In response to a request made by William H. Gates III, Melinda French Gates (as trustees of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust) and Cascade Investment, L.L.C., the Swiss Takeover Board (TOB) concluded in its decision 598/01 of 1 April 2015 that the opting out clause set out in Article 5 of Sika AG’s articles of association does apply to the transaction between Schenker-Winkler Holding AG (SWH) and Compagnie de Saint-Gobain (Saint-Gobain) whereby SWH, Saint-Gobain, or any persons acting in concert with them, are not obliged to present a public takeover offer to the Sika AG shareholders. The appeal lodged by William H. Gates III, Melinda French Gates and Cascade Investment, L.L.C. against this decision is currently being reviewed by the FINMA Takeover Committee.
