ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE MERGER
 
according to Section 404 and with the requirements according to Section 405 of Act No. 240/2013 Coll.,
in the scope according to Annex No. 3 of Decree No. 244/2013 Coll.

Investiční společnost Erste Asset Management GmbH, Vienna, Republic of Austria,
acting through its branch office
Erste Asset Management GmbH, branch office, the Czech Republic,
(hereinafter referred to as “ERSTE AM”, “Investment Company”)
hereby informs the shareholders of the mutual fund
ČS fond životního cyklu 2020 FF ČS / life-cycle fund 2020 FF – open-ended mutual fund
of the decision to dissolve this mutual fund by merging it with the receiving mutual fund
SPOROINVEST- open-ended mutual fund

Reasons for the merger

- in 2020 the expected investment horizon is expiring of shareholders of the merged ČS fond životního cyklu 2020 FF open-ended mutual fund,

- the proposed receiving SPOROINVEST open-ended mutual fund has, as a bond fund of very short-term investments, an investment strategy, risk profile, costs and performance of the best appropriate current investment strategy, risk profile, costs and performance of the merged ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF mutual fund, of all the mutual funds managed by Erste AM, which have a Czech domicile and offer a retail class of investment securities,

- the transfer of the original investment from the ČS fond životního cyklu 2020 FF mutual fund to the SPOROINVEST mutual fund will enable every shareholder to choose the termination of his investment in accordance with his specific needs.

On 5 May 2020 and in accordance with Section 401 (1) of Act No. 240/2013 Coll., on Investment Companies and Investment Funds (hereinafter referred to as the “ZISIF AoICIF”), the Czech National Bank issued Decision ref. no. 2020/057686/CNB/570, by which it granted permission for the merger of the investment securities. This decision will come into force on 21 May 2020.

Impacts of the merger on the interests of the shareholders

The interests of the shareholders of the merged funds will not be affected in any way by the merger, particularly as regards the compatibility of the assets and investment strategy of the merged and receiving mutual fund. The merger of the ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF mutual fund with the SPOROINVEST mutual fund is not in fact a merger of mutual funds with a significantly different way of investment. Both mutual funds in essence are already bond funds of very short-term investments and therefore there will be no change in the structure of assets in the receiving SPOROINVEST mutual fund. Just as the merged ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF fund so the receiving SPOROINVEST fund will reinvest the created profit in full. The investment securities of both merged mutual funds are denominated in CZK.

Comparison of costs – see the complete report (download the link below)

Both the merged mutual fund and the receiving mutual fund are standard funds meeting the requirements of the directive of the European Parliament and Council regulating the coordination of collective investment regulations which, among others, guarantees in the same scope the information obligations with regard to the shareholders.

Both mutual funds are managed and administered by the Austrian investment company Erste Asset Management GmbH, through its branch office Erste Asset Management GmbH, branch, the Czech Republic (hereinafter referred to as “Erste AM”, “Investment Company”). The depositary and distributor of both mutual funds is Česká spořitelna, a. s. (hereinafter referred to as the “Distributor”).

Upon merger, the investment securities will be exchanged automatically, without the participation of the shareholders. All costs connected with the merger and with the exchange of mutual funds will be paid from its resources by the Investment Company. The exchange of investment securities will not be subject to entry fees otherwise deducted by the Distributor once the investment securities of the SPOROINVEST fund are issued.

This means favourable conditions for the shareholders in terms of taxation upon the merger of the mutual funds. The dissolution of the mutual fund through merger and acquisition of the investment securities by the receiving fund will not interrupt the three-year time test for the exemption of income from the sale of the investment securities from income tax which can be enforced for natural persons who do not have investment securities included in business assets.

Decisive day of the merger

The expected decisive day of the merger will be 24 June 2020. The merged ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF fund will be wound up on the day of the merger and its shareholders will become the shareholders of the receiving SPOROINVEST fund owning investment securities of retail class CZK C (ISIN CZ0008472271).

Information on right of redemption and right to replacement

The shareholders of the ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF open-ended mutual fund could and can from the start of its existence, enforce the right of redemption of their investment securities at any time against the Investment Company, without any charges or deductions. They will also have the same right of redemption of exchanged investment securities in the receiving SPOROINVEST fund.

In order to enable the merger and exchange of investment securities to run smoothly
- 5 working days before the decisive day of the merger and on the day of the merger the issue and redemption will be suspended of the investment securities of the merged ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF mutual fund. If any of the shareholders of the merged ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF mutual fund do not agree with the merger of the mutual funds and with the acquisition of the investment securities of the receiving SPOROINVEST fund, in such case they should request the redemption of their investment funds of the ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF fund by 15 June 2020 at the latest.
- on the merger date of 24 June 2020 and on the following working day of 25 June 2020 the issue and redemption will be suspended of the investment securities of the receiving SPOROINVEST mutual fund. It is assumed that on the date of the renewal of the issue and redemption of the investment securities of the receiving SPOROINVEST fund (26 June 2020) the exchanged investment securities of the receiving SPOROINVEST fund will be credited to the former shareholders of the ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF mutual fund retroactively on the merger date; subsequently they will be able to enforce their rights arising from these exchanged investment securities at any time.

The shareholders of the merged ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF fund can also choose the alternative option of free purchase of investment securities of some other publicly offered domestic or foreign standard mutual fund with a similar investment scope managed by Erste AM, if they so request from the Distributor by submitting an order to exchange/sell the investment securities of the ČS Fond životního cyklu 2020 FF mutual fund, before its merger with the receiving SPOROINVEST fund.

Possibilities of obtaining further information

In order to obtain further or more specific information about the process of the merger and its course, we recommend that shareholders follow notices which will be posted at the internet address https://www.erste-am.cz and at the Distributor’s branches. At the internet address https://www.erste-am.cz the shareholders of the merged fund can also become acquainted with the statute and namely key information for investors (KIID) of the receiving SPOROINVEST mutual fund. Once the process of the merger and exchange of investment securities is completed, the shareholders of the merged funds will also be able to become acquainted at this internet address https://www.erste-am.cz with the report of the depositary or auditor or request it at the Distributor’s branches.
 
 
 
Prague, 20 May 2020