New Members of the Supervisory Board to be appointed

By the appointment of Dr. Rainer Runte and Mr. Klaus-Dieter Fritsche the Supervisory Board of H&K will be fully re-established, also including Mr. Nicolaus Bocklandt, who was already reappointed at the past ordinary annual shareholder meeting on 27.08.2020 (the "AGM").  The vacancies at the Supervisory Board were caused by the resignations of Mr. General (retired) Harald Kujat and Dr. Martin Sorg, becoming effective after the AGM. The election of Dr. Rainer Runte and Mr. Klaus-Dietrich Fritsche could not be realized in view of the legal timelines to be obeyed for this year`s AGM. Following the court appointment, it is envisioned to have this accomplished at the Annual General Meeting in 2021.

Dr. Rainer Runte and Mr. Klaus-Dieter Fritsche are well-known and highly respected personalities who shall contribute know-how and industry experience in the company's field of business, as well as in the areas of Governance and Compliance.

For many years, Dr. Rainer Runte had been a member of the management board at a global healthcare provider that is listed at the German DAX 30 as well as at the NYSE. Thereafter, he served in leading position at a German based corporation, that provides on an international level naval products and services, by improving its internal Compliance and Governance features before being also appointed as a member of the supervisory board for a certain period. Today, Dr. Rainer Runte is an Attorney-at-Law/Of-Counsel of one of the larger German Law Firms and acting as a Member of the Board of Directors at a Swiss based corporation.

Mr. Klaus-Dieter Fritsche began his career as an administrative judge in Ansbach and then served, among others, as Vice President of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and finally as State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of the Interior and then in the Federal Chancellery as Commissioner for the Federal Intelligence Services. Currently, Mr. Klaus-Dieter Fritsche works as a freelance consultant, among others, on the restructuring of state organizations, also in nations friendly to Germany.

Mr. Nicolaus Bocklandt joined H&K's Supervisory Board in 2015. Based on his international professional experience he was able to support the required restructuring of H&K in the areas of Refinancing, Riskmanagement and Governance. As the enacted meassures provide some success already he is eager to continue his efforts in developing H&K's resilience and sustainability.

The selection of the two new designated Members of the Supervisory Board was managed in consultations with Compagnie de Developpement de l'EAU ("CDE"), the new majority shareholder of H&K, and Mr. Nicolas Walewski, the beneficial owner of CDE.

"We are highly pleased to complete the vacancies with such outstanding personalities so quickly,” commented the CEO of H&K, Dr. Jens Bodo Koch. It is important and extremely decisive for our company and its business relations to Germany, Europe and the democratic world that our supervisory board is  staffed with independent, integer  and reliable professional personalities. That shall enable us to manage the challenges H&K is currently facing and will face in the coming years.  “In our initial talks with Dr. Runte and Mr. Fritsche, we were able to experience not only their professional and human competence, but also their high level of identification with the Company and the course we have taken”, added the CFO of H&K Dr. Björn Krönert.

"I am excited to join H&K", said Dr. Runte. "Being a Member of the Supervisory Board, in particular a Chairman, is quite demanding. Today, high level Governance and robust Compliance are essential for listed Companies. Based on my experience and know-how I shall ensure, that the Supervisory Board will provide a constructive contribution while having communication with management as well as with H&K's shareholders. Based on my recent discussions with the representatives of the new majority shareholder as well as with management I am confident that we all share the similar objective of developing the Heckler & Koch group to become an international champion, both from an operational but also organizational perspective."

"I am delighted to become a Member of H&K's the Supervisory Board", said Mr. Fritsche. "As a company in the security and defense industry, HK is today, after a few turbulent years, in the focus of public attention like hardly any other company in this sector, and this despite the fact that it is a market leader that meets high ethical standards due to its Greenland strategy. It is my concern to accompany the consolidation and sustainable development of this champion in a constructive, future-oriented and trustworthy manner together with my colleagues in the Supervisory Board and the members of the Executive Board".