Novartis shareholders approve all resolutions proposed by the Board of Directors at the Annual General Meeting - Seite 2

Further share repurchases
The shareholders authorized the Board of Directors to repurchase shares as deemed appropriate from time to time up to a maximum of CHF 10 billion between the AGM 2021 and the AGM 2024. Any shares repurchased under this authority are to be cancelled and the corresponding share capital reductions will then be submitted to the shareholders for approval.

Votes on Compensation for the members of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee
In two separate binding votes, shareholders approved the total maximum aggregate amount of compensation for the Board of Directors, covering the period from the 2021 AGM to the 2022 AGM, and the total maximum aggregate amount of compensation for the Executive Committee for the financial year 2022. Shareholders also endorsed the 2020 Compensation Report in an advisory vote.

Term limit for members of the Board of Directors
The shareholders approved an amendment to the Articles of Incorporation that, for future re-elections, replaces the current age limit with a term limit, according to which a member shall not serve on the Board for more than 12 years. The Board of Directors may recommend to shareholders exceptions under certain circumstances and if deemed to be in the best interests of the company.

For a detailed listing of all resolutions at the 2021 Annual General Meeting, please visit: https://www.novartis.com/agm

Disclaimer
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can generally be identified by words such as “will,” “may,” “could,” “commitment,” “authorized,” “to be,” “endorsed,” “advisory,” or similar terms, or by express or implied discussions regarding the potential future impact on Novartis of the matters described in this press release, including the future commercial performance of Novartis, further share repurchases, the annual re-election and election of members of the Board of Directors and the Compensation Committee, votes on compensation for the members of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee, an advisory vote on the 2020 Compensation Report, and votes on the term limit for members of the Board of Directors. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on our current beliefs and expectations regarding future events, and are subject to significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. There can be no guarantee as to the ultimate outcome of the matters described in this press release or their potential impact on Novartis. In particular, our expectations regarding these matters could be affected by, among other thingsuncertainties regarding future demand for our products; general political, economic and business conditions, including the effects of and efforts to mitigate pandemic diseases such as COVID-19; potential or actual data security and data privacy breaches, or disruptions of our information technology systems; the potential impact of matters discussed in this press release on Novartis management, its financial results and its competitiveness, and other risks and factors referred to in Novartis AG’s current Form 20-F on file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Novartis is providing the information in this press release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.