EVERGENT Investments SA, as a listed company - public interest entity, defined as such according to the provisions of article 2, point 12 of Law no. 162/2017 regarding the statutory audit, conveys thanks and appreciation to the Financial Supervisory Authority, the Authority for the Public Supervision of the Statutory Audit Activity (APSSAA), the Ministry of Finance, the Bucharest Stock Exchange, the Fund Managers Association members and the Romanian Association of Banks members, key institutions and associations of the Romanian financial market who were involved in the process of amending APSSAA Order no. 123/2022.

The Order no. 123/2022 provided an inadequate deadline (December 31, 2022) for compliance with the obligation to introduce a financial auditor certified in the Audit Committee, a committee comprised of the Board of Director members. This obligation would have seriously disrupted the proper functioning and corporate governance of the company and other listed entities in the financial-banking field.

Through the publication of APSSAA Order no. 392/2022 in the Official Gazette of Romania, Part I, no. 898 of September 13, 2022, the amendments to the above-mentioned order entered into force, in the sense that:

• The range of professional skills in the field of accounting and auditing necessary for individuals who are part of the Audit Committee is expanded, by including the experience of at least 3 years in statutory audit acquired by participating in statutory audit missions or within the Audit Committees of the Boards of Directors;
• The new term for entities that do not currently meet the legal requirements is at the latest on December 31, 2023, or, as the case may be, on the Board of Directors’ new members' appointment date.

We would like to inform the investors that we will remain involved in the legislative process for the transposition of any EU Directives and Regulations or amendments to national legislation likely to permanently improve the best standards of corporate governance and the framework in which it operates, as an issuer authorized and supervised by the FSA, for the exclusive benefit of the shareholders.