Zug, 22 August 2001. - On the occasion of the Annual General Meeting of 23 August 2001, the regular term of office for all Board Members of Private Equity Holding AG will expire.
The Board of Directors proposes to the Annual General Meeting of Private Equity Holding AG to be held on 23 August 2001 the election of the following persons to the Board of Directors, each for a term of three years:
Dr. Marinus W. Keijzer, Dutch citizen, resident of the Netherlands (new election, proposed as Chairman of the Board)
Stuart D. Frankel, US citizen, resident of the USA (new election)
Max Koch, Swiss citizen (Luzern), resident of Meggen (re-election)
Prof. Dr. Georges Muller, Swiss citizen (Ossingen), resident of Lausanne (new election)
Tony Reis, Swiss citizen (Weggis and Menznau), resident of Meggen (re-election)
The Board of Directors is convinced that the Board in its new composition will bring a diversified and balanced expertise and a wealth of international business experience to the organisation. Furthermore, the small size of the Board and the majority of independent directors represents the adoption of modern corporate governance principles. The profiles and track records of the candidates are summarized on the attached page.
Private Equity Holding AG (SWX: PEHN), managed by Swiss Life Private Equity Partners Ltd. offers investors the opportunity to invest, within a simple legal and tax optimized structure, in broadly diversified and professionally managed private equity portfolios. As of June 30, 2001, Private Equity Holding AG held fund investments in 89 funds and direct investments in 47 companies totaling CHF 1.6 billion. For further information please consult www.peh.ch or contact Eva Kalias, Investor Relations and Communications.
Designated Board of Directors of Private Equity Holding AG1:
Dr. Marinus W. Keijzer
Marinus Keijzer is Chief Investment Officer of Emeritaatsfonds GKN, domiciled in Zeist, Netherlands. He holds a business degree of the University of Rotterdam. For over 10 years he worked for PGGM, the second largest pension fund in the Netherlands and one of Europe's leading private equity investors. As an investment specialist he holds board memberships in various pension funds and investment companies. Marinus Keijzer is proposed as the Chair-man of the Board of Directors.
Stuart D. Frankel
Stuart Frankel (born 1948) is a Managing Partner of the diversified private equity firm Grotech Capital Group, domiciled in Maryland, USA. He graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in telecommunications. Prior to joining Grotech, he held leading positions at CBS Television, Westinghouse Broadcasting und S&F Communications and can look back on many years of experience in the telecommunications sector. Stuart Frankel is a board member of several growth companies.
Max Koch
Max Koch (born 1949) is the founder and member of the board of Komax AG, which was listed in 1997 on the SWX Swiss Exchange. He holds a degree in electrical engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich. He has been awarded the Branco-Weiss Prize for Entrepreneur of the Year 1987, the Innovation Prize of the Central Swiss Chamber of Commerce and the "Spirit of Swiss Innovation" award from the Arthur D. Little Foundation. Max Koch is a member of the board of various companies including 5E Holding AG.
Prof. Dr. Georges Muller
Georges Muller (born 1940) is professor for corporate law at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland. Amongst others he is the chairman of the board of Serono SA, NMT New Medical Technologies and the Swiss Institute for Cancer Research as well as a member of the board of various corporations including Swiss Life/Rentenanstalt.
Tony Reis
Tony Reis (born 1941) is the former Chief Executive Officer of Swisscom AG. Previously he held various positions at IBM, with his last appointment being General Manager Country Operations of IBM at the European headquarters in Paris. Tony Reis is a board member of various companies including Vontobel Holding AG, Clariant AG, Metallwaren-Holding AG, K. Steiner Generalunternehmung as well as 5E Holding AG.
1 subject to the consent of the Annual General Meeting of Private Equity Holding AG of 23 August 2001