Depository services

In order to ensure that the owners of the securities properly exercise their rights to the securities they own, Gazprombank’s Depository performs the following actions:

• Submits to the Issuer or the External Accounting System (EAS), all information about the Depositors (Customers) and securities of the Depositors (Customers), including those required to exercise the owners' rights: receiving income on securities, participation in general meetings of shareholders, etc. (as provided by Russian law);
• Provides the Depositors with services related to the receipt of income on securities in cash and other cash payments due to the owners of such securities (as provided by Russian law);
• Ensures safekeeping of securities certificates and depositary records, the storage of which is necessary for the owners to exercise their rights to securities;
• Allows owners to exercise their right to vote at general meetings of shareholders in the manner provided for in the depositary agreement;
• As required for the exercise of rights by the owners of the securities, provides the Issuer or the Registrar with certificates of securities, including certificates of redemption, coupons and other income documents providing payment on demand.

Bank GPB (JSC) offers services of a specialized depositary under License for the activities of specialized depository of investment funds, mutual investment funds and private pension funds No. 22-000-0-00021 issued by the Federal Securities Commission of Russia on December 13, 2000, and professional securities market player license for depository activities No. 177-04464-000100 issued by the Federal Securities Commission of Russia on January 10, 2001.

The developed infrastructure established by Bank GPB (JSC), including Russia’s largest regional depositary network, ensuring the most efficient, rapid and productive cooperation, allows the Bank’s Specialized Depository to offer a wide range of services to corporation in all Russian regions, such as:

• Joint Stock Investment Funds (JSIFs);
• Non-State Pension Funds (NPFs);
• Management companies of Mutual Investment Funds (MIFs);
• Self-Regulatory Organizations (SROs) established by the Russian Federation as funds;
• Organizations established by the Russian Federation as state corporations (SCs);
• Mortgage bond issuers; mortgage managers.

The specialized depository of Bank GPB (JSC):

• Stores and keep records on property, exercising control functions in the scope determined by Russian law;
• Maintains a register of owners of investment units in mutual investment funds and keeps records related to the latter;
• Provides advisory and information services to customers of Gazprombank’s Specialized Depository.

TELEPHONE +7 (495) 913-7408
TELEPHONE +7 (499) 238-0314
ADDRESS 2^nd Verkny Mikhailovsky proezd 9, bldg. 11, Moscow, 115419

Options for assistance in exercising certain corporate rights on foreign securities. Options for Depositors to participate in corporate actions, tax relief verification (WTRC) and partial tax refund (TREC) for depositary receipts on shares of Russian issuers.

Gazprombank’s Depository notifies Depositors that WTRC and TREC have been carried out for depositary receipts on shares of Russian issuers. Depositors are entitled to exercise their right to lower tax to the rate specified in the agreement between the taxpayer and the Russian authorities on taxation, which envisages a reduced tax rate for non-residents of the Russian Federation, or the rate provided for in the respective article of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation for residents of Russia.

In order to obtain a tax break, Depositors who hold securities accounts for a nominal holder, a foreign nominal holder, an authorized foreign holder, a trustee (a professional securities market player) should provide general information on their customers as of the date when a Russian organization defines persons who are eligible to receive dividends. The aggregate data is submitted to the Depository no later than the next business day following the date when the list of persons entitled to receive dividends is compiled. Aggregate data is provided in a special application form (f. ZV-DR) via SWIFT channels (MT599 format)/EDM (given that an agreement on electronic document exchange is in place)/ in hard copy.

If the aggregate data is transmitted by the Depositor to the Depository via SWIFT channels (MT599 format):

• The message is transmitted using the SWIFT Depositary code of Gazprombank: GAZPRUMM;
• The message is sent from the Depositor's SWIFT code, which is indicated in the Supplementary Agreement between the Depositor and the Depository on the procedure for exchanging information via the SWIFT system. If such Supplementary Agreement has not been made – in the customer profile available in the Depository;
• The SWIFT message (MT599 format), must contain the information specified in the application form (ZV-DR).

In order to obtain a tax break, individual Depositors who are not tax residents of the Russian Federation should submit:

• Application form ZV-DR-VL;
• Official confirmation that the Depositor is a resident of a state with which the Russian Federation has entered into a double taxation treaty (agreement) valid for the relevant tax period (or part thereof).

Documents are submitted for each tax period (one calendar year) up to the initial date of income payment, but no later than one business day from the date on which the list of persons entitled to receive income on securities is compiled.

In order to obtain a tax break, Depositors who are Russian corporations or individuals and are tax residents of the Russian Federation, should submit an application using the ZV-DR-VL form, which is valid indefinitely or until its cancellation by filing in a ZV-DR-VL application form.

To be eligible for a tax break, Depositors who are foreign organizations that do not perform business activities in the Russian Federation through a permanent establishment and apply for the use of preferential tax rates provided for in the treaty on avoidance of double taxation, should submit the following documents:

• The ZV-DR-VL application form;
• A legalized (or apostilled) document (or a notarized copy of such a document) confirming the residence of foreign legal entity in the country with which an international taxation treaty (agreement) was stipulated, in the sense of its application. This document is provided in the form established by the national legislation of the foreign state with which the abovementioned international treaty (agreement) was stipulated, and is certified by the competent authority of the foreign state. If this document is written in a foreign language, the Depository must also contain a notarized translation of this document in Russian.
• Documents confirming the rights of foreign corporations to receive income as dividends, as well as the absence of rights of any third parties that are clients of a foreign corporation to receive such income. For this purpose, each time income is paid, a foreign corporation, in advance, but no later than one business day from the date on which the list of persons entitled to receive income on securities is compiled, should submit to the Depository a statement confirming actual ownership of income (ZV- Vlad Form).

After the tax agent pays taxes to the budget of the Russian Federation, any overpaid tax is refunded in accordance with the procedure provided for in the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

Gazprombank’s Depository Center is the unrivaled leader in the Russian depository services market, having been assigned the highest reliability rating (AAA). Gazprombank’s depository network is truly unique within Russia as regards both the number of shareholders serviced and the number of affiliated regional depositories. All of the Depository Center’s resources and capabilities are put to work for our customers who can tap into our state-of-the-art services virtually anywhere in the country.

Gazprombank’s depository has been operating since 1994 and is currently the leader among Russia’s major custodial depositories.

Advantages of Gazprombank’s Depository

The high technological level of the depository makes it possible for security sales transactions to be performed within the shortest possible timeframe.

Gazprombank’s depository interacts with the settlement depository, while catering to market makers and international clearing centers to enable security sales on all Russian stock exchanges.

Gazprombank offers its customers a complete array of depository services when conducting credit, pledge, REPO, brokerage and dealer transactions.

The Bank’s extensive depository network enables a vast range of depository services to be delivered to customers nationwide.

Gazprombank’s Depositary Center is located at:
2nd Verkny Mikhailovsky proezd 9, bldg. 11, Moscow, 115419
Telephone contact information: +7 (495) 913-74-74