Bekaert NV — Capital/Financing Update 2011

Nov 15, 2011

Press release Regulated information¹

15 November 2011, before opening of stock exchange

Press Katelijn Bohez T +32 56 23 05 71

Investor Relations Jacques Anckaert T +32 56 23 05 72

www.bekaert.com www.bekaert.mobi

Bekaert issues new bonds NV Bekaert SA issues 5-year and 8-year bonds in euro

Bekaert has announced today that it will issue, through NV Bekaert SA, a dual tranche bond, one tranche with a tenor of 5 years and one tranche with a tenor of 8 years, for an expected total minimum amount of € 200 million in the form of a public offering in Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The expected minimum amount of each tranche is € 100 million. Global coordinator KBC Bank acts together with BNP Paribas Fortis as joint bookrunner for this transaction, while ING acts as co-manager.

The net proceeds of these bonds will be used to refund certain bank indebtedness, refinance the bond maturing early 2012 and for general corporate purposes. With this bond issue, Bekaert aims to achieve an optimal global balance between short-term and long-term debt, as well as between bank financing and financing through the capital markets. Application has been made to list the bonds on the official list of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and to admit the bonds to trading on the regulated market of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange. The key features of the bonds are listed below:

	5 year	8 year
Issuer	NV Bekaert SA
Denomination	The bonds are available in denominations of € 1 000
Form and status	Unsubordinated dematerialized securities, subject to Belgian law
Offer period	From 17 November 2011 at 9:00 a.m. CET
	until 2 December 2011 at 5:30 p.m. CET (subject to early termination)
Issue and payment date	6 December 2011
Yearly coupon	4.125% (gross) paid annually on	5.00% (gross) paid annually on
	6 December	6 December
Issue price	101.90% (including a commission of 1.875% to be borne by retail investors2 )
Yield at issue price	3.702% on the issue price	4.709% on the issue price
Scheduled maturity date	6 December 2016	6 December 2019
Repayment	100% per denomination
Taxation	Income collected by private investors is subject to Belgian withholding tax
	at the current rate of 15%3

Profile

Bekaert (www.bekaert.com) is a global technological and market leader in advanced solutions based on metal transformation and coatings, and the world's largest independent manufacturer of drawn steel wire products. Bekaert (Euronext Brussels: BEKB) is a global company with headquarters in Belgium, employing 28 000 people worldwide. Serving customers in 120 countries, Bekaert pursues sustainable profitable growth in all its activities and generated combined sales of € 4.5 billion in 2010.

1 The information in this press release constitutes regulated information as referred to in the Royal Decree of 14 November 2007 regarding obligations of issuers of financial instruments admitted to trading on a regulated market. 2

A different commission is applicable for qualified investors, as set out in the Prospectus.

³ The taxation is explained further in the Prospectus.

Main risks and restrictions

The bonds are subject to certain risks regarding the issuer, including credit risk, and customary market risks, such as risks relating to volatility, interest rates, liquidity, etc. These risks are particularly relevant for bonds with a long tenor. Repayment and interest payments depend on the solvency of the issuer. In the event of a default (e.g. bankruptcy) of the issuer, it is possible that the investor loses part or all of its invested capital. All information, selling restrictions and risks related to the bonds are described in the Prospectus.

The issue and listing prospectus (the "Prospectus") in English, dated 14 November 2011 and approved by the Luxembourg Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier on 14 November 2011 and passported to Belgium, as well as the summary of the Prospectus in Dutch and in French are available for the investors, free of charge, at the office of Bekaert at President Kennedypark 18, BE8500 Kortrijk in Belgium. These documents are also available, free of charge, by phone with BNP Paribas Fortis – tel.: +32 2 433 40 31 (Dutch) or +32 2 433 40 32 (French), KBC Bank – tel: +32 78 15 21 53 (Dutch) or +32 78 15 21 54 (French) and ING – tel +32 2 464 61 01 (Dutch) or +32 2 464 61 02 (French), and also at the counter of each of their local branches in Belgium (BNP Paribas Fortis, Fintro, KBC, CBC and ING). They are further available on the websites of BNP Paribas Fortis (www.bnpparibasfortis.be/emissions), KBC Bank (www.kbc.be/obligations), ING (www.ing.be: Investments – Bonds) and Bekaert (www.bekaert.com; section investors).

We invite investors to carefully read the above-mentioned documents (and in particular the sections "Risk Factors" and "Selling Restrictions" of the Prospectus).

Investors are urged to investigate if this investment is appropriate for them, taking into account their knowledge and experience in financial matters, their investment aims and their financial situation, before investing in the bonds.