DGAP-News: TAG Immobilien AG / Key word(s): Miscellaneous PWC Special audit at TAG Immobilien AG invalidates allegations against Rolf Elgeti and completely refutes negative assertions 03.02.2014 / 07:15 --------------------------------------------------------------------- PRESS RELEASE PWC Special audit at TAG Immobilien AG invalidates allegations against Rolf Elgeti and completely refutes negative assertions Hamburg, 3 February 2014 - TAG Immobilien AG ('TAG' or 'the Company' in the following) announces that the Company's Supervisory Board has received the results of the external special audit by the PricewaterhouseCoopers AG auditing company ('PWC' in the following). In conclusion, PWC has completely invalidated the allegations that a newspaper had raised against organs of TAG in early October 2013, regarding allegedly disadvantageous acquisitions and conflicts of interest between the CEO Mr Rolf Elgeti and TAG, and has completely refutes the negative assertions. PWC conducted the investigation during the period from late October 2013 to mid-January 2014 and came to the following conclusions: * The residential portfolios in Chemnitz and Eberswalde were not purchased at an inflated price. In each case, the purchase price was within the corridor of the offers received by TAG and within the portfolios' market values as determined by third parties including PWC. Since the purchase prices were partly paid in shares at a price above the share price on that day, it can be assumed that favourable financing was obtained at attractive terms. * PWC rules out that the acquisition of the Rostock property by the CEO was in any way a preferential purchase. TAG had declined to purchase the property prior to its purchase by the buyer, in which Mr Elgeti owns a 19 % stake, in October 2012. The purchase price paid exceeded the market value at the time as determined by PWC during its special audit. * The private real-estate transactions that Mr Elgeti has made since taking over the office of CEO in 2009 were covered in the employment contract and were made with the Supervisory Board's approval in each case. PWC found no evidence of exertion of influence by Mr Elgeti regarding purchase decisions, nor of conflicts of competition and/or interest. Specifically, the article claimed that excessive prices had been paid in the acquisition of two residential portfolios in Chemnitz and Eberswalde in 2011 and 2012, and that the transactions may have been to the detriment of the Company. It also alleged conflicts of interest that had existed in connection with the CEO's 2012 purchase of the apartment building in Rostock, and which might have arisen through non-disclosed private business activities by the CEO in various real estate companies. 'I'm glad that these allegations, which were untenable from the beginning, have now been disproved by an independent agent as well,' says TAG Immobilien AG CEO Rolf Elgeti. 'Now we can concentrate all the more on enhancing TAG's position as one of the most effective and efficient real-estate companies in Germany.' To avoid any appearance of possible conflicts of interest, Mr Elgeti already transferred his private business activities, insofar as they relate to real estate and his holdings in various companies, to an accounting firm at the turn of the year. During his tenure as CEO of TAG, Mr Elgeti will continue this trusteeship solution in place and will not exercise significant influence on the operational activities of his privately held real-estate companies. The Supervisory Board, which had already expressed its full confidence in Mr Elgeti in October 2013, feels it has been confirmed in its assessment: 'We regret any confusion that may have arisen, and which we have now conclusively eliminated with this expert assessment,' says Dr Lutz R. Ristow, Chairman of the TAG Supervisory Board. Press enquiries: TAG Immobilien AG Head of Investor & Public Relations Dominique Mann Phone +49 (0) 40 380 32 300 Fax +49 (0) 40 380 32 390 pr@tag-ag.com End of Corporate News --------------------------------------------------------------------- 03.02.2014 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. DGAP's Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de --------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Company: TAG Immobilien AG Steckelhörn 5 20457 Hamburg Germany Phone: 040 380 32 0 Fax: 040 380 32 390 E-mail: ir@tag-ag.com Internet: http://www.tag-ag.com ISIN: DE0008303504, XS0954227210 WKN: 830350, A1TNFU Indices: MDAX Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard), München; Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Hannover, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News-Service --------------------------------------------------------------------- 250663 03.02.2014
DGAP-News: PWC Special audit at TAG Immobilien AG invalidates allegations against Rolf Elgeti and completely refutes negative assertions
| Source: EQS Group AG