Erste Group Bank AG : Erste Group advises Turkey’s Oyak Group on the acquisition of Chemson Polymer-Additive AG

• Erste Group Investment Banking - well positioned to act as a bridge between the high growth Turkish market and Erste's core markets in Central and Eastern Europe incl. Austria

Erste Group Bank AG ("Erste Group") advised Turkey's OYAK Group, one of the largest industrial conglomerates in Turkey, in the acquisition of Austrian chemical maker Chemson Group. Chemson Group is one of the world's leading producers of polymer additives for the plastics industry. OYAK Group purchased the entire share capital of Chemson Group from the Austrian private equity fund Buy-Out Central Europe II Beteiligungs-Invest AG.

"We're proud to have advised a prominent Turkish conglomerate such as OYAK on this highly strategic acquisition. OYAK, through its subsidiary Akdeniz Kimya of Turkey, operates in the field of plastic additives and related raw materials. Thanks to this acquisition, OYAK has consolidated its position as the world's leading player in the PVC stabilizers industry.

This transaction proves that Erste Group is well positioned to act as a bridge between the high growth Turkish market and our core markets in Central and Eastern Europe and Austria. As access to new markets, technologies and know how are becoming more and more important, we expect to see more cross-border M&A activity and hope to continue playing a key role in this closely knit geography.

2013 was a busy year for us in terms of corporate finance activity and we're happy to have closed another important cross-border transaction", stated Ingo Bleier, Head of Investment Banking at Erste Group.

Erste Group is active in Turkey through its subsidiary Erste Securities Istanbul Menkul Degerler A.S. (ESI). ESI is a fully authorized and licensed brokerage house specializing in the Turkish capital markets. ESI commenced operations in 2010 and at present offers its clients equity and macro research, brokerage and corporate finance services for Turkey.

In 2013, Erste Group played a leading role in landmark M&A transactions such as: financial advisory to Borealis Infrastructure and Allianz Capital Partners in the successful acquisition of the Czech independent gas transmission operator NET4GAS, financial advisory on sale of 44% stake of Czech Airlines to Korean Air, and the sale of the Austrian payment solution provider Paylife to the Swiss Six Group.

In addition, Erste Group has recently advised the Romanian Government as Joint Global Coordinator in the IPO of Romgaz, the largest ever listing to take place on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

Chemson operates production sites in six countries in Europe, Asia, the Americas and Australia. Headquarters is located in Arnoldstein, Austria. Chemson is one of the global technology and market leaders for PVC additives used in the production of windows and profiles, pipes and injection molding, and soft PVC application as cables, flooring and roof sheets. Additives are decisive for manufacturing PVC products, ensuring specific product features such as color consistency, impact strength and surface finish and enabling the optimal process ability of the end products. Chemson produces approximately 100,000 tons of additives annually.