Gazprom terminates depositary receipts listing on London, Singapore exchanges
MOSCOW. April 29 (Interfax) - Gazprom has terminated its programs of depositary receipts representing shares in the company, the Russian gas giant said in a regulatory filing.
In compliance with the Federal Law No. 114-FZ dated April 16, 2022 on Amendments to the Federal Law on Joint Stock Companies and Certain Acts of Law of the Russian Federation that has taken effect in Russia, Gazprom is required to terminate its Deposit Agreement with The Bank of New York Mellon under which depositary receipts representing shares in the company are placed. Receipt holders have a right to convert them into ordinary shares in Gazprom.
The receipt-to-share conversion right only applies to DR holders as at April 27, 2022.
Before the receipts are converted into shares, DR holders do not have any voting rights and are not entitled to any dividends. After the receipts are converted into shares, the holders of securities have a right to claim unpaid dividends in the manner prescribed by Federal Law No. 208-FZ on Joint Stock Companies.
Gazprom exercised its right under the Law and applied to the Russian government requesting that circulation of the receipts outside the Russian Federation continue, but the request was rejected on April 28, 2022.
On Friday, Gazprom instructed The Bank of New York Mellon to terminate the Deposit Agreement. Now, as required by the Deposit Agreement, the depositary must send a notice of the termination of the DR Programmes to holders of the receipts. The receipts will be converted into Gazprom shares through a standard procedure under the Deposit Agreement, subject to mandatory requirements of Russian law.
Given the enactment of the Law and termination of the DR programs, on April 29, 2022, Gazprom notified the Financial Conduct Authority of its intention to cancel standard listing of the DRs representing shares in the Company in the London Stock Exchange Official List and requested that the London Stock Exchange cancel the admission to trading on the London Stock Exchange's Main Market of the DRs.
Gazprom expects that delisting of the DRs representing shares in the company will be confirmed by the Financial Conduct Authority and/or London Stock Exchange within 20 business days from the date of the notice.
Gazprom placed shares in the form of depositary receipts on the international market in autumn 1996. In April 2006, the company launched a Level 1 American Depository Receipt program, which made it possible to freely convert shares into depositary receipts and vice versa.