Governance Information • May 20, 2021
Governance Information
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Recommendation no. 29.3: NLB does not have a programme of acquisition of own shares (in 2020 NLB didn't buy any own shares and therefore didn't need a programme of acquisition of own shares). Should NLB need to buy its own shares (e.g. for the purpose of paying variable remuneration in the form of own shares to its Identified Staff), it will draw it up.
Recommendation no. 29.9: NLB does not publish the rules of procedure of its bodies (Management Board and Supervisory Board and the General Meeting) on its website. However, each year the Bank discloses the composition, competences, and work of its managing bodies in the 'Corporate Governance Statement of NLB' and publishes it in the NLB Group Annual Report as well on Bank's website.
NLB is governed by the provisions of the Banking Act (ZBan-2) and the Regulation on Internal Governance Arrangements, the Management Body and the Internal Capital Adequacy Assessment Process for Banks and Savings Banks regulating, among other, the Bank's obligation to set up, maintain appropriate internal control, and risk management systems. As a result of this, NLB has developed a steady and reliable internal governance system encompassing the following:
Suitability of the internal control mechanisms are determined by the independence, quality, and validity of:
Internal controls should be put in place at all levels of the Bank's organisational structure, especially the levels of commercial, control, and support functions, and at the level of each of the Bank's financial services. In daily operations, the Bank follows the internal act System of Internal Controls, which sets the system of internal controls in NLB and responsibilities for its establishment, continuous performance, and its upgrading. On the organisational level, the Bank established middle-offices and back offices.
In the event of deficiencies, irregularities of breaches identified in the process of implementation of internal controls the breaches are discussed at the Operational Risk Committee and appropriate actions are taken. In the events of intentional breaches of the Bank's rules as defined by the Group Code of Conduct, the events are handled according to the Integrity and Compliance Policy of NLB and NLB Group.
The internal control functions are part of the system of the internal governance in the Bank. Internal control functions include:
The Internal Audit function is organised according to the Charter on the Internal Audit of NLB adopted by the Management Board on 13 November 2018 (and supplemented on 13 August 2019), to which the Supervisory Board of NLB gave its approval (30 November 2018 and 6 September 2019).
The Charter of the Internal Audit of NLB is the umbrella document about the understanding and role of the Internal Audit in the Bank, which defines the purpose, powers, responsibilities, and tasks of the Internal Audit in line with the International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing. The mentioned Charter lays down the position of the Internal Audit in the organisation, including the nature of the relationship between the functional responsibility of the Head of the Internal Audit to the supervisory body, grants authorisations to internal auditors for accessing records, employees, premises, and equipment relevant for performing their tasks, and defines the area and activities of the Internal Audit.
The Management Board has set up an independent internal audit function which gives assurances and advice about risk management, internal controls system, and management of the Bank. The mission and the principal task of the Internal Audit is to consolidate and secure the value of the Bank by issuing objective assurances based on risk assessment, with consultancy and deep understanding of the Bank's operations. In addition to that, the Internal Audit carries out regular control of the quality of operation of the other internal audit departments in the Group and takes care of constant development of the internal auditing function.
Pursuant to the provisions of the law, the Bank has organised the internal audit as an independent organisational unit, primary responsible to the Supervisory Board of NLB and secondary to the Management Board of NLB.
The Supervisory Board of NLB must issue its approval of the appointment, remuneration, and dismissal of the Director of the Internal Audit, which ensures their independence and thus the independence of the work of the Internal Audit.
The Risk Management Function is organised according to the Charter of the Risk Management Function of NLB adopted by the Management Board on 6 November 2015, in agreement with the Supervisory Board of NLB. The Charter on Functioning of the Risk Management Function of NLB is the framework document on understanding and role of the risk management function; it defines the purpose, validity, and method
Pursuant to Article 70, paragraph 5, of the Companies Act (ZGD-1)14 NLB hereby gives the following Corporate Governance Statement as a part of the Business Report of the NLB Group Annual Report 2020.
Information contained in this point represents a 'Statement of Compliance with the Corporate Governance Code' as defined in the Ljubljana Stock Exchange Rules, dated 27 April 2020 (Article 24).
Apart from binding legal framework (primarily but not exclusively Companies Act (ZGD-1), Banking Act (ZBan-2), EBA Guidelines), the Bank as a public company, also follows best corporate practice recommendations of the Corporate Governance Code for Listed Companies, adopted by the Ljubljana Stock Exchange and Slovene Directors' Association, adopted on 27 October 2016 (came in force on 1 January 2017). The recommended best corporate governance practices contribute to a transparent and understandable corporate governance system, which promotes both domestic and foreign investor confidence, as well as the confidence of employees, other stakeholders (regulators, suppliers, etc.) and the general public. This code is published on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange's website (http://www.ljse.si). A decision on which code the Bank will follow is made jointly by the Management Board and the Supervisory Board of the Bank by adopting the Corporate Governance Policy of NLB (November 2020).
Compliance with the aforementioned code is explained in the Corporate Governance Statement of NLB on 'comply or explain basis,' in which the Bank provides explanation on deviations or reasoning for non-compliance with certain recommendation. The statement refers to the Bank's system of corporate governance from the beginning to the end of financial year, which also corresponds to the beginning and the end of the calendar year (from 1 January until 31 December). Corporate Governance Statement of NLB is, according to Article 70 (paragraph 5) of the Companies Act (ZGD-1), included in the Business Report of the NLB Group Annual Report (published on (https://www.nlb.si/financial-reports), and is also published on the Bank's website under the chapter on Corporate Governance (https:// www.nlb.si/corporate-governance).
NLB strives to increase the level of its business transparency and informs the shareholders and other expert community based on Guidelines on Disclosure for Listed Companies (Ljubljana Stock Exchange, valid from 23 November 2020) on electronic communications system of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange (SEOnet), in line with Rules and Regulation of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange, as well as in line with Rules of the London Stock Exchange through Regulatory News Services (RNS) of the London Stock Exchange.
The Corporate Governance system of the Bank and all relevant information on Bank's management that exceeds the requirements of article 70 of the Companies Act (ZGD-1) are published in the Corporate Governance Policy of NLB (November 2020) and other documents that are communicated to the stakeholders and other interested persons by being published on the NLB's website (http://www.nlb.si/corporate-governance).
The Bank does not follow (or implements partially) the following recommendations:
Recommendation no. 10.1: In assessing candidate's eligibility for the position of Supervisory Board member, statutory criteria are applied. However, candidates don't have a certificate evidencing their specialised professional competence for membership on a Supervisory Board, such as the Certificate of the Slovenian Directors' Association, or any other relevant certificate. That said, all of the strict conditions have to be fulfilled according to banking legislature.
Recommendation no. 12.2: The Rules of Procedure of the Supervisory Board of NLB do not include the list of all types of transactions for which the Management Board needs prior approval of the Supervisory Board, but refer to Article 24 of the Articles of Association. These rules also do not include the Supervisory Board evaluation, education, and training of the members of the Supervisory Board. These provisions are part of other internal documents or decisions of the managing bodies.
Recommendation no. 12.3: The Rules of Procedure of the Supervisory Board of NLB do not include the scope of topics and timeframe to be respected by the Management Board in its periodic reporting of the Supervisory Board. However, the scope of topics and time frames of periodic reporting to the Supervisory Board are included in annual Action Plan of the Supervisory Board and Articles of Association. Professional services of the Bank take care that timely information is provided to the Supervisory Board.
Recommendation no. 15.3: NLB does not follow this recommendation because the President of the Supervisory Board is at the same time President of the Nominations Committee.
Recommendation no. 17.1: Members of the Supervisory Board don't receive attendance fees, but are entitled to payment for performing their function.
Recommendation no. 25.3: The Bank does not follow the recommendation on rotation of audit companies (at least once every seven years), however, the Bank complies with the Banking Law (ZBan-2) that allows a longer period. Still, the audit firm did replace the audit partner responsible for the audit of NLB and the Group financial statements for year 2020.
Recommendation no. 27.4: NLB draws up its financial calendar which is published on its website (https://www.nlb.si/financial-calendar) and includes the date of the Annual General Meeting, even though it doesn't provide information on the dividend payment date, which is announced in the publication of the Agenda and Proposed Resolutions to be passed at the Annual General Meeting (both documents published on https://www.nlb. si/general-meetings). The dividend payment date is determined based on KDD Operations Rules (Central Securities Clearing Corporation).
4. INFORMATION ON POINT 4, PARAGRAPH 5, OF THE ARTICLE 70 OF THE ZGD-1 regarding points 3, 4, 6, 8, and 9 of paragraph 6 in the same article
Significant direct and indirect ownership of the company's securities in terms of achieving a qualifying holding as defined in the Takeovers Act (as at 31 December 2020):
| Shareholder | Number of shares | Percentage of shares | Nature of ownership |
|---|---|---|---|
| RoS | 5,000,001 | 25.00 | shares |
| Brandes Investment Partners, L.P.(i) | / | >5 and <10 | GDRs |
| EBRD(i) | / | >5 and <10 | GDRs |
| Schroders plc(i) | / | >5 and <10 | GDRs |
(i) In the form of GDRs.
More information on the Bank's Share Capital is available on the website: https://www.nlb.si/shares.
The Bank did not issue any securities carrying special controlling rights.
An explanation regarding restrictions related to voting rights, in particular: (i) restrictions of voting rights to a certain stake or certain number of votes, (ii) deadlines for executing voting rights, and (iii) agreements in which, based on the company's cooperation, the financial rights arising from securities are separated from the rights of ownership of such securities (Point 6 of the sixth paragraph of Article 70 of the ZGD-1)
The shares of the Bank are freely transferable, subject to the provisions of the Articles of Association of the Bank which require the approval of the Supervisory Board, namely for the transfer of shares of the Bank by which the acquirer, together with the shares held by the holder before such an acquisition and the shares held by third parties for the account of the acquirer, exceeds a 25% share of the Bank's voting shares. Approval for the transfer of shares is issued by the Supervisory Board.
The Bank rejects the request for approval of transfer shares if the acquirer, together with the shares held by the acquirer before the acquisition and the shares held by third parties for the account of the acquirer, exceed the 25% share of the Bank with voting rights, increased by one share.
Notwithstanding the provision mentioned in the first paragraph, approval for the transfer of shares is not required if the acquirer of the shares has acquired them for third parties. So, it is not entitled to exercise voting rights from these shares at its sole discretion, while at the same time committing to the Bank that it will not exercise voting rights on the basis of the instructions of an individual third party for whose account it has acquired the shares if, together with the instructions for voting, it does not receive a written guarantee from that person that this person has shares for his own account
and that this person is not, directly or indirectly, a holder of more than 25% of the Bank's voting rights.
The acquirer who exceeds the share of 25% of the Bank's shares with voting rights, and does not require the issuance of approval for the transfer of shares, or does not receive the approval of the Bank, may exercise the voting right from 25% of the shares with the voting rights.
There are no restrictions other than those mentioned and those that are regulatory.
The Management Board of the Bank is comprised of three to seven members, one of whom is appointed President of the Management Board of the Bank, and one member may be a Worker Director. The number of Management Board members is determined by a resolution of the Bank's Supervisory Board. The President and other members of the Management Board are appointed and recalled by the Supervisory Board of the Bank; the President of the Management Board may propose to the Chair of the Supervisory Board of the Bank to appoint or recall an individual member or the remaining members of the Management Board of the Bank. However, it is the Workers' Council of the Bank that may propose to the Supervisory Board of the Bank to appoint or recall a Worker Director.
The President and members of the Management Board shall be appointed for a period of five years and may be re-appointed for another term of office. The President and members of the Management Board may be recalled prior to the expiry of their term of office in accordance with applicable laws and Articles of Association. Each member of the Management Board of the Bank may prematurely resign her/his term of office with a period of notice of three months. A written notice shall be delivered to the Chair of the Supervisory Board of the Bank. The notice
of operation, as well as the authorisations and responsibilities of the risk management function according to the requirements of the Banking Act (ZBan-2) and the Regulation on Internal Management Arrangements, Management Body, and Internal Capital Adequacy Assessment Process for Banks and Savings Banks.
The risk management function represents an important part of overall management and governance system in the Group. This function in NLB is organised within the Risk stream, covered by the member of the Management Board in charge of risk (CRO). The risk stream covers the following organisational units:
The risk management function is performed by the Global Risk. In accordance with the competences, authorisations, and responsibilities, Global Risk is represented by its General Manager. The Global Risk is in functional and organisational terms separate from other functions where business decisions are adopted and where potential conflict of interest may arise with the risk management function. The head of the risk management function has direct access to the Management Board of the NLB and at the same time unhindered and independent access to the Supervisory Board of NLB and the Risk Committee of the Supervisory Board of the NLB.
In members of the Group, the risk management function is organised according to the local legislation, taking into account the bases for set-up, organisation, and activities in the area of risk management in the members, as defined in the document 'Risk Management Standards in the NLB Group.' The described standards on risk management provide the members of the Group the bases with which they have to align their organisation, strategic risk-taking guidelines, internal policies, methodologies, and reporting system.
Risk management and control is performed through a clear organisational structure with defined roles and responsibilities. The organisation and delineation of competencies is designed to prevent conflicts of interest, and to ensure a transparent and documented decision-making process that is subject to an appropriate upward and downward flow of information. Business line Risk Management in NLB, encompassing several professional areas, is in charge for formulating and controlling the Group's risk management policies, setting limits, overseeing the harmonisation, regular monitoring of risk exposures and limits based on centralised reporting at the Group level. In contrast, the primary responsibility for managing the assumed risks in the Group members within centralised set limits lies with each Group member's management board.
The Group puts great emphasis on the risk culture and awareness across the entire Group. The Group's Risk management framework is forward-looking and tailored to its business model and corresponding risk profile.
c) The Compliance, Information Security, and AML/CTF Functions Compliance and Integrity in the Group in its role as internal control function performs control activities with respect to the main following areas:
Compliance and Integrity is an organisational unit of the Bank, placed directly under the Bank's Management Board in the organisational structure. The Bank adopted Integrity and Compliance Policy of the NLB and the NLB Group (Version 1, December 2016), which regulates the method and scope of the activities of the compliance function in the Bank. Separate policies regulate different areas which are organised within the Compliance and Integrity in NLB.
Supervision over compliance of operations is within the competence of the Compliance and Integrity. This enables the Compliance and Integrity to operate independently from other Bank's departments. The director of Compliance and Integrity does not perform any other function at the Bank that could possibly lead to conflict of interests. To ensure his independence, the director reports to the Management Board and to a specific member of the Bank's Management Board responsible for compliance area (including information security and AML/CTF functions), which additionally ensures independence of operation of the Compliance and Integrity.
As information security, AML/CTF and Group AML functions are organised within Compliance and Integrity, CISO, head of AML/CTF area for NLB and head of the Group AML are ensured full independence through equal reporting lines as the director of Compliance and Integrity, and have direct access and separate reporting line to the Bank's Supervisory Board. Following NLB's model, the compliance function has been established in the core members of the Group as well based on the Group standards for compliance and integrity area. Through specific binding standards in the area of compliance and integrity, there is a harmonised system of standards and practices in the area of compliance and integrity in place in the entire NLB Group, in core and non-core members.
With the aim of ensuring appropriate financial reporting procedures, the Group pursues the adopted Policy on Accounting Controls. The accounting controls are provided through the operation of the complete accounting function with the purpose of ensuring quality and reliable accounting information, and thereby accurate and timely financial reporting. The principal identified risks in this area are managed with an appropriate system of authorisations, a segregation of duties, compliance with accounting rules, documenting of all business events, a custody system, posting on the day of a business event, in-built control mechanisms in source applications, and archiving pursuant to the laws and internal regulations. Furthermore, the policy precisely defines the primary accounting controls, performed in the scope of analytical bookkeeping, and secondary accounting controls, i.e., checking the efficiency of implementation of primary accounting controls. With an efficient mechanism of controls in the area of accounting reporting, the Group ensures:
The Management Board is the decision-making and representation body of the Bank. It manages the Bank, makes business decisions autonomously and independently, adopts the development strategy, ensures sound and effective risk management, acts with the highest professional integrity, protects business secrets, and is held accountable for the legality of the Bank's operations within the limits set by the relevant regulations.
At the beginning of 2020, the Management Board of the Bank consisted of Blaž Brodnjak, CEO; Archibald Kremser, CFO; Andreas Burkhardt, CRO; and László Pelle, COO. László Pelle and the Supervisory Board agreed on the termination of his office as at 31 January 2020. In order to assure continuation of the function of COO, the Supervisory Board appointed Petr Brunclík as member of the Management Board, who joined NLB on 2 February 2020 in a function of Executive Assistant to the Management Board. He assumed his function as COO on 18 May 2020, upon receiving a consent by the ECB on 13 May 2020. On 12 November 2020, the Supervisory Board reappointed Blaž Brodnjak as the CEO, Archibald Kremser as the CFO, and Andreas Burkhardt as CRO of NLB.
Following the already mentioned decision of the Constitutional Court of the RoS in June 2019, the Bank was required to enable workers participation in its governing bodies. For that purpose, an amendment to its Articles of Association was adopted at General Meeting of Shareholder on 15 June 2020 that enables a right of the Bank's employees to one member of the Management Board (the Worker Director).
After the successfully completed privatisation process of NLB and the fulfilment of the highly limiting commitments to the EC by the end of 2019, the Management Board in 2020 began creating new opportunities for future growth so that the Bank intensified activities on digitalisation and modernisation of processes and services of the entire NLB Group, increasing the range of customer services and the improvement of efficiency. From February 2020, the Management Board took all necessary actions in order to lower the impact and consequences of COVID-19 pandemic. Through the year, the Management Board worked on activities that resulted in purchase of Komercijalna banka a.d. Beograd (Komercijalna Banka, Beograd) in December 2020.
Detailed information on the composition and amount of remuneration of the Management Board is contained in Appendices C.1 and C.3 of this statement.
In accordance with the two-tier governance system, the Bank's Supervisory Board issues approvals to the Management Board related to the Banks' business policy and financial plan, approves the strategy of the Bank and the Group, the internal control system organisation, gives consent to the Annual Plan of the Internal Audit, as well as financial transactions defined in the Articles of Association. The Supervisory Board acts in accordance with the highest ethical standards of management, considering the prevention of conflicts of interest. The Supervisory Board performs its tasks in accordance with the provisions of the applicable legislation governing the operations of
banks and companies, the Bank's Articles of Association, and its Rules of Procedure of the Supervisory Board of NLB. The Supervisory Board may engage legal and other consultants and institutions required by itself or its committees to perform their tasks.
As the term of office of four members of the Supervisory Board of NLB expired in 2020, the General Meeting of Shareholders on 15 June 2020 adopted the decision to elect new members. Primož Karpe and David Eric Simon were re-elected for a new term of office, while the term of office of László Urbán and Alexander Bayr expired. Additionally, Verica Trstenjak was elected as a member of the Supervisory Board. All three members were appointed for a four-year term, which began on the day of their appointment and shall last until the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting of NLB that decides on the allocation of distributable profit for the fourth financial year after their election, counting the year in which they were appointed as the first one.
At the same General Meeting, the shareholders also adopted amendments to the Articles of Association, which based on Constitutional Court's decision adopted in June 2019, enabled workers' participation in the management bodies. With the mentioned decision, the Constitutional Court annulled the fourth paragraph of Article 33 of the Banking Act (ZBan-2), which stipulated that the provisions of the Law Governing the Participation of Workers in Management with respect to employee representatives in a bank's managing bodies would not apply to banks. In accordance with changes made to the Articles of Association, the Supervisory Board consists of 12 members, out of which eight are representatives of the capital and four are employee representatives (elected and appointed by the Workers' Council of NLB).
In June 2020, the Workers' Council of NLB elected and appointed Petra Kakovič Bizjak, Sergeja Kočar, and Bojana Šteblaj as members of the Supervisory Board of NLB – representatives of employees. Their four-year terms of office began on the day of the registration of the changes to the Articles of Association into the court register (17 June 2020).
On 26 June 2020, members of the Supervisory Board of NLB elected Primož Karpe as Chairman of the Supervisory Board for the second consecutive time, while Andreas Klingen was re-elected as Deputy. At that point, the Supervisory Board of NLB consisted of 11 members, of which eight were representatives of shareholders (in addition to Primož Karpe and Andreas Klingen, members were also Gregor Rok Kastelic, Mark William Lane Richards, Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda, Peter Groznik, David Eric Simon, and Verica Trstenjak) and three were representatives of employees (Petra Kakovič Bizjak, Sergeja Kočar, and Bojana Šteblaj). Due to the changed membership, the Supervisory Board also appointed members to its five committees.
Given the fact that the changed Articles of Association allowed up to four employee representatives to the Supervisory Board of the NLB, the Workers' Council published a call for the election and appointment of one more member – an employee representative. While this process was still ongoing, on 1 September 2020, the Bank received a letter of resignation from Petra Kakovič Bizjak, member of the Supervisory Board – the employee representative. Her mandate was terminated by agreement with the Supervisory Board on 10 September 2020. The procedure for one
term may be shorter than three months if requested by the resigning member of the Management Board of the Bank in his/her notice and is subject to the approval of the Supervisory Board of the Bank.
A member of the Bank's Management Board may only be a person who fulfils the legally prescribed conditions for a management board member under the law on banking, and who obtained a licence from the BoS or the ECB – if executing the competences and tasks from Item (e) of paragraph 1 of Article 4 of Regulation (EU) no. 1024/2013 for the performance of the function of a bank's management board member under the law regulating banking. The Bank assesses every candidate following the Bank's Policy governing a Fit & Proper assessment prior to the appointment.
The Supervisory Board of the Bank consists of a total of 12 members, of which eight members represent the interests of shareholders and four members represent the interests of employees. Members representing the interests of shareholders shall be elected and recalled by the Bank's General Meeting from persons proposed by shareholders or the Supervisory Board of the Bank and members representing the interests of employees shall be elected and recalled by the Workers' Council of the Bank. Members of the Supervisory Board representing the interests of shareholders are elected by an ordinary majority of votes cast by shareholders.
The members of the Supervisory Board of the Bank are elected for the period lasting from the day of their election until the end of the Bank's annual general meeting of shareholders, which decides on the use of accumulated profit for the fourth business year since they have been elected, unless otherwise stipulated at the time of appointment of individual members.
The general meeting of the Bank may dismiss an individual or all members of the Supervisory Board (representatives of shareholders) even before the expiration of their term of office. A resolution on a dismissal shall be valid if adopted with at least a three-quarter majority of all votes cast.
The Supervisory Board of the Bank shall at its first meeting after an appointment elect from among its members a Chair and at least one Deputy Chair of the Supervisory Board of the Bank. A member representing the interests of employees cannot be elected Chair or Deputy Chair of the Supervisory Board of the Bank. All the supervisory board members shall be independent professionals as defined by the Articles of Association.
A qualified majority of at least 75% of the votes cast by shareholders at the general meeting of the Bank's shareholders is required for the adoption of any amendments of the Articles of Association.
The General Meeting of Shareholders of NLB on 10 June 2019 authorised the Management Board for redeeming treasury shares in the period of 36 months from the adoption of the resolution at the General Meeting. Pursuant to the provisions of the Banking Act (ZBan-2), NLB is required to pay out the variable remuneration of certain employees (in part) in NLB's shares. The authorisation is valid for acquiring up to 36,542 NLB
treasury shares, while the total percentage of shares acquired on the basis of this authorisation, together with the treasury shares already in possession of NLB, may not exceed 10% of NLB's share capital (2,000,000 shares). When disposing its treasury shares which NLB acquired on the basis of this authorisation, the pre-emptive right of the existing shareholders to acquire shares is excluded in full in case treasury shares are disposed of for the purpose of paying the variable part of remuneration to the employees of NLB in the form of NLB's shares.
Competences of the Bank's General Meeting are stipulated in the Companies (ZGD-1), Banking Act (ZBan-2) and the Articles of Association. The General Meeting is a body of the Bank through which shareholders exercise their rights, which include among others: decisions on corporate changes (amendments of the Articles of Association, increase or decrease of share capital) and legal restructuring (mergers, acquisitions), adopt decisions on all statutory issues with respect to appointing and discharging members of the Supervisory Board (representatives of shareholders) and appointment of an auditor, distribution decisions (appropriation of distributable profit), and granting of a discharge from liability to the Management and Supervisory Board.
The General Meeting is convened by the Management Board. The General Meeting may be convened by the Supervisory Board in cases where the Management Board fails to convene the General Meeting or where when a convocation is necessary to ensure unhindered operations of the Bank. The Supervisory Board may amend the agenda of the General Meeting convened in line with the Articles of Association.
As a rule, the General Meeting of the Bank shall be convened at the registered office of the Bank, yet it may also be convened at another venue specified by the convenor. The Shareholders' Meeting shall adopt resolutions by simple majority of the votes cast, unless the applicable laws or the Bank's Articles of Association stipulate a larger majority or other conditions.
The shareholders have the right to participate at the general meeting of the Bank, the voting right, pre-emptive right to subscribe for new shares in case of share capital increase, the right to profit participation (dividends) and the right to a share in surplus in the event of liquidation or bankruptcy of the Bank and the right to be informed.
Based on Article 296 of the Companies Act (ZGD-1), NLB informs shareholders on their rights as shareholders in an Information on the Rights of Shareholders that is published among documents for convocation of each General Meeting (i.e., on expansion of the agenda, proposals by shareholders, voting proposals by shareholders, and the shareholders right to be informed).
With recent changes in the Articles of Association at the General Meeting, an amendment was adopted that enables the shareholders to attend the General Meeting without physical presence.
The Audit Committee's tasks are defined by law, the Bank's Articles of Association, Rules of Procedure of the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board of NLB, resolutions of the Supervisory Board, and other regulations from which the Committee especially monitors and prepares proposals of resolutions for the Supervisory Board for the area:
There were seven regular sessions and three correspondence sessions of the Audit Committee in 2020. Following is a summary of key topics considered by the Audit Committee:
Responsibilities of the committee are defined in Rules of Procedure of the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board of NLB.
The Risk Committee monitors and drafts resolutions for the Supervisory Board in all risk areas relevant to the Bank's operations. It is consulted on the current and future risk appetite and the risk management strategy, and helps carry out control over senior management concerning implementation of the risk management strategy.
From 1 January 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: Andreas Klingen (Chairman), László Urbán (Deputy Chairman), Peter Groznik, Mark William Lane Richards and David Eric Simon (members). From 26 June 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: Andreas Klingen (Chairman), Peter Groznik (Deputy Chairman), Mark William Lane Richards, Gregor Rok Kastelic and David Eric Simon (members).
There were five regular sessions of the Risk Committee in 2020. Following is a summary of key topics considered by the Risk Committee:
Responsibilities of the committee are defined in Rules of Procedure of the Risk Committee of the Supervisory Board of NLB.
The Nomination Committee drafts proposed resolutions for the Supervisory Board concerning the appointment and dismissal of the Management Board members; recommends candidates for Supervisory Board members; recommends to the Supervisory Board the dismissal of members of the Management Board and the Supervisory Board (representatives of capital); prepares the content of executive employment contracts for the President and members of the Management Board; evaluates the performance of the Management Board and the Supervisory Board; and assesses the knowledge, skills, and experience of individual members of the Management Board and Supervisory Board and the bodies as a whole.
From 1 January 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: Primož Karpe (Chairman), Andreas Klingen (Deputy Chairman), Alexander Bayr, Peter Groznik, and Mark William Lane Richards (members). From 26 June 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: Primož Karpe (Chairman), Andreas Klingen (Deputy Chairman), Verica Trstenjak, Peter Groznik, and Sergeja Kočar (members).
There were eight regular sessions and one correspondence session of the Nomination Committee in 2020. Following is a summary of key topics considered by the Nomination Committee:
Responsibilities of the committee are defined in Rules of Procedure of the Nomination Committee of the Supervisory Board of NLB.
member of the Supervisory Board – the worker representative was still ongoing at the end of December 2020.
On 20 November 2020, the Bank received information that the Workers' Council elected Janja Žabjek Dolinšek as member of the Supervisory Board – the worker representative. Her term of office started on 20 November 2020 and will run until the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting of NLB that decides on the allocation of distributable profit for the fourth financial year after her election, counting the year in which she was appointed as the first one. Procedure for election of another member of the Supervisory Board – the worker representative was still ongoing at the end of December 2020.
In 2020, the Supervisory Board met at seven regular and 12 correspondence sessions and took note of or adopted the following major decisions:
Composition and the amount of remuneration of the Supervisory Board members is described in the Appendices C.2 and C.4 of this statement.
All five Committees for the Supervisory Board function as consulting bodies of the Supervisory Board of NLB and discuss the material and proposals of Management Board of NLB for the Supervisory Board meetings related to a particular area. The Supervisory Board has the following committees.
Committees are composed of at least three members of the Supervisory Board. The Works Council can nominate one Supervisory Board member – representative of workers into each committee. The Chair of the Committee may only be appointed from among the members of the Supervisory Board. The term of office of Chair, the Deputy Chair, and members of the Committee should not exceed their term of office as Supervisory Board members.
Composition of the aforementioned Committees in 2020 is described in detail in the Appendix C.2 of this statement.
The Audit Committee monitors and prepares draft resolutions for the Supervisory Board on accounting reporting, internal control and risk management, internal audit, compliance, and external audit, and as well monitors the implementation of regulatory measures.
From 1 January 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: David Eric Simon (Chairman), Alexander Bayr (Deputy Chairman), Primož Karpe, Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda, and Gregor Rok Kastelic (members). From 26 June 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: David Eric Simon (Chairman), Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda (Deputy Chairman), Primož Karpe, Gregor Rok Kastelic, Verica Trstenjak (resigned from Audit Committee function on 18 December 2020) and Petra Kakovič Bizjak (until 20 September 2020) – as members.
88 CONTENTS Annual Report 2020 MB Statement SB Statement Key highlights Acquisition of KB Risk factors & Outlook Performance Overview Risk Management Financial Report
Second version of Policy on the Provision of Diversity of the Management Body and Senior Management was adopted by the General Meeting of Shareholders on 10 June 2019. With the mentioned Policy, NLB sets the framework in the area of diversity of an adequate representation of both genders, with regard to education, range of knowledge, skills and experience, age, gender, and international experience. The Provisions Policy on the Provision of Diversity of the Members of the Supervisory Board was extended on the members of the Management Board, while the goals of the Policy shall also be reasonably applied to the provision of diversity of the senior management.
The Bank implements the principles of this policy through other policies and procedures, namely the Policy on the selection of suitable candidates for members of the Supervisory Board and the Policy on the selection of suitable candidates for members of the Management Board, as well as procedures of the Nomination Committee of the Supervisory Board. Key criteria for selection of candidates were supplemented by criteria that include experience, reputation, management of potential conflict of interests, independence, time availability, and conditions for achieving collective suitability of the Supervisory Board.
In practice, diversity is ensured through the procedures for nominating and appointing members to the management and supervisory bodies. While other criteria of diversity were met, as far as gender criteria is concerned,
there were no female representatives in the composition of the Supervisory Board in the first half of 2020. Even though selection process for four new members of the Supervisory Board was open to candidates of both genders, at the regular General Meeting of Shareholders on 15 June 2020, only one female representative was elected as member of the Supervisory Board of NLB. However, with recent changes regarding workers participation in managing bodies of banks, three female worker's representatives were elected to the position by the Workers Council on 17 June 2020. Since one worker's representative resigned, the Workers Council elected another female representative on 20 November 2020 (and after the business year 2020, on 22 January 2021, yet another female representative was selected). Currently, out of 12 members of the Supervisory Board, five representatives are females.
At the beginning of 2020, the Management Board of the Bank consisted of four male representatives. Even though one member resigned from his post, and the selection process was open to both genders, he was replaced with another male representative in May 2020. In 2021, the selection process for a worker's representative in the Management Bord is planned, according to the agreement between the Management Board and the Workers Council that will be open to candidates of both genders.
The diversity policy is reviewed by the Nomination Committee of the Supervisory Board, while the Management Board reviews the diversity policy of the senior management.
Ljubljana, 8 April 2021
Primož Karpe Chairman
Management Board of NLB
Archibald Kremser CFO
Andreas Burkhardt
CRO

Petr Brunclík
COO
Blaž Brodnjak CEO & CMO
The Remuneration Committee carries out expert and independent assessments of the remuneration policies and practices, and formulates initiatives for measures related to improving the management of the Bank's risks, capital, and liquidity; prepares proposals for remuneration-related decisions of the Supervisory Board; and supervises the remuneration of senior management performing the risk management and compliance functions.
From 1 January 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: Alexander Bayer (Chairman), László Urbán (Deputy Chairman), Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda, and Gregor Rok Kastelic (members). From 26 June 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: Gregor Rok Kastelic (Chairman), Mark William Lane Richards (Deputy Chairman), Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda, Sergeja Kočar and Peter Groznik (members).
There were five sessions of the Remuneration Committee in 2020. Following is a summary of key topics considered by the Remuneration Committee:
Responsibilities of the committee are defined by Rules of Procedure of the Remuneration Committee of the Supervisory Board of NLB.
The Committee monitors and prepares draft resolutions for the Supervisory Board, whereby the main tasks are the following: it monitors the implementation of the IT Strategy, Information Security Strategy, as well as Operations Strategy; it monitors key operations and IT KPI's and service quality indicators; monitors key operations and IT projects and initiatives; monitors operating risks in the area of Operations, IT and Security; monitors the recommendations for ensuring and increasing the level of information/cyber security issued by CISO, addresses the report on potential violations, events and incidents in the area of IT security; and monitors the Target Operating Model implementation in the areas of IT, the Security Operating System, Competence Centre and Operations.
From 1 January 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: Mark William Lane Richards (Chairman), Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda (Deputy Chairman), Primož Karpe, Andreas Klingen, and László Urbán (members). From 26 June 2020, the composition of the committee was as follows: Mark William Lane Richards (Chairman), Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda (Deputy Chairman), Primož Karpe, Andreas Klingen, and Bojana Šteblaj (members).
There were five sessions of the Operations and IT Committee 2020. The Operations and IT Committee took note of:
Responsibilities of the committee are defined by Rules of Procedure of the Operations and IT Committee of the Supervisory Board of NLB.
| Name and Surname | Position held (president, member) | Area of work covered within the Management Board |
First appointment to the position | Conclusion of the position/term of office |
Citizenship | Year of birth | Qualification | Professional profile | Membership in supervisory bodies in companies not related to the company |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blaž Brodnjak | President | CEO | 6 July 2016 | 5 July 2021(i) | Slovene | 1974 | MBA | Banking/Finance | Banks' Association of Slovenia AMCham Slovenia Handball Federation of Slovenia |
| Andreas Burkhardt | Member | CRO | 18 September 2013 | 5 July 2021(i) | German | 1971 | MBA | Banking/Finance | |
| Archibald Kremser | Member | CFO | 31 July 2013 | 5 July 2021(i) | Austrian | 1971 | MBA | Banking/Finance | |
| Petr Brunclík | Member | COO | 18 May 2020 | 17 May 2025 | Czech | 1979 | MSc Information technologies and applied informatics |
||
| László Pelle | Member | COO | 26 October 2016 | 31 January 2020 | Hungarian | 1966 | MSc | Banking Operations and IT Management |
(i) On 12 November 2020, the Supervisory Board extended the mandate by a period of five years until 2026.
| Name and Surname | Position held (president, deputy president, member) |
First appointment to the position |
Conclusion of the position / term of office |
Representative of the company's capital structure /employees |
Attendance at SB session in regard to the total number of SB session (for example 5/7) applicable on his/her mandate |
Gender | Citizenship | Year of birth | Qualification | Professional profile |
Independence under Article 23 of the Code (YES/NO) |
Existence of conflict of interest, in the business year (YES/NO) |
Membership in supervisory bodies in other companies or institutions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Primož Karpe | President | 10 February 2016 | 2024 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
7/7 | male | Slovene | 1970 | MSc | Banking/Finance | YES | YES | |
| Andreas Klingen | Deputy President | 22 June 2015 | 2023 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
6/7 | male | German | 1964 | University Degree | Banking/Finance | YES | NO | Kyrgyz Investment and Credit Bank CISC, Credit Bank of Moscow PJSC, Nepi Rockcastle plc |
| Alexander Bayr | Member | 4 August 2016 | 15 June 2020 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
4/4 | male | Austrian | 1960 | University Degree | Banking/Finance | YES | NO | WKBG Bank, Vienna |
| David Eric Simon | Member | 4 August 2016 | 2024 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
7/7 | male | British | 1948 | Higher National Diploma in Business Studies |
Banking/Finance | YES | NO | Jihlavan a.s., Central Europe Industry Partners a.s. |
| László Urbán | Member | 10 February 2016 | 15 June 2020 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
3/4 | male | Hungarian | 1959 | PhD | Banking/Finance | YES | NO | Ukreximbank, Ukraine |
| Peter Groznik | Member | 8 September 2017 | 2021 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
7/7 | male | Slovene | 1971 | PhD | Finance, industry, investment banking |
YES | NO | MSIN d.o.o., Ljubljana, CETIS d.d., Ljubljana |
| Mark William Lane Richards |
Member | 10 June 2019 | 2023 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
7/7 | male | British | 1966 | MSc | Banking/Finance | YES | NO | CIB Bank Egypt, Sheffield Haworth Ltd, Vencap International |
| Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda | Member | 10 June 2019 | 2023 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
7/7 | male | British | 1960 | MSc | Finance | YES | NO | Ukrgasbank, Kyiv, Ukraine, Meghraj Capital Ltd, Kenya |
| Gregor Rok Kastelic | Member | 10 June 2019 | 2023 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
7/7 | male | Slovene | 1968 | MSc | Banking/Finance | YES | NO | |
| Verica Trstenjak | Member | 15 June 2020 | 2024 | Representative of the company's capital structure |
3/3 | female | Slovene | 1962 | PhD | Law | YES | NO | EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, Vienna |
| Petra Kakovič Bizjak | Member | 17 June 2020 | 10 September 2020 | Representative of the company's employees |
2/2 | female | Slovene | 1985 | University Degree | IT | YES | NO | |
| Sergeja Kočar | Member | 17 June 2020 | 2024 | Representative of the company's employees |
3/3 | female | Slovene | 1968 | MSc | Management | YES | NO | |
| Bojana Šteblaj | Member | 17 June 2020 | 2024 | Representative of the company's employees |
3/3 | female | Slovene | 1962 | MSc | Management | YES | NO | |
| Janja Žabjek Dolinšek | Member | 20 November 2020 | 2024 | Representative of the company's employees |
0/0 | female | Slovene | 1957 | MSc | IT | YES | NO | |
| Variable income - gross | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name and Surname |
Position held (president/ member) |
Fixed income -gross (1) |
on the basis of quantity criteria |
on the basis of quality criteria |
Total (2) | Deferred income (3) |
Severance | pay (4) Bonuses (5) | 'Draw back' (6) |
Total gross (1+2+3+ 4+5-6) |
Total net(i) |
| Blaž Brodnjak |
President 384,734.20 | 0.00 | 2,250.22 | 0.00 386,984.42 166,906.55 | |||||||
| Archibald Kremser |
Member 366,483.83 | 0.00 | 24,331.19 | 0.00 390,815.02 169,095.43 | |||||||
| Andreas Burkhardt |
Member 352,795.83 | 0.00 | 17,861.15 | 0.00 370,656.98 161,243.90 | |||||||
| László Pelle | Member | 57,623.68 | 258,750.00 | 4,343.14 | 0.00 | 61,966.82 178,294.80 | |||||
| Petr Brunclík | Member 170,516.86 | 0.00 | 20,647.48 | 0.00 191,164.34 | 82,200.15 | ||||||
(i) This chart does not include other benefits and cost refunds
| Name and Surname | Position held (president, deputy president, member, external member of a Committee) |
Payment for the performance of services - gross per year (1) |
Attendance fees for SB and committees - gross per year (2) |
Total gross (1+2) | Total net(i) | Travel expenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Primož Karpe | President | 89,583.34 | 89,583.34 | 69,427.09 | 8,234.86 | |
| Andreas Klingen | Deputy President | 84,000.00 | 84,000.00 | 84,000.00 | 2,690.20 | |
| László Urbán | Member | 31,875.00 | 31,875.00 | 20,997.65 | 1,455.56 | |
| Alexander Bayr | Member | 36,000.00 | 36,000.00 | 27,900.00 | 2,799.18 | |
| David Eric Simon | Member | 75,000.00 | 75,000.00 | 49,406.24 | 6,455.10 | |
| Peter Groznik | Member | 66,000.00 | 66,000.00 | 48,001.76 | 429.26 | |
| Mark William Lane Richards |
Member | 75,000.00 | 75,000.00 | 49,406.24 | 3,617.40 | |
| Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda Member | 66,000.00 | 66,000.00 | 43,477.52 | 3,917.12 | ||
| Gregor Rok Kastelic | Member | 70,625.00 | 70,625.00 | 46,524.21 | 4,239.12 | |
| Verica Trstenjak | Member | 33,933.34 | 33,933.34 | 22,353.60 | 0.00 | |
| Sergeja Kočar | Member | 5,661.92 | 5,661.92 | 4,117.91 | 152.70 | |
| Bojana Šteblaj | Member | 5,255.08 | 5,255.08 | 3,822.01 | 457.20 | |
| Janja Žabjek Dolinšek | Member | 169.48 | 169.48 | 123.26 | 0.00 | |
| Petra Kakovič Bizjak | Member | 7,302.20 | 7,302.20 | 5,310.88 | 177.51 | |
(i) After the prepayment of income taxes which is not taken into account in potential subsequent balancing payments of personal income taxes.
Attendance at sessions of
| Name and Surname | Membership in committees (audit, nominal, income committee, etc.) |
First appointment to the position |
Conclusion of the position/term of office |
President/Member | SB's Committees in regard to the total number of SB's session (applicable on his/her mandate) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| László Urbán | Remuneration Committee | 6 October 2017 | 15 June 2020 | Member/Deputy President | 3/3 |
| Alexander Bayr | Remuneration Committee | 1 March 2019 | 15 June 2020 | President | 3/3 |
| Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda | Remuneration Committee | 28 June 2019 | 2023 | Member | 6/6 |
| Gregor Rok Kastelic | Remuneration Committee | 28 June 2019 | 2023 | Member/President | 6/6 |
| Mark William Lane Richards Remuneration Committee | 26 June 2020 | 2024 | Deputy President | 3/3 | |
| Peter Groznik | Remuneration Committee | 26 June 2020 | 2024 | Member | 3/3 |
| Sergeja Kočar | Remuneration Committee | 26 June 2020 | 2024 | Member | 3/3 |
| Primož Karpe | Nomination Committee | 15 April 2016 | 2024 | President | 8/8 |
| Andreas Klingen | Nomination Committee | 19 February 2016 | 2023 | Deputy President | 7/8 |
| Alexander Bayr | Nomination Committee | 6 October 2017 | 15 June 2020 | Member | 4/4 |
| Peter Groznik | Nomination Committee | 6 October 2017 | 2021 | Member | 8/8 |
| Mark William Lane Richards Nomination Committee | 28 June 2019 | 26 June 2020 | Member | 4/4 | |
| Verica Trstenjak | Nomination Committee | 26 June 2020 | 2024 | Member | 4/4 |
| Sergeja Kočar | Nomination Committee | 26 June 2020 | 2024 | Member | 4/4 |
| David Eric Simon | Audit Committee | 7 April 2016 | 2024 | President | 7/7 |
| Alexander Bayr | Audit Committee | 26 August 2016 | 15 June 2020 | Deputy President | 3/3 |
| Primož Karpe | Audit Committee | 15 April 2016 | 2024 | Member | 7/7 |
| Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda | Audit Committee | 28 June 2019 | 2023 | Member/Deputy President | 7/7 |
| Gregor Rok Kastelic | Audit Committee | 28 June 2019 | 2023 | Member | 7/7 |
| Petra Kakovič Bizjak | Audit Committee | 26 June 2020 | 10 September 2020 | Member | 1/2 |
| Verica Trstenjak | Audit Committee | 26 June 2020 | 18 December 2020 | Member | 3/4 |
| Andreas Klingen | Risk Committee | 19 February 2016 | 2023 | President | 4/5 |
| László Urbán | Risk Committee | 26 August 2016 | 15 June 2020 | Deputy President | 3/3 |
| Peter Groznik | Risk Committee | 06 October 2017 | 2021 | Member/Deputy President | 5/5 |
| David Eric Simon | Risk Committee | 7 April 2016 | 2024 | Member | 5/5 |
| Mark William Lane Richards Risk Committee | 28 June 2019 | 2023 | Member | 5/5 | |
| Gregor Rok Kastelic | Risk Committee | 26 June 2020 | 2023 | Member | 2/2 |
| Mark William Lane Richards Operational and IT Committee | 28 June 2019 | 2023 | President | 5/5 | |
| Shrenik Dhirajlal Davda | Operational and IT Committee | 28 June 2019 | 2023 | Deputy President | 5/5 |
| László Urbán | Operational and IT Committee | 28 June 2019 | 15 June 2020 | Member | 3/3 |
| Andreas Klingen | Operational and IT Committee | 28 June 2019 | 2023 | Member | 4/5 |
| Primož Karpe | Operational and IT Committee | 15 April 2016 | 2024 | Member | 5/5 |
| Bojana Šteblaj | Operational and IT Committee | 26 June 2020 | 2024 | Member | 2/2 |
External member in committees (audit, nominal, income committee, etc.) - The Banking Act (ZBan-2) that came into effect on 13 May 2015 contains provision stipulating that, irrespective of provision of Companies Act (ZGD-1) only members of the Supervisory Board can be appointed to Supervisory committees.
| Name and Surname | Attendance at sessions of SB's Committees in regard to the total number of SB's session (for example 5/7) |
Gender | Qualification | Year of birth | Professional profile | Membership in supervisory bodies in companies not related to the company |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| none |
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