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GRENKE AG: Detailed response: GRENKE AG rebuts accusations by Viceroy Research

DGAP-News: GRENKE AG / Key word(s): Statement GRENKE AG: Detailed response: GRENKE AG rebuts accusations by Viceroy Research 18.09.2020 / 14:50 The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Detailed response: GRENKE AG rebuts accusations by Viceroy Research

Baden-Baden, September 18, 2020: GRENKE AG, a global financing partner for small and medium-sized enterprises, continues to vigorously reject the allegations raised by Viceroy Research following the review of the 64-page report. In the unanimous opinion of the Board of Directors and the Supervisory Board, all accusations in all areas are unfounded.

Antje Leminsky, Chair of the Board of Directors of GRENKE AG comments: "The allegations raised in this so-called research report are completely unfounded. We reject any comparison with Wirecard. The accusations brought forward by the short seller, who benefits from the drop in the share price he triggered, are a slap in the face to our more than 1,700 employees, 40,000 resellers and our long-term shareholders."

Full and complete transparency

Viceroy insinuates that GRENKE's franchise acquisitions over the past decade took place with undisclosed related parties and that these relationships should have been disclosed.

This is wrong. CTP Handels- und Beteiligungs GmbH (CTP), which together with their respective managing directors has taken interests in the franchise companies, has been solely owned since the end of January 2020 by the GRENKE founder and Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Wolfgang Grenke. At that time, Wolfgang Grenke acquired CTP's parent company Sacoma AG and proactively notified BaFin and the Bundesbank. The previous owner has and had no affiliation with the GRENKE Consolidated Group under corporate law. The so-called "Related Party" characteristic of Supervisory Board member Wolfgang Grenke, therefore, did not exist until 2020 and will be accordingly and correctly reported for the first time in the 2020 Annual Report. Since the indirect acquisition of CTP, Wolfgang Grenke no longer participates in the Supervisory Board's discussions on the acquisition of franchise companies and is certainly not involved in any decisions in this regard. Viceroy's assertion that the former member of GRENKE's Board of Directors Thomas Konprecht and the current GRENKE member of the Board of Directors Mark-Antonius Kindermann are the ultimate owners of CTP is incorrect. Neither Mr Konprecht nor Mr Kindermann currently have or had in the past a shareholder role in CTP. Thomas Konprecht is the managing director of CTP under a service contract.