Press Release Ziraat Bank International AG

20 April 2022

PRESS RELEASE

REGARDING THE RECENT NEWS ABOUT ZIRAAT BANK INTERNATIONAL AG IN THE MEDIA

It is deemed necessary to make the following statement upon misleading and unfounded news about our subsidiary Ziraat Bank International AG as released by various media outlets recently:

Ziraat Bank International AG has been made aware of regulatory audit findings in its core banking system infrastructure and processes upon a routine, but thorough audit conducted by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) in 2021 following up the progress after its 2018 audit.

The Bank with all its stakeholders and, in direct communication with BaFin, has been paying utmost efforts to address these findings and to achieve full compliance within a plan and a timetable mutually agreed by BaFin. In this regard, BaFin appointed an independent institution to monitor and report the progress in accordance with the mutually agreed timetable.

The independent institution conducts its audit function without any executive capacity. The Board of Managing Directors appointed by the Supervisory Board of Ziraat Bank International AG is in charge of the management of the Bank with full capacity and is not in a position to share its duties to provide the best possible banking services to its valued clients in accordance with the German Banking Law.

The progress achieved so far to address these findings is on track with the mutually agreed schedule. Therefore the news claiming misconduct, violation of anti-money laundering regulations and, as a result, coerced appointment of a representative to assume executive duties are untrue and misleading. Ziraat Bank International AG, as the rest of the industry, is constantly being audited by independent auditors for anti-money laundering practices and has not been subjected to any measures or punitive actions for violating anti-money laundering regulations nor the Bank had to pay any fines. Ziraat Bank International AG, as ever, will continue to invest in technology and human resources and pay utmost efforts to enhance its capabilities in pursue of achieving full compliance with all rules and regulations on a sustained basis.