HERTOGENBOSCH, The Netherlands, Sept. 30, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- The Supervisory Board of Van Lanschot NV intends to appoint Mr F.G.H. (Floris) Deckers (53) as chairman of the Board of Managing Directors of Van Lanschot NV / F. van Lanschot Bankiers NV. Subject to the approval of The Dutch Central Bank he will join the Board of Managing Directors with effect from 2 January 2004. During the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders of 12 May 2004, the current chairman of the Board of Managing Directors of Van Lanschot, Mr H.J. (Harry) Baeten (59), will resign from the Board and be succeeded by Floris Deckers. At present, Mr Deckers is chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of the Netherlands business unit of ABN AMRO.
Floris Deckers has worked for ABN AMRO since 1981. He has held various management and executive positions in Europe, South America and Asia for this bank. As from 2001, Deckers became chairman of the Board of ABN AMRO's Netherlands business unit, client segments Retail, Private, Small Corporate and Corporate clients. His duties in this capacity included reorganising the Dutch office network and repositioning this ABN AMRO unit.
"The Supervisory Board of Van Lanschot is delighted to have found in Mr Deckers an excellent candidate for the position of chairman of the Board of Managing Directors. We know him to be a highly accomplished banker and a good manager. His extensive banking experience -- both here and abroad -- makes him eminently capable of leading F. van Lanschot Bankiers," says Mr H. (Harry) Langman, chairman of the Supervisory Board of Van Lanschot. "We are more than confident that with Floris Deckers Van Lanschot will continue to grow as it has for the past ten years. Shareholders, clients and employees will find he is a manager characterised by his competence and integrity."
Harry Baeten: 35 years of service with Van Lanschot During the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders of 12 May 2004, Van Lanschot will bid farewell to its current chairman of the Board of Managing Directors, Harry Baeten. Harry Baeten will retire after working for Van Lanschot for almost 35 years. In 1980 he was appointed Director of Credits, after which he became General Manager in 1983. He has been a member of the Board of Managing Directors since 1986; he became vice-chairman in 1998.
In 2002, Baeten was appointed chairman of the Board of Managing Directors of the oldest Bank in the Netherlands. Langman: "The Supervisory Board is greatly indebted to Mr Baeten for the many years of commitment to Van Lanschot. As a director, he was there when the bank expanded in the early nineties and when the bank successfully obtained a stock exchange listing in 1999. As chairman of the Board of Managing Directors, Mr Baeten steered Van Lanschot through economically tough times in an adept and humane fashion."
"The past few years have been characterised by economic stagnation and recession. Even so, I am very pleased with our bank's profitability and good results and the further growth of our client portfolio. Our concept of tailor-made financial solutions and personal attention held up even in difficult circumstances. That is quality and that is what our clients expect from us. And we have been doing just that since 1737!", Harry Baeten exclaims confidently.
Van Lanschot's Works Council has ruled positively on the intended appointment of Floris Deckers as member and chairman of the Board of Managing Directors of Van Lanschot. Van Lanschot will inform the General Meeting of Shareholders of the intended appointment shortly.
Subject to the approval of The Dutch Central Bank, Mr F.G.H. Deckers (53, left) will become a member of the Board of Managing Directors of Van Lanschot NV / F. van Lanschot Bankiers NV with effect from 2 January 2004. He will be officially inaugurated as chairman of the Board of Managing Directors during the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders to be held on 12 May 2004. At present, Floris Deckers is chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of the Netherlands business unit of ABN AMRO. Mr H.J. Baeten (59), the current chairman of the Board of Managing Directors, will retire after nearly 35 years of service.
(The photos can be sent to you by e-mail or are available upon request. Telephone +31 297- 566 883).
's-Hertogenbosch, 30 September 2003
F. van Lanschot Bankiers NV is the oldest independent Dutch bank, with a history dating back to 1737. The Bank focuses on three target groups: high net-worth individuals, medium-sized businesses (including family businesses) and institutional investors. Van Lanschot stands for high-quality services founded on integrated advice, personal service and customised solutions. Van Lanschot NV is listed on the Euronext Amsterdam Stock Market.
Annexes:
CVs of Mr F.G.H. Deckers and Mr H.J. Baeten
Press release 30 September 2003:
Floris Deckers nominated as the new chairman of the Board of Managing Directors of Van Lanschot
Curriculum vitae Mr F.G.H. Deckers
Floris Gustaaf Hendrik (Floris) Deckers was born in Heerlen on 18 June 1950. In Heerlen, he attended Gymnasium A (a form of pre-university education that includes the study of Latin and/or Greek). Subsequently, he studied Law at Erasmus University, Rotterdam. After successfully completing the kandidaats examination, he studied Business Administration at the joint faculty in Delft. He also took various management courses, at Insead and Stanford and elsewhere.
Floris Deckers started his career at the international construction company Hollandsche Beton Groep NV (Rijswijk). His last position at HBG was that of Accounting Records Manager of a joint venture in Saudi Arabia.
Mr Deckers has worked for ABN AMRO since 1981. He started his career with this bank as a Project Financing employee. Later, he filled several management positions: Directeur-Adjoint Banque NSM (Paris), Deputy Country Manager Ireland (Dublin) and Country Manager Italy (Milan). From 1991 to 1994 he was the Regional Manager for Western Europe. In 1994 he was appointed Chief Executive Officer in Latin America (Sao Paulo), where he was responsible for the acquisition of Banco Real and for managing 26,000 employees and other duties. In 2000, he was appointed Chief Executive Officer of ABN AMRO in Asia (Singapore) with banks and representative offices in 15 countries and various Investment Banking activities.
As from 2001, Deckers became chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of ABN AMRO's Netherlands business unit (client segments Retail, Private, Small Corporate and Corporate clients). His duties in this capacity included reorganising the Dutch office network and repositioning this ABN AMRO unit in the Netherlands.
Subject to the approval of The Dutch Central Bank, Floris Deckers will become a member of the Board of Managing Directors of Van Lanschot NV / F. van Lanschot Bankiers NV with effect from 2 January 2004. He will be officially inaugurated as chairman of the Board of Managing Directors during the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders to be held on 12 May 2004.
Deckers is a member of the Supervisory Boards of IBM Nederland BV and the Netherlands Council for Trade Promotion and he is a director of the Dutch Association of Banks (NVB).
Curriculum vitae Mr H.J. Baeten
Henricus Josephus (Harry) Baeten was born in Tilburg on 2 January 1944. After being awarded his Gymnasium A diploma in 1962, he studied philosophy in Haaren for one year (main seminary). He then entered the employment of the former Amsterdamsche Bank, where he not only held the position of secretary to the Board of Management, but also became familiar with the business of corporate lending. In 1964, he started a degree in Dutch law at the former Catholic Academy of Tilburg, now Tilburg University.
In 1969, the same year as his graduation, he entered the employment of Firma F. van Lanschot. During his career with F. van Lanschot Bankiers NV, Mr Baeten became familiar with the work of every department of the bank. In 1980, he was appointed Director of Credits, after which he became General Manager in 1983.
In 1986, Harry Baeten became a member of the Board of Managing Directors of F. van Lanschot Bankiers NV and he was appointed vice-chairman in 1998. He was appointed chairman of the Board of Managing Directors of Van Lanschot NV and F. van Lanschot Bankiers NV as from 1 December 2002.
Harry Baeten also holds a number of other positions: he is chairman of the Advisory Council Foundation Nursing Home (Adviesraad Stichting Gasthuis) in Tilburg, vice-chairman of the Supervisory Committee of NIBE-SVV in Amsterdam, treasurer of the Foundation for the Catholic Needy (Stichting Katholieke Noden) in Hilversum and a director of the Board of Management of the Dutch Association of Banks (NVB).
Furthermore, he is chairman of Pensioenfonds F. van Lanschot, a member of the Social Advisory Body of the Legal Faculty of Tilburg University, a director of Stichting Vestingwerken Den Bosch and a director of the Schroder fund.
Please use the following link to view the entire release: http://reports.huginonline.com/918907/123482.pdf