterparty risks (CVA and DVA) are not taken into account for the determination of the present value of derivatives at Aareal Bank, as they are deemed immaterial. Since the derivatives are part of highly effective collateral agreements (Credit Support Annex to the ISDA Master Agreement and Collateral Annex to the German Master Agreement on Financial Derivatives Transactions) which are each subject to a master collateralisation agreement, measurement adjustments to reflect any potential counterparty credit risk or own credit risk are not required. The Bank uses the overnight interest rate swap curve (OIS curve) for the measurement of derivatives secured by cash collateral.

Recognition and measurement of financial instruments

Pursuant to IAS 32, a financial instrument is any contract that gives rise to a financial asset at one contracting party and a financial liability or equity instrument at another contracting party.

Recognition

Financial instruments (including derivative financial instruments) must be recognised if the reporting entity has become a party to the contractual provisions of such financial instruments. Trade date and settlement date are not the same for regular way purchases and sales of financial assets. Such regular way purchases and sales may be accounted for either at trade date or at settlement date. At Aareal Bank Group, financial instruments (fvpl) are recognised at the trade date, while all other financial instruments are recognised at the settlement date.

Financial instruments have to be derecognised when the contractual rights to the cash flows from the financial asset expire or an entity transfers the financial asset, including substantially all its risks and rewards. The modification of the contractual terms may also result in the derecognition of a financial instrument and the recognition of a new financial instrument.

If only a portion of risks and rewards is transferred and a portion of control is retained, the financial asset is recognised only to the extent of its continuing involvement. The extent of the continuing involvement corresponds to the extent to which the Company is exposed to changes in the value of the financial asset. A financial liability is derecognised when it is extinguished, i. e. when the obligation specified in the contract is discharged.

Modification

As a matter of principle, a modification is defined as any change made to existing terms of a loan agreement or a contractual adjustment during the loan or contract term. This applies regardless of the reasons for the modification (credit-driven or market-driven). Contractual adjustments may either lead to the derecognition of the "old" and the recognition of a "new" asset when such adjustments are substantial to the extent that they, in essence, constitute a new asset (hereinafter referred to as "substantial modification") or to the recalculation of the carrying amount and the recognition of a net modification gain or loss, when such adjustments constitute an adjustment of an existing asset (hereinafter referred to as "non-substantial modification").

The contractual adjustments subject to modifications may generally be caused by the borrower's credit quality and solvency (credit-driven modifications) or the granting of more favourable terms and conditions in an existing contract or the adjustment of the framework for financings as a result of changes in the customer's financing needs (market-driven modifications).

Both substantial and non-substantial modifications have an impact on profit or loss.

The amount of net modification gains or losses arising from non-substantial modifications is determined by the difference of the gross carrying amounts before and after the modification. Net modification gains or losses arising from market-driven modifications are recognised in net interest income, while credit-driven modifications are reported in the loss allowance. Subsequently, the changes in the carrying amount of the receivable is amortised over the remaining term of the receivable and recorded in net interest income.

In the case of a substantial modification, the old asset has to be derecognised, and a new asset has to be recognised. The difference of the gross carrying amounts before and after the modification is reported as net derecognition gains or losses in the case of market-driven modifications. In the case of credit-driven modifications, a loss allowance is recorded prior to derecognition in an amount that covers the entire difference between the old carrying amount and the fair value determined at the time of initial recognition.

Measurement

Upon initial recognition, financial instruments are measured at fair value plus any transaction costs.

Subsequent measurement of financial assets is based on the classification of the financial instrument. Depending on the classification, financial assets are measured at amortised cost, at fair value through other comprehensive income or at fair value through profit or loss. Investments in equity instruments are measured at fair value through profit or loss, unless an irrevocable election is made at initial recognition to present subsequent changes in fair value in other comprehensive income. Within Aareal Bank Group, this election is exercised as a rule due to the investment characteristics of the equity instruments.

Financial liabilities are measured at amortised cost.

In addition, financial assets and liabilities may be designated as at fair value through profit or loss if certain prerequisites are met. Aareal Bank Group does not make use of this option.

Classification

The classification, i. e. the determination of the measurement category of a financial asset is to be assessed on the basis of two criteria. The objective criterion refers to the contractual design as to whether the payments solely represent payments of interest and principal on the principal amount outstanding (SPPI = solely payments of principal and interest). Relevant criteria were defined that are reviewed at initial recognition. For example, this may be financings with a primary investment risk or contractually agreed payments that depend on the borrower's economic performance. The subjective classification criterion refers to the business model, i. e. the aim that a company pursues for a group of assets.

Subsequent measurement has to be based on amortised cost (ac) when the financial instrument is held in order to collect contractual cash flows (business model "Hold") and additionally the contractual cash flows represent solely payments of principal and interest, i. e. are SPPI compliant. This classification category is used for a large portion of the lending and securities business.

Subsequent measurement at fair value, with changes in fair value being recognised initially directly in equity and subsequently reclassified to profit or loss (so-called recycling) (fair value through other comprehensive income /fvoci with recycling) has to be made when financial instruments are SPPI compliant and are held either to collect contractual cash flows or to be sold (business model "Hold & Sell").

Subsequent measurement at fair value, with changes in fair value being recognised through profit or loss, has to be made if the financial instrument is not SPPI compliant or cannot be allocated to one of the two business models. The latter is the case for example when there is the purpose of selling such financial instruments in the near term due to syndication covenants.

Loss allowance

Loss allowances are based on the internal staging and expected credit loss model of Aareal Bank. For this purpose financial instruments measured at amortised cost and at fair value through other comprehensive income as well as loan commitments and financial guarantees are allocated to various stages at both initial recognition and subsequent measurement. The related loss allowances are recognised in the amount of the twelve-month or the lifetime expected credit loss.

  • Stage 1: All financial instruments without impairment trigger are allocated to this stage at initial recognition. If the credit risk is not significantly increased or if the absolute credit risk can be classified as low, the financial instrument has to remain in Stage 1 for subsequent measurement. Loss allowances are recognised in the amount of the losses expected for the following twelve months (twelvemonth expected credit loss or expected loss) and interest income is calculated on the basis of the gross carrying amount, applying the effective interest method. Loss allowances have to be recognised on a present value basis.
  • Stage 2: All financial instruments where credit risk has increased significantly since initial recognition are allocated to this stage. Loss allowances are recognised in the amount of the losses expected for the entire remaining term of the instrument (lifetime expected credit loss) and interest income is calculated on the basis of the gross carrying amount, applying the effective interest method. Loss allowances have to be recognised on a present value basis. The significant increase in credit risk for the allocation to Stage 2 is determined using the so-called expected downgrade bank-internal staging model and taking into consideration quantitative and qualitative criteria such as the credit rating of the customer, the intensity of customer handling and payment defaults. If the significant increase in credit risk no longer applies, the financial instrument is re-transferred to Stage 1. A description of the credit risk methods and systems in place at Aareal Bank AG is presented in the Risk Report as part of the Management Report.
  • Stage 3: This stage includes all financial instruments where there is objective evidence of impairment (impairment trigger or credit impaired). Loss allowances are recognised in the amount of the losses of the lifetime expected credit loss, and interest income is calculated on the basis of the net carrying amount (i. e. gross carrying amount less loss allowance) using the effective interest method. The lifetime expected credit loss in Stage 3 is determined as the difference between the gross carrying amount and the present value of expected future cash flows (discounted using the original effective interest). If the impairment triggers no longer apply, the financial instrument is re-transferred to Stage 1 or 2.
  • POCI (purchased or originated credit impaired): This category includes all financial instruments that were subject to an impairment trigger at initial recognition. The loss allowance is recorded in the amount of the lifetime expected credit loss.

The expected credit loss is generally determined by Aareal Bank Group using a model-based procedure where, depending on the stage, one- or multi-year parameters are used. The calculation of the expected loss in Stage 1 and of lifetime expected credit loss in Stage 2 is based on the one-year or lifetime

probability of default (PD), respectively, the loss given default (LGD), the expected exposure at default (EAD), a discount factor (DF), the expected contractual term and the current and expected economic environment such as the GDP, long-term interest and unemployment rate. A period of not more than twelve months is assessed for Stage 1, while the expected contractual term of the financial instrument has to be taken into account for Stages 2 and 3 (and, in addition, the expected term for loan repayment in Stage 3).

The expected loss in Stage 3 is determined on the basis of individually estimated cash flows (ECF procedure) in several probability-weighted scenarios. The amount of the loss allowance is determined as being the difference between the carrying amount of the asset and the present value of the expected future cash flows, discounted using the original effective interest rate applicable at initial recognition (taking into account the marketability of collateral provided). Collateral is largely provided in the form of land charges or mortgages; these are measured at fair value which is generally based on either the income capitalisation approach or the discounted cash flow method. Loss allowances for loans that are subject to an impairment trigger, but that are not part of risk management activities are determined on the basis of models. Impairment triggers are strong indications for a decline of the borrower's credit quality, arrears as well as further indications that not all interest and principal payments can be made as contractually agreed.

The loss allowance for debt instruments measured at amortised cost are reported in the item "Loss allowance (ac)", for debt instruments measured at fair value through other comprehensive income in the item "Reserve from the measurement of debt instruments (fvoci)" and for loan commitments and financial guarantees under provisions. Debt instruments reported under POCI are accounted for on a net basis, i. e. without any loss allowance. Changes in loss allowance are reflected by increasing or decreasing the carrying amount.

If the receivables are not recoverable, the corresponding loss allowance is utilised and the receivable is derecognised.

The loss allowance for receivables from other transactions is determined using a simplified procedure in the amount of the lifetime expected credit losses.

Hedging relationships

The risk management strategy set out in the Risk Report is the basis for the recognition of hedging relationships. In Aareal Bank Group, risks from value fluctuations or from changed cash flows are hedged at transactions not measured through profit or loss. In this context, the risks from hedged items are intended to be offset by entering into hedging derivatives where the fair value changes or the changes in the cash flows have the opposite direction as those of the hedged item. Average prices of the hedges are not relevant for risk management. Hedging relationships are not recorded for transactions that are measured at fair value through profit or loss. The results from economic hedging relationships are offset in the result from transactions measured at fair value.

Hedge accounting in accordance with IFRS 9 distinguishes various forms of hedging relationships.

Fair value hedges are used to hedge hedged items against fair value changes from changes in interest rates or from changes in interest and exchange rates that are determined accordingly as hedged risk. In Aareal Bank Group, property loans, securities and promissory note loans are typically hedged using interest rate swaps and cross-currency swaps. The derivatives used for hedging are accounted for at fair value through profit or loss. The offsetting fair value changes of the hedged item resulting from the hedged risk are also recognised through profit or loss. The proportion of the fair value changes of the hedged item

not attributable to the hedged risk is accounted for in line with the classification of the hedged item. A fully effective hedging relationship results in offsetting measurement results. The hedging relationship may result in adjustments in the carrying amount of the underlying transaction. Such adjustments will only be recognised in income at the end of the transaction term.

Derivatives used as hedging instruments for the purposes of a cash flow hedge serve to hedge future cash flows against changes in interest rates or interest and exchange rates resulting from variable-rate financial assets and liabilities. The effective portion of measurement gains or losses from the derivative is recorded in equity, in the hedging reserve. The ineffective portion of these measurement gains or losses is recorded directly in income. When the hedging relationship ceases to exist, the amounts recorded in the other reserves are transferred to the income statement at the same time as profits or losses on the former underlying transaction are recognised in income. The underlying transaction is recognised in line with the rules for the measurement category to which the underlying transaction has been allocated.

Hedges of a net investment in a foreign operation are used to hedge currency risks arising on the translation of the net assets of foreign Group companies. The effective portion of measurement gains or losses from derivative hedging instruments is recognised directly in equity in the currency translation reserve. The ineffective portion of the hedging derivative's fair value changes have to be recognised in the income statement. The gain or loss on the hedging derivative relating to the effective portion of the hedge that has been recognised directly in equity shall be recognised in profit or loss on disposal of the foreign operation. Any translation differences resulting from the translation of an entity with a different functional currency into the Group currency also have to be recognised directly in equity in the currency translation reserve; they will be reclassified to the income statement upon disposal of the foreign operation.

Cash funds

Cash funds include cash on hand and balances with central banks. Cash funds are exclusively allocated to the measurement category "ac".

Loan receivables

The item "Loan receivables" comprises property loans, loans to local authorities and other loan receivables, including deferred interest. Loan receivables can be allocated to all measurement categories. The portion of loan commitments not disbursed is reported as contingent liabilities.

Money market and capital market receivables

Money and capital market receivables consist of money market receivables, promissory note loans and debt securities, including deferred interest. This item also includes unconsolidated equity instruments. Money and capital market receivables may generally be allocated to all measurement categories. Equity instruments are allocated to the measurement category "fvoci".

Receivables from other transactions

The item "Receivables from other transactions" comprises trade receivables and other financial receivables. Receivables from other transactions are exclusively allocated to the measurement category "ac".

Positive market value of designated hedging derivatives/Negative market value of designated hedging derivatives

The items "Positive market value of designated hedging derivatives" and "Negative market value of designated hedging derivatives" include derivatives with positive or negative market values from fair value hedges, cash flow hedges and hedges of a net investment in a foreign operation, including deferred interest. Derivatives are exclusively allocated to the measurement category "fvpl". The basis for the recognition of hedging relationships is described in the chapter "Recognition and measurement of financial instruments" in this section.

Positive market values of other derivatives/Negative market value of other derivatives

Derivative financial instruments that are not part of recognised hedging relationships are reported in Aareal Bank Group under positive or negative market values of other derivatives. They are mainly used to hedge economic market price risks. Derivatives are exclusively allocated to the measurement category "fvpl". Results from the measurement and the termination of the derivatives are reported in the item "Net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl)". Interest received or paid in connection with these derivatives is also recorded generally in the item "Net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl)". Interest received or paid for derivatives entered into for hedging purposes which, however, do not meet the hedge accounting criteria, is reported in net interest income, together with interest from the hedged items. Effects from the measurement of these derivatives are reported in the item "Net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl)", together with the effects from the measurement of the transactions.

Investments accounted for using the equity method

Investments accounted for using the equity method include shares in companies where Aareal Bank Group can exercise significant influence (associates) as well as shares in joint ventures.

Investments in associates included in this item are recognised at cost when the significant influence arises, and subsequently carried at amortised cost whereby, in particular, the share of results of operations of any financial year is recognised in income.

The equity method applied to the major associates was based on the most recent available financial statements prepared under local GAAP.

Intangible assets

The item "Intangible assets" consists of proprietary software, goodwill and other intangible assets such as purchased software and licenses.

Intangible assets (except goodwill) are carried at cost, less accumulated amortisation and any impairment losses.

Research costs incurred in connection with software development are expensed as they are incurred. Development costs are capitalised from the time when the software development can be regarded as completed from a technical perspective, and several other conditions are fulfilled. Borrowing costs directly attributable to software development are part of the cost. They are amortised on a straight-line basis, using an estimated economic life of ten years. Purchased software is also deemed to have a limited useful life. The procedure followed for the determination of amortisation of purchased software is the same as the procedure used for proprietary software. Amortisation is recognised in administrative expenses.

Goodwill is defined as the excess of the cost of acquisition over the fair value of the Group's interest in the net assets of an acquired entity, at the time of acquisition (positive difference). Goodwill is carried at historical cost less accumulated impairments. Any negative goodwill (badwill) arising upon acquisition is immediately charged against income.

In case the annual impairment test shows that there are indications of impairment of intangible assets (as set out in IAS 36) and that the recoverable amount is lower than the carrying amount of the asset concerned, the asset is written down through profit or loss, to the estimated recoverable amount.

If it is impossible to estimate the recoverable amount for a specific asset, the recoverable amount of the cash-generating unit that the asset belongs to must be determined. A cash-generating unit is the smallest identifiable group of assets that generates cash inflows that are largely independent of the cash inflows from other assets or groups of assets. Aareal Bank Group defines cash-generating units either on the basis of a single subsidiary or on product level. The recoverable amount of an asset or a cash-generating unit is the higher of fair value less costs to sell and value in use. (Value in use is the present value of estimated future cash flows expected to arise from the continuing use of an asset or cash-generating unit.) Future cash flows are determined based on medium-term projections. The present value of the future cash flows is determined using discount factors which are in line with the risks involved. Accordingly, the recognition of intangible assets and the impairment test is also subject to estimation uncertainties.

Property and equipment

Property and equipment includes owner-occupied land and buildings, office furniture and equipment as well as a hotel which is operated by Aareal Bank. Property and equipment is measured at cost, less accumulated depreciation and impairment losses. Depreciation and impairment losses are reported under administrative expenses, while those of the owner-operated hotel are shown in net other operating income/expenses.

Owner-occupied buildings reported under property and equipment are depreciated on a straight-line basis, over a period of 25 to 50 years. Owner-occupied land is not depreciated. Please refer to the explanations in the Notes on other assets for the accounting method to be applied for land and buildings which are not owner-occupied. Office furniture and equipment items are depreciated using the straightline method, applying the following periods:

Depreciation period
Other property and equipment
IT equipment 3-7 years
Other office furniture and equipment 5-13 years

Tenant improvements are depreciated based on the principles applicable for the relevant building.

For details on recognising impairments as defined in IAS 36, please refer to the explanations in the Note on intangible assets in this section.

Gains and losses upon disposal of property and equipment are recognised in income (in net other operating income/expenses).

The costs to purchase property and equipment in the amount of up to € 150.00 (low-value assets) are expensed as they are incurred.

Any items of property and equipment with a cost of more than € 150.00, but not exceeding € 1,000.00, are combined in a collective account for the year, which is then depreciated on a straight-line basis over a period of five years.

Deferred tax assets/Deferred tax liabilities

Deferred taxes are reported in the items "Deferred tax assets" and "Deferred tax liabilities".

Deferred tax assets are recognised when they are deemed recoverable. The recoverability is assessed using tax planning (internal assessment) on the basis of medium-term Group planning. Accordingly, deferred tax assets are only recognised to the extent that we deem it probable that future taxable profits will be available against which the temporary differences and tax loss carryforwards can be utilised. Deferred taxes are calculated on the basis of country- and company-specific tax rates expected to apply at the time of the realisation of temporary differences and set-off against loss carryforwards.

Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities are offset in accordance with IAS 12.74 when there is a legally enforceable right to set off current tax assets against current tax liabilities and when the deferred tax assets and the deferred tax liabilities relate to income taxes levied by the same taxation authority on either the same taxable entity or tax group.

Other assets

The item "Other assets" includes properties and miscellaneous assets. Properties reported under other assets are intended for short-term disposal, though the IFRS 5 criteria are not met. They are measured at the lower of cost or net realisable value, in accordance with IAS 2, and therefore are subject to estimation uncertainties.

Money and capital market liabilities

The item "Money and capital market liabilities" comprises money market liabilities, mortgage Pfandbriefe, registered public sector Pfandbriefe, promissory note loans and other debt securities, including deferred interest. Money and capital market activities are allocated to the measurement category "ac".

Deposits from the housing industry

The item "Deposits from the housing industry" includes deposits payable on demand and term deposits, including deferred interest. Deposits from the housing industry are allocated to the measurement category "ac".

Liabilities from other transactions

The item "Liabilities from other transactions" comprises trade payables and other financial liabilities. Liabilities from other transactions are exclusively allocated to the measurement category "ac".

Subordinated capital

The item "Subordinated capital" consists of subordinated liabilities, profit-participation certificates and silent participations. Subordinated funds raised do not provide for any early repayment obligation. In the event of liquidation or insolvency, claims on interest and principal from these liabilities are subordinated to the claims of all other creditors, which are not subordinated themselves. Pursuant to the terms and conditions of issue, holders of profit-participation certificates have a claim on interest payments which takes precedence over the profit entitlements of shareholders. To the extent that a distribution would cause a net loss, said interest claim would be reduced, possibly down to zero, creating a claim for backpayment during the term of the certificates at the same time. Repayment takes place at the nominal amount (subject to any loss sharing), on the day after the Annual General Meeting passing resolutions regarding the relevant financial year. The profit-participation certificates evidence creditors' rights; they do not grant any share in the liquidation proceeds.

Subordinated capital is allocated to the measurement category "ac".

Other liabilities

Other liabilities include, among other items, deferred income and liabilities from other taxes.

Provisions

The item "Provisions" comprises provisions for pensions and similar obligations, provisions for staff expenses and non-staff operating costs, provisions for risks related to unrecognised items in the lending business, provisions for legal or tax risks, as well as other provisions. Provisions are recognised when there is a present legal or constructive obligation towards third parties arising from a past event, the outflow of resources to meet this obligation is probable and the amount of the obligation can be reliably estimated. Provisions, including uncertain tax positions, are measured on the basis of the best estimate of expenditure required to settle the obligation (most likely value) required as at the reporting date. In the context of acquisitions in accordance with IFRS 3, contingent liabilities, including uncertain tax obligations, were also recognised at their expected value. These are released when the reasons for their recognition cease to exist.

Measurement is subject to several uncertainties and often requires significant estimates made by the management in relation to various factors that may not apply subsequently. The final amount of the liabilities may deviate significantly from the measurement previously made in accounting. For example, the outcome of individual legal proceedings may not be predicted with certainty.

If utilisation in the short term, i. e. within twelve months, from the obligation is not expected, the provision will be recognised at present value.

Provisions for pensions and similar obligations

Aareal Bank Group maintains various pension plans as defined in IAS 19. For the purpose of reporting pension obligations, IAS 19 makes a distinction between defined contribution plans and defined benefit plans. Under defined contribution plans, an enterprise pays fixed contributions into a separate entity or a fund and will have no legal or constructive obligation to pay further contributions if the fund does not hold sufficient assets to pay all employee benefits relating to employee service in the current and prior periods. Contributions paid to the statutory pension insurance scheme are also classified as defined contribution plans. The contributions paid to a defined contribution plan are recorded as staff expenses.

Defined benefit obligations are all pension obligations that do not meet the criteria of a defined contribution obligation. The amount of obligations usually depends on one or several factors, including age, length of service, and salary.

The Group's obligations under defined benefit plans are recognised as a provision in the consolidated statement of financial position. These are based on general works agreements on an employee pension scheme, individual agreements with executive staff as well as individual agreements concluded with the members of the Company's senior management. Projected economic and demographic developments as well as salary trends must be applied to the calculation of the provisions. Calculating the amount of provisions in the Group is based on actuarial opinions which are prepared by external actuaries on the basis of Aareal Bank-specific and Group-wide standardised parameters.

Provisions for pensions and similar obligations under defined benefit plans are determined in accordance with IAS 19 on the basis of the projected unit credit method; the various defined benefit plans are measured separately. The fair value of the plan assets is deducted from the present value of the pension obligation, taking into account, if applicable, the rules for the asset ceiling in relation to a surplus of plan assets over the benefit obligation. The resulting amount represents the net defined benefit liability (provision) or the net defined benefit asset. The net interest expense in the financial year is determined by applying the discount factor calculated at the beginning of the financial year to the net liability calculated as at that date. The discount rate used to determine the present value of the obligation is based on the capital market rate of high quality corporate bonds with comparable maturities at the reporting date. Determination is based on the GlobalRate:Link method by Willis Towers Watson. The data basis consists of corporate bonds recorded by Bloomberg which have a rating of at least "AA" and are denominated in the same currency as the underlying pension obligation. Actuarial gains and losses (remeasurements), which – in connection of the amount of obligations – arise on changes in expectations regarding life expectancy, pension increases, salary development, discount rate compared to the estimation made at the beginning of the period or compared to the actual trend during the period, are recorded in other comprehensive income in the item "Changes in the reserve from remeasurements of defined benefit plans". Actuarial gains and losses (remeasurements) recorded in other comprehensive income may not be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss (recycling). Differences between the expected return on plan assets, determined at the beginning of the period using the then applicable discount rate, and the actual return on plan assets (remeasurement) at the end of the period are also recognised in other comprehensive income. Actuarial gains and losses as well as the difference between expected and actual return on plan assets are included in other reserves. They are reported separately in the statement of changes in equity. Accordingly, the recognition of pension obligations is also subject to estimation uncertainties.

Share-based payment

Aareal Bank Group maintains share-based payment plans subject to cash settlement in accordance with IFRS 2. We refer to the Remuneration Report as part of the Notes to the consolidated financial statements, which includes a detailed description of the plans and their scope as well as information on the valuation model applied and the effects of share-based payments on the Group's financial position and performance.

Provisions for obligations arising from share-based remuneration plans have been recognised under administrative expenses, in the amount of the fair value of the relevant obligation at the reporting date.

Equity

Equity comprises subscribed capital, capital reserves, retained earnings and other reserves. Other reserves include the reserve from remeasurements of defined benefit plans, the reserve from the measurement of equity and debt instrument at fair value through other comprehensive income, the reserve from hedges of net investments, the hedging reserves, the Reserve from changes in the value of foreign currency basis spreads and currency translation reserve. In addition, the item "Equity" includes non-controlling interests as well as the so-called Additional Tier 1 bond (AT1 bond). The AT1 bond is classified as equity since there is neither an obligation to repay the bond nor is there an obligation for ongoing debt service (payment of a dividend). The transaction costs directly attributable to the issue of the AT1 bond as well as dividends paid are deducted directly from equity, net of taxes.

Financial guarantee contracts

A financial guarantee contract is a contract that requires the issuer to make specified payments to reimburse the holder for a loss that it incurs because a specified debtor fails to make payment when due. A guarantor recognises a financial guarantee contract as a liability at the date of addition, using the fair value of the guarantee obligation. The obligation is subsequently measured at the greater of a provision recorded in accordance with IAS 37 and the original amount, less any accumulated amortisation. Within Aareal Bank Group, financial guarantee contracts are presented based on the present value of the claim resulting from the future premium payments of the holder, and offset with the obligation for the guarantee (net basis).

Notes to the Statement of Comprehensive Income

(1) Net interest incomes

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Interest income from financial assets (ac) 156 177
Loan receivables (ac) 152 169
Money market and capital market receivables (ac) 4 8
Interest income from financial assets (fvoci) 0 0
Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci) 0 0
Interest income from financial assets (fvpl) 6
Loan receivables (fvpl) 5
Money market and capital market receivables (fvpl) 1
Other derivatives (fvpl) n/a
Interest income from financial liabilities (ac) 2 1
Money market and capital market liabilities (ac) 1 1
Deposits from the housing industry (ac) 1 0
Current dividend income 0
Market-driven modification gains 1 n/a
Total interest and similar income 165 178
Interest expenses from financial liabilities (ac) 26 21
Money market and capital market liabilities (ac) 19 14
Deposits from the housing industry (ac) 1 0
Liabilities from other transactions (ac) 6 7
Interest expenses from financial liabilities (fvpl) 2 n/a
Other derivatives (fvpl) 2 n/a
Interest expenses from financial assets (ac) 3 3
Cash funds (ac) 3 2
Money market and capital market receivables (ac) 1
Market-driven modification losses 1 n/a
Total interest and similar expenses 32 24
Total 133 154

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Net interest income totalled € 133 million, an expected reduction from the previous year (Q1 2017: € 154 million). This was largely due to the portfolio decline seen in the previous year, reflecting – amongst other factors – the scheduled reduction of the former WestImmo and Corealcredit portfolios, as well as exchange rate fluctuations.

(2) Loss allowance

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Additions 18 18
Reversals 17 4
Direct write-offs n/a 3
Recoveries on loans and advances previously written off 1 15
Loss allowance – other items 0 n/a
Credit-driven net modification gain or loss n/a
Total 0 2

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Due to seasonal effects, the result from loss allowance amounted to € 0 million (Q1 2017: € 2 million). Please also refer to our explanations in Notes (10, 18, and 20).

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Commission income from
ERP products 38 37
Digital solutions 9 8
Additional products 4 4
Lending and other banking business 7 6
Other activities 2 2
Total commission income 60 57
Commission expenses for
Purchased services 9 8
Lending and other banking business 0 0
Other activities 1 1
Total commission expenses 10 9
Total 50 48

(3) Net commission income

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Net commission income increased to € 50 million (Q1 2017: € 48 million), which was mainly due to higher sales revenue at Aareon.

(4) Net derecognition gain or loss

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Net gain or loss on the derecognition of financial assets (ac)
Loan receivables (ac) 6 10
Money market and capital market receivables (ac)
Net gain or loss on the derecognition of financial liabilities (ac)
Money market and capital market liabilities (ac) 0
Net gain or loss on the derecognition of financial assets (fvoci)
Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci)
Total 6 10

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

The € 6 million net gain on derecognition of loan receivables (Q1 2017: € 10 million) declined due to lower effects from early repayments.

(5) Net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl)

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Net gain or loss from loan receivables (fvpl) -2
Net gain or loss from money market and capital market receivables (fvpl) 1
Net gain or loss from other derivatives (fvpl) 2 -1
Currency translation 2 0
Total 3 -1

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

(6) Net result on hedge accounting

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 2017
€ mn
Ineffective portion of fair value hedges -2 -1
Ineffective portion of cash flow hedges -2
Ineffective portion of net investment hedges 0 0
Total -2 -3

(7) Administrative expenses

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 2017
€ mn
Staff expenses 66 75
Wages and salaries 52 59
Social security contributions 8 9
Pensions 6 7
Other administrative expenses 56 59
Depreciation, amortisation and impairment of property and
equipment and intangible assets 6 5
Total 128 139

At € 128 million (Q1 2017: € 139 million), administrative expenses were reduced as expected, thanks to lower running costs.

(8) Net other operating income/expenses

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 2017
€ mn
Income from properties 7 9
Income from the reversal of provisions 0 5
Income from goods and services 0 0
Miscellaneous other operating income 8 4
Total other operating income 15 18
Expenses for properties 9 11
Expenses for other taxes 0 1
Other operating expenses 1 2
Total other operating expenses 10 14
Total 5 4

Notes to the Statement of Financial Position

(9) Financial assets (ac)

Cash funds (ac)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017
€ mn
Cash on hand 0 0
Balances with the central bank 2,501 2,081
Total 2,501 2,081

Loan receivables (ac)

31 Mar 2018
€ mn
Property loans 24,856 25,701
Public sector loans 531 537
Other loan receivables 53 78
Total 25,440 26,316

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Money market and capital market receivables (ac)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Money market receivables 618 713
Promissory note loans 1,274 1,399
Debt securities 3,838 3,113
Total 5,730 5,225

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Receivables from other transactions (ac)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Trade receivables 54 56
Other financial receivables 36 37
Total 90 93

(10) Loss allowance (ac)

31 March 2018

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Receivables
from other
transactions (ac)
Total
loss allowance
(ac)
€ mn
Balance as at 1 January 32 42 517 2 593
Additions 4 0 10 0 14
Write-downs 53 0 53
Reversals 3 3 9 15
Transfer to Stage 1 0 0 0
Transfer to Stage 2 0 0 0
Transfer to Stage 3 0 0 0
Interest rate effect 1 1
Currency adjustments 0 0 0 0 0
Balance as at 31 March 33 39 466 2 540

The loss allowances for financial assets measured at amortised cost refers to loan receivables, money and capital market receivables as well as receivables from other transactions that are measured at amortised cost.

31 March 2017

€ mn Specific valuation
allowance
Portfolio
impairment
allowance
Total loss
allowance for
recognised items
Provisions in
the lending busi
ness for unrecog
nised items
Total loss
allowance and
provisions in the
lending business
Loss allowance as at 1 January 435 119 554 5 559
Additions 11 7 18 0 18
Write-downs 0
Reversals 3 3 1 4
Unwinding 8 8 8
Changes in the basis of consolidation
Currency adjustments -1 –1 0 -1
Loss allowance as at 31 March 434 126 560 4 564

(11) Financial assets (fvoci)

Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
4,273 5,422
4,273 5,422

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Equity instruments (fvoci)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Equities and other non-fixed income securities 1
Other investments 3 2
Total 4 2

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

(12) Financial assets (fvpl)

Loan receivables (fvpl)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Property loans 532 196
Public sector loans n/a
Other loans and advances n/a
Total 532 196

Positive market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Positive market value of fair value hedges 1,319 1,915
Positive market value of cash flow hedges 8
Positive market value of net investment hedges 8 3
Total 1,327 1,926

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Positive market value of other derivatives (fvpl)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Positive market value of economic hedging derivatives 635
Positive market value of other derivatives 220 327
Total 855 327

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

(13) Intangible assets

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017
€ mn
Goodwill 85 85
Proprietary software 25 24
Other intangible assets 43 44
Total 153 153

(14) Property and equipment

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017
€ mn
Land and buildings and construction in progress 220 221
Office furniture and equipment 31 32
Total 251 253

(15) Other assets

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Properties 192 203
Miscellaneous 92 93
Total 284 296

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

(16) Financial liabilities (ac)

Money market and capital market liabilities (ac)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Money market liabilities 4,836 4,821
Promissory note loans 5,292 5,421
Mortgage Pfandbriefe 10,677 11,036
Public-sector Pfandbriefe 2,460 2,578
Other debt securities 2,260 2,230
Other financial liabilities 0 23
Total 25,525 26,109

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Deposits from the housing industry (ac)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Payable on demand 7,378 7,314
Term deposits 1,937 1,850
Total 9,315 9,164

Liabilities from other transactions (ac)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Trade payables 13 18
Other liabilities 98 74
Total 111 92

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Subordinated capital (ac)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017
€ mn
Subordinated liabilities 1,042 1,060
Profit-participation certificates 12 12
Silent participations 183 193
Total 1,237 1,265

(17) Financial liabilities (fvpl)

Negative market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Negative market value of fair value hedges 1,250 1,464
Negative market value of cash flow hedges 15
Negative market value of net investment hedges
Total 1,250 1,479

Negative market value of other derivatives (fvpl)

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Negative market value of economic hedging derivatives 126
Negative market value of miscellaneous other derivatives 157 224
Total 283 224

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

(18) Provisions

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Provisions for pensions and similar obligations 358 351
Provisions for unrecognised lending business 8 4
Other provisions and contingent liabilities 204 215
Total 570 570

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

Changes in the discount rate requires a revaluation of the amount of obligations. This is recognised directly in other comprehensive income, under changes in the reserve from defined benefit plans.

(19) Other liabilities

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
21 16
13 17
2 0
36 33

(20) Equity

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Subscribed capital 180 180
Capital reserves 721 721
Retained earnings 1,781 1,798
AT1 bond 300 300
Other reserves
Reserve from remeasurements of defined benefit plans -91 -91
Reserve from the measurement of equity instruments (fvoci) 0 0
Reserve from the measurement of debt instruments (fvoci) 48 24
Reserve from hedges of net investments 11 7
Hedging reserves -1
Reserve from foreign currency basis spreads 3
Currency translation reserve -23 -16
Non-controlling interests 2 2
Total 2,932 2,924

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

The item "Reserve from the measurement of debt instruments (fvoci)" includes loss allowance of € 0 million (31 December 2017: n/a).

(21) Treasury shares

No treasury shares were held during the period under review.

(22) Distributions

The Management Board and Supervisory Board of Aareal Bank AG propose to the Annual General Meeting that a partial amount of € 119,714,442.00 of Aareal Bank AG's net retained profit of € 149,643,052.50 for the financial year 2017, as reported under the German Commercial Code (HGB), be used to distribute a dividend of € 2.50 per notional no-par value share.

In addition, on 30 April 2018, the Management Board resolved on a distribution in relation to the AT1 instruments, pursuant to the terms and conditions of the notes.

Notes to Financial Instruments

(23) Fair value hierarchy in accordance with IFRS 13

The carrying amounts of financial instruments held by Aareal Bank Group which are reported at fair value in the statement of financial position are presented in the following table according to the three-tier fair value hierarchy pursuant to IFRS 13.72 et seq. The presentation is made for each class of financial instrument:

31 March 2018

Fair value
total
Fair value
level 1
Fair value
level 2
Fair value
level 3
€ mn
Financial assets (fvoci) 4,277 4,273 4
Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci) 4,273 4,273
Equity instruments (fvoci) 4 4
Financial assets (fvpl) 2,964 2,432 532
Loan receivables (fvpl) 532 532
Money market and capital market receivables (fvpl) 250 250
Positive market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 1,327 1,327
Positive market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 855 855
Financial liabilities (fvpl) 1,533 1,533
Negative market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 1,250 1,250
Negative market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 283 283

31 December 20171)

Fair value
total
Fair value
level 1
Fair value
level 2
Fair value
level 3
€ mn
Financial assets (fvoci) 5,424 5,422 2
Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci) 5,422 5,422
Equity instruments (fvoci) 2 2
Financial assets (fvpl) 2,449 2,253 196
Loan receivables (fvpl) 196 196
Money market and capital market receivables (fvpl)
Positive market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 1,926 1,926
Positive market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 327 327
Financial liabilities (fvpl) 1,703 1,703
Negative market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 1,479 1,479
Negative market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 224 224

In the first three months of the 2018 financial year, there were no material transfers between the hierarchy levels for the various financial instruments.

The fair values of financial instruments recognised at fair value in the statement of financial position that are assigned to Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy developed as follows during the period under review:

Loan receivables (fvpl)
€ mn
Fair value as at 1 January 2018 604
Net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl) -2
Changes in inventory
Additions 237
Derecognitions 307
Deferred interest 0
Fair value as at 31 March 2018 532

Financial instruments held in the Bank's portfolio contributed € 0 million to the net gain or loss from financial assets (fvpl).

Regarding loan receivables (ac), the add-ons for risks specific to the counterparty represent the material input parameter not observable in the market. An increase/decrease by 1% would lead to a decrease/ increase of the fair value by approximately € 14 million.

(24) Comparison of carrying amounts and fair values of the financial instruments

The fair values of financial instruments are compared with their carrying amounts in the following table. The presentation is made for each class of financial instrument:

Carrying
amount
Fair value Carrying
amount
Fair value
31 Mar 2018 31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 20171) 31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Financial assets (ac) 33,222 33,734 33,175 33,698
Cash funds (ac) 2,501 2,501 2,081 2,081
Loan receivables (ac) 24,921 25,439 25,776 26,308
Money market and capital market receivables (ac) 5,711 5,706 5,225 5,218
Receivables from other transactions (ac) 89 88 93 91
Financial assets (fvoci) 4,277 4,277 5,424 5,424
Money market and capital market receivables (fvoci) 4,273 4,273 5,422 5,422
Equity instruments (fvoci) 4 4 2 2
Financial assets (fvpl) 2,964 2,964 2,449 2,449
Loan receivables (fvpl) 532 532 196 196
Money market and capital market receivables (fvpl) 250 250
Carrying
amount
31 Mar 2018
Fair value
31 Mar 2018
Carrying
amount
31 Dec 20171)
Fair value
31 Dec 20171)
€ mn
Positive market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 1,327 1,327 1,926 1,926
Positive market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 855 855 327 327
Financial liabilities (ac) 36,188 36,478 36,630 36,961
Money market and capital market liabilities (ac) 25,525 25,719 26,109 26,349
Deposits from the housing industry (ac) 9,315 9,315 9,164 9,164
Liabilities from other transactions (ac) 111 110 92 90
Subordinated capital (ac) 1,237 1,334 1,265 1,358
Financial liabilities (fvpl) 1,533 1,533 1,703 1,703
Negative market value of designated hedging derivatives (fvpl) 1,250 1,250 1,479 1,479
Negative market value of other derivatives (fvpl) 283 283 224 224

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

(25) Day-one profit or loss

Aareal Bank Group has entered into transactions that were not effected on the principal market or the most advantageous market for the asset or liability concerned. In these cases the transaction price does not correspond to the fair value of the asset or liability, because the determination of the fair value using a valuation technique which assumes a transaction on a principal market results in a fair value that deviates from the transaction price. The financial instruments are carried at the transaction price upon initial recognition. The difference between the transaction price and the fair value measured based on the valuation model (the so-called day-one profit or loss) is amortised over the term of the transaction in the income statement, since the fair value of these derivatives is determined using valuation models whose inputs are not fully based on observable market factors.

The table below shows the development of the day-one profit or loss during the year under review. The day-one profit or loss is recognised as an item to be deducted from the carrying amount of the respective underlying derivative position:

2018 2017
6 12
-1 3
1 9
4 6

Segment Reporting

(26) Segment results

Structured Property
Financing
Consulting/
Services
Consolidation/
Reconciliation
Aareal Bank
Group
1 Jan
31 Mar 2018
1 Jan
31 Mar 20171)
1 Jan
31 Mar 2018
1 Jan
31 Mar 2017
1 Jan
31 Mar 2018
1 Jan
31 Mar 2017
1 Jan
31 Mar 2018
1 Jan
31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
Net interest income 136 157 0 0 -3 -3 133 154
Loss allowance 0 2 0 0 2
Net commission income 1 1 47 45 2 2 50 48
Net derecognition gain or loss 6 10 6 10
Net gain or loss from financial
assets (fvpl)
3 -1 3 -1
Net result on hedge accounting -2 -3 -2 -3
Results from investments
accounted for using the equity
method
Administrative expenses 74 89 55 51 -1 -1 128 139
Net other operating income/
expenses
5 4 0 0 0 0 5 4
Operating profit 75 77 -8 -6 0 0 67 71
Income taxes 26 26 -3 -2 23 24
Consolidated net income 49 51 -5 -4 0 0 44 47
Consolidated net income
attributable to non-controlling
interests
0 4 1 1 1 5
Consolidated net income
attributable to shareholders of
Aareal Bank AG
49 47 -6 -5 0 0 43 42
Allocated equity 1,839 1,853 168 146 478 509 2,485 2,508
Cost/income ratio (%) 49.5 53.1 117.9 113.4 65.6 65.9
RoE before taxes (%) 2)3) 15.1 14.5 -21.9 -19.2 9.7 9.6
Employees (average) 824 906 1,947 1,811 2,771 2,717
Segment assets 30,842 35,675 10,465 10,460 41,307 46,135

1) Comparative amounts reclassified according to the new classification format

2) On an annualised basis

3) The allocation of earnings is based on the assumption that net interest payable on the AT1 bond is recognised on an accrual basis.

Commission income from contracts with customers is allocated to the segments as follows:

Structured Property
Financing
1 Jan
1 Jan
31 Mar 2018
31 Mar 20171)
Consulting/
Services
Consolidation/
Reconciliation
Aareal Bank
Group
1 Jan
31 Mar 2018
1 Jan
31 Mar 2017
1 Jan
31 Mar 2018
1 Jan
31 Mar 2017
1 Jan
31 Mar 2018
1 Jan
31 Mar 20171)
€ mn
ERP products 39 37 -1 38 37
Digital solutions 9 8 0 9 8
Add-on products 7 7 -3 -3 4 4
Lending and other banking
business 2 2 5 4 7 6
Other activities 2 2 2 2
Total 2 2 62 58 -4 -3 60 57

(27) Consulting/Services segment – reconciliation of the income statement

Reconciliation of the segment result from the income statement classification aligned to an industrial enterprise to a bank income statement classification (which is used for the purposes of segment reporting)

Income statement classification – bank
Net
interest
income
Loss
allowance
Net com
mission
income
Result from
financial
assets (fvpl)
Results from
investments
accounted
for using
the equity
method
Admin
istrative
expenses
Net other
operating
income/
expenses
Operating
profit
Income
taxes
Segment
result
€ mn
3M 2018 0 0 47 55 0 -8 -3 -5
3M 2017 0 45 51 0 -6 -2 -4
Income statement classification –
industrial enterprise
3M 2018 56 56
Sales revenue 3M 2017 54 54
3M 2018 1 1
Own work capitalised 3M 2017 1 1
3M 2018
Changes in inventory 3M 2017 0 0
3M 2018 1 1
Other operating income 3M 2017 1 1
Cost of materials 3M 2018 9 9
purchased 3M 2017 9 9
3M 2018 37 37
Staff expenses 3M 2017 35 35
Depreciation, amortisation 3M 2018 4 4
and impairment losses 3M 2017 3 3
Results from investments
accounted for using the
3M 2018
equity method 3M 2017
Other operating 3M 2018 16 0 15 1
expenses 3M 2017 15 14 1
Interest and similar 3M 2018 0 0
income /expenses 3M 2017 0 0
Operating profit 3M 2018 -8 0 0 47 0 0 55 0
3M 2017 -6 0 45 0 0 51 0
Income taxes 3M 2018 -3 -3
3M 2017 -2 -2
Segment result 3M 2018 -5
3M 2017 -4

Other Notes

(28) Contingent liabilities and loan commitments

31 Mar 2018
31 Dec 2017
€ mn
Contingent liabilities 66 124
Loan commitments 1,488 1,749
of which: irrevocable 1,095 1,355

(29) Employees

The number of Aareal Bank Group employees1) as at 31 March 2018 is shown below:

31 Mar 2018 31 Dec 2017
Salaried employees 2,619 2,644
Executives 152 156
Total 2,771 2,800
of which: Part-time employees 543 544

The average number of Aareal Bank Group employees in 20182) is shown below:

1 Jan-31 Mar 2018 1 Jan-31 Mar 2017
Salaried employees 2,618 2,600
Executives 153 158
Total 2,771 2,758
of which: Part-time employees 539 531

1) This number does not include 204 (31 December 2017: 57) employees of the hotel business.

2) This number does not include 130 (1 January to 31 December 2017: 198) employees of the hotel business.

(30) Related party disclosures in accordance with IAS 24

In the first three months of the 2018 financial year, there were no material transactions with related parties that would have to be reported here.

(31) Events after the interim reporting period

There have been no events subsequent to the end of the interim reporting period under review that need to be disclosed at this point.

Executive Bodies of Aareal Bank AG

Supervisory Board

Marija Korsch 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) Chairman of the Supervisory Board Former partner of Bankhaus Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG

Prof. Dr Stephan Schüller 1) 2) 3) Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board Spokesman of the General Partners of Bankhaus Lampe KG

York-Detlef Bülow 1) 2) 3) 7) (until 31 March 2018) Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board Aareal Bank AG

Thomas Hawel 6) 7) Aareon Deutschland GmbH

Petra Heinemann-Specht 4) 5) 7) (since 1 April 2018) Aareal Bank AG

Dieter Kirsch 2) 4) 5) 7) Aareal Bank AG

Richard Peters 1) 3) 6) President and Chairman of the Management Board of Versorgungsanstalt des Bundes und der Länder

Dr Hans-Werner Rhein1) 4) 5) German Lawyer (Rechtsanwalt)

Sylvia Seignette4) 5) Former CEO for Germany and Austria, Crédit Agricole CIB (formerly Calyon)

Elisabeth Stheeman4) 5) 6) External Member of the Bank of England's Financial Policy Committee (FPC)

Hans-Dietrich Voigtländer 2) 3) 6) Senior Partner at BDG Innovation + Transformation GmbH & Co. KG

Prof. Dr Hermann Wagner 3) 4) 5) Chairman of the Audit Committee German Chartered Accountant, Tax Consultant

Beate Wollmann7) Aareon Deutschland GmbH

Management Board

Hermann Josef Merkens Chairman of the Management Board

Dagmar Knopek Member of the Management Board

Christiane Kunisch-Wolff Member of the Management Board

Thomas Ortmanns Member of the Management Board

Christof Winkelmann Member of the Management Board

1) Member of the Executive and Nomination Committee; 2) Member of the Remuneration Control Committee; 3) Member of the Audit Committee;

4) Member of the Risk Committee; 5) Member of the Committee for Urgent Decisions; 6) Member of the Technology and Innovation Committee;

7) Employee representative

Offices

Wiesbaden Head Office

Aareal Bank AG

Paulinenstrasse 15 65189 Wiesbaden, Germany Phone: +49 611 3480 Fax: +49 611 3482549

Structured Property Financing

Brussels

40 rue Joseph II-straat 1000 Brussels, Belgium Phone: +32 2 5144090 Fax: +32 2 5144092

Istanbul

Ebulula Mardin Caddesi Maya Meridyen I¸s Merkezi D:2 Blok · Kat. 11 34335 Akatlar-Istanbul, Turkey Phone: +90 212 3490200 Fax: +90 212 3490299

London

6th Floor, 6,7, 8 Tokenhouse Yard London EC2R 7AS, United Kingdom Phone: +44 20 74569200 Fax: +44 20 79295055

Madrid

Calle María de Molina 40, 4 28006 Madrid, Spain Phone: +34 915 902420 Fax: +34 915 902436

Moscow

Business Centre "Mokhovaya" 4/7 Vozdvizhenka Street Building 2 125009 Moscow, Russia Phone: +7 499 2729002 Fax: +7 499 2729016

New York

Aareal Capital Corporation 250 Park Avenue Suite 820 New York NY 10177, USA Phone: +1 212 5084080 Fax: +1 917 3220285

Paris

29 bis, rue d'Astorg 75008 Paris, France Phone: +33 1 44516630 Fax: +33 1 42662498

Rome

Via Mercadante, 12/14 00198 Rome, Italy Phone: +39 06 83004200 Fax: +39 06 83004250

Shanghai

Suite 2311 Plaza 66 Phase I 1266 Nanjing West Road Shanghai 200040, China Phone: +86 21 62889908 Fax: +86 21 62889903

Singapore

Aareal Bank Asia Limited 3 Church Street #17-03 Samsung Hub Singapore 049483, Singapore Phone: +65 6372 9750 Fax: +65 6536 8162

Stockholm

Norrmalmstorg 14 11146 Stockholm, Sweden Phone: +46 8 54642000 Fax: +46 8 54642001

Warsaw

RONDO 1 · Rondo ONZ 1 00-124 Warsaw, Poland Phone: +48 22 5380060 Fax: +48 22 5380069

Wiesbaden

Paulinenstrasse 15 65189 Wiesbaden, Germany Phone: +49 611 3482950 Fax: +49 611 3482020

Aareal Estate AG

Paulinenstrasse 15 65189 Wiesbaden, Germany Phone: +49 611 3482446 Fax: +49 611 3483587

Deutsche Structured Finance GmbH

Paulinenstrasse 15 65189 Wiesbaden, Germany Phone: +49 611 9714010 Fax: +49 611 971401510

Westdeutsche Immobilien Servicing AG

Grosse Bleiche 46 55116 Mainz, Germany Phone: +49 6131 92800 Fax: +49 6131 92807200

Consulting / Services

Aareal Bank AG Housing Industry Paulinenstrasse 15 65189 Wiesbaden, Germany Phone: +49 611 3482967 Fax: +49 611 3482499

Housing Industry Berlin Branch

SpreePalais Anna-Louisa-Karsch-Strasse 2 10178 Berlin, Germany Phone: +49 30 88099444 Fax: +49 30 88099470

Housing Industry Essen Branch

Alfredstrasse 220 45131 Essen, Germany Phone: +49 201 81008100 Fax: +49 201 81008200

Housing Industry

Leipzig Branch Neumarkt 2-4 04109 Leipzig, Germany Phone: +49 341 2272150 Fax: +49 341 2272101

Housing Industry Rhine-Main Branch

Paulinenstrasse 15 65189 Wiesbaden, Germany Hotline: +49 611 3482000 Fax: +49 611 3483002

Housing Industry Stuttgart Branch

Büchsenstrasse 26 70174 Stuttgart, Germany Phone: +49 711 2236116 Fax: +49 711 2236160

Aareon AG

Isaac-Fulda-Allee 6 55124 Mainz, Germany Phone: +49 6131 3010 Fax: +49 6131 301419

Aareal First Financial Solutions AG

Isaac-Fulda-Allee 6 55124 Mainz, Germany Phone: +49 6131 4864500 Fax: +49 6131 486471500

Deutsche Bau- und

Grundstücks-Aktiengesellschaft Lievelingsweg 125 53119 Bonn, Germany Phone: +49 228 5180 Fax: +49 228 518298

Deposit-taking

Dublin

Torquay Road Foxrock Village Dublin D18 A2N7, Ireland Phone: +353 1 6369220 Fax: +353 1 6702785

Financial Calendar

23 May 2018 Annual General Meeting – Kurhaus, Wiesbaden
14 August 2018 Publication of results as at 30 June 2018
13 November 2018 Publication of results as at 30 September 2018

Locations

as at 1 May 2018

Imprint Contents: Aareal Bank AG, Group Corporate Communications Design / Layout: S/COMPANY · Die Markenagentur GmbH, Fulda, Germany

Aareal Bank AG Investor Relations Paulinenstrasse 15 65189 Wiesbaden, Germany

Phone: +49 611 348 3009 Fax: +49 611 348 2637

www.aareal-bank.com

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