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Corporate Governance statement
Participation in person, by proxy or
through electronic communication
Attendance list
Chairman of the AGM
Voting
Minutes
Resolutions to be adopted by the AGM
Article 10 of the EU Take-Over
Directive Decree
Heineken N.V.
Annual Report 2020
Introduction
Report of the
Executive Board
Report of the
Supervisory Board
Financial
Statements
Sustainability
Review
Other
Information
Each shareholder is entitled, either personally or
by proxy authorised in writing, to attend the AGM,
to address the meeting and to exercise his or her
voting rights.
The Executive Board may determine that the
powers set out in the previous sentence may also be
exercised by means of electronic communication.
If a shareholder wants to exercise his or her rights
by proxy authorised in writing, the written power of
attorney must be received by the Company no later
than on the date indicated for that purpose in the
convocation notice. Through its corporate website,
the Company generally facilitates that shareholders
can give electronic voting instructions.
Each person entitled to vote or otherwise entitled to
attend a meeting, or such person's representative,
shall have to sign the attendance list, stating
the number of shares and votes represented by
such person.
The AGM shall be presided over by the Chairman
or the Vice-Chairman of the Supervisory Board
or, in his absence, by one of the Supervisory Board
members present at the meeting, to be designated
by them in mutual consultation. If no members of
the Supervisory Board are present, the meeting shall
appoint its own chairman.
All resolutions of the AGM shall be adopted by an
absolute majority of the votes cast, except for those
cases in which the law or the Articles of Association
prescribe a larger majority.
Each share confers the right to one vote. Blank votes
shall be considered as not having been cast.
The Executive Board may determine in the
convocation notice that any vote cast prior to
the AGM by means of electronic communication
shall be deemed to be a vote cast in the AGM.
Such a vote may not be cast prior to the record date.
A shareholder who has cast his or her vote prior to
the AGM by means of electronic communication
remains entitled, whether or not represented by a
holder of a written power of attorney, to participate
in the AGM.
The proceedings in the AGM shall be recorded in
minutes taken by a secretary to be designated by the
chairman of the meeting. Upon request, the record
of the proceedings of the AGM shall be submitted to
shareholders, ultimately within three months after
the conclusion of the meeting.
The AGM has authority to adopt resolutions
concerning, inter alia, the following matters:
- Issue of shares by the Company or rights on
shares (and to authorise the Executive Board to
resolve that the Company issues shares or rights
on shares)
- Authorisation of the Executive Board to resolve
that the Company acquires its own shares
- Cancellation of shares and reduction of
share capital
- Appointment of Executive Board members
- The remuneration policy for Executive
Board members
- Suspension and dismissal of Executive
Board members
- Appointment of Supervisory Board members
- The remuneration policy for Supervisory
Board members
- The remuneration of Supervisory Board members
- Suspension and dismissal of Supervisory
Board members
- Appointment of the Delegated Member of the
Supervisory Board
- Adoption of the financial statements
- Granting discharge to Executive and Supervisory
Board members
- Dividend distributions
- A material change in the corporate
governance structure
- Appointment of the external auditor
- Amendment of the Articles of Association, and
- Liquidation.
Resolutions on a major change in the identity or
character of the Company or enterprise shall be
subject to the approval of the AGM. This would at least
include (a) the transfer of the enterprise or the transfer
of practically the entire enterprise of the Company to
a third party, (b) the entering into or the termination
of a lasting co-operation of the Company or a
subsidiary with another legal entity or company or a
fully liable partner in a limited partnership or general
partnership, if such co-operation or termination is
of fundamental importance to the Company and
(c) acquiring or disposing of a participation in the
capital of a company by the Company or a subsidiary
amounting to at least one-third of the amount of
assets according to the Company's consolidated
balance sheet plus explanatory notes as laid down in
the last adopted financial statements of the Company.
Shares
The issued capital of the Company amounts to
€921,604,180.80, consisting of 576,002,613 shares of
€1.60 each. Each share carries one vote. The shares
are listed on Euronext Amsterdam.
All shares carry equal rights and are freely
transferable (unless provided otherwise below).
Shares repurchased by the Company for the share-
based Long-Term Incentive Plan (LTIP) or for any
other purpose do not carry any voting rights and
dividend rights.
Shareholders who hold shares on a predetermined
record date are entitled to attend and vote at the
AGM. The record date for the AGM of 22 April 2021 is
28 days before the AGM, i.e. on 25 March 2021.
Law on the Conversion of Bearer Shares
As of 1 July 2019, the Dutch Law on the Conversion of
Bearer Shares (Wet omzetting aandelen aan toonder)
has entered into effect. All (bearer) shares in the
Company's authorised capital have already been
registered as per earlier amendment of the Articles
of Association. However, there still are certificates
for bearer shares circulating which are eligible for
submission with the Company.
Pursuant to Dutch law, the Company received 12,037
certificates for bearer shares without consideration
on 31 December 2020.
Any holder of certificates for bearer shares
submitting its share certificates with the Company
before 2 January 2026, shall receive a corresponding
amount of registered shares by the Company as per
the transitory provisions laid down in Article 18 of
the Articles of Association.