Banque Cantonale de Geneve : The Banque Cantonale de Genève places new Swiss franc-denominated Additional Tier 1 Bonds

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Press release

New Bonds issue

BCGE - The Banque Cantonale de Genève places new Swiss franc-denominated Additional Tier 1 Bonds

Geneva, 16 October 2019 - BCGE has successfully placed perpetual Additional Tier 1 (AT1) subordinated bonds in a CHF 135 million transaction mostly with private banks and institutional investors in Switzerland. The transaction helps to optimise BCGE's capital structure and flexibility.

The new bonds carry a coupon of 1.875% payable annually and have a First Reset Date on 12 May 2025. The bonds are also callable in the one-month period prior to the First Reset Date or on any interest payment date thereafter. The bonds will be issued in standard Swiss franc-market denominations of CHF 5,000 and are rated BBB- by S&P. An application has been made for provisional admission to trading on the SIX Swiss Exchange.

The bonds are fully compliant with Basel III and qualify as AT1 capital, thus further strengthening the Group's solid capital levels.

BCGE's CEO, Blaise Goetschin, highlights: "We are pleased that the Swiss AT1 investor base has warmly welcomed BCGE's third Swiss franc-denominated AT1 placement since 2014. This additional funding will help to accelerate the future growth of the bank by further strengthening its capital ratios. The Swiss franc market offered an attractive opportunity, enabling BCGE to issue the bonds at a coupon that is the lowest in our AT1 issuance history."

For further information, please contact:

BCGE Interest Rate desk: [phone] - [e-mail]

Lydia Albrecht, BCGE Spokesperson: [phone] - [e-mail]

Grégory Jaquet, Deputy BCGE Spokesperson: [phone] - [e-mail]

Banque Cantonale de Genève	Website: www.bcge.ch
P.O. Box 2251	Tel. [phone]
1211 Geneva 2	Fax [phone]

THIS PRESS RELEASE MAY NOT BE BROADCAST, PUBLISHED OR DISTRIBUTED, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN THE UNITED STATES, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA, CANADA, AUSTRALIA OR JAPAN.

BCGE: Banking solutions made in Geneva

A universal bank since 1816, the BCGE provides high-quality banking services for private, business and institutional clients in Geneva and its surrounding area. BCGE develops the following business lines: everyday banking services, private banking, asset management, investment funds, pension planning, mortgages and lending to the private and public sectors. It runs a trading room and offers financial engineering, business valuation and transmission, private equity and trade finance services. The BCGE Group has 21 branches in Geneva and operates a number of its business lines in Lausanne, Zurich, Basel, Lyon, Annecy and Paris. It has representative offices in Dubai and Hong Kong. It employs 811 people (of whom 761 are full-time equivalents, as at 31 December 2018). BCGE is listed on the Swiss stock exchange, SIX Swiss Exchange (security no. 35 049 471) and is rated A+/stable/A-1 by Standard & Poor's (S&P).

Legal information

This press release does not constitute an issue prospectus within the meaning of articles 652a and 1156 of the Swiss Code of Obligations, nor an announcement or listing prospectus within the meaning of the listing rules of the SIX Swiss Exchange, nor a simplified prospectus within the meaning of article 5 of the Collective Investment Schemes Act (CISA). The "Directives on the independence of financial research" issued by the Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) do not apply to this press release. The information contained in this document is not intended as investment advice.

This document is for information purposes only and does not constitute an offer or an incentive to submit an offer to purchase certain products. The exact provisions, and the only decisive and legally binding provisions, are mentioned in the Final Offering Circulars to be published in connection with the issue of the two bonds. Any investment decision must therefore be based on the Final Offering Circular for the bond concerned, which alone contains the exact, decisive and legally binding information.

Complex financial instruments require the investor to have specific knowledge of the product and the risks associated with it. Investors are advised to obtain appropriate information on the risks associated with the particular product prior to any investment decision. Each investor or potential investor must independently examine and assess the issuer's commercial and financial situation and prospects as well as the nature of the securities based on the prospectus, which includes a description of certain risks, certain information about the issuer and a description of the securities. Investors should consult their own legal, regulatory, tax, commercial, financial and accounting advisers where appropriate.

The Securities covered herein have not been registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and may not be offered and sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons (i) as part of their distribution at any time, or (ii) otherwise until forty (40) days after the later of the commencement of the offering and the issue date, except in either case in accordance with Regulation S under the Securities Act. Terms used above have the meanings given to them by Regulation S.

The information contained herein does not constitute an offer of securities to the public in the United Kingdom. No prospectus offering securities to the public will be published in the United Kingdom. This document will be communicated only to (i) persons who are outside the U.K.; (ii) persons who have professional experience in matters relating to investments falling within article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (as amended) (the "Order") or (iii) high net worth companies, unincorporated associations and other bodies which fall within article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (all such persons together being referred to as "Relevant Persons"). Any person who is not a Relevant Person must not act upon or rely on this communication or any of its contents. Any investment or investment activity to which this communication relates is available only to the Relevant Persons and will be engaged in only with Relevant Persons. This document should not be published, reproduced, distributed or otherwise made available, in whole or in part, to any other person without the prior consent of Banque Cantonale de Genève.

Any offer of securities to the public that may be deemed to be made pursuant to this communication in any member state of the European Economic Area (each an "EEA Member State") that has implemented Directive 2003/71/EC (together with the 2010 PD Amending Directive 2010/73/EU, including any applicable implementing measures in any Member State, the "Prospectus Directive") is only addressed to qualified investors in that Member State within the meaning of the Prospectus Directive.

This press release contains information regarding the prospects and development of the issuer.

They are subject to change or modification due to uncertainties related in particular to the economic, financial, competitive and regulatory environment.