Content

1. Outline of the Bill on Transparency and Corporate Governance Best Practices.March, 2001.MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

2. Content Presentation’s content I. INDIRECT PROTECTIONMECHANISMS (Transparency Regime and Tender Offers) 1.- Basic concepts 2.- Transparency in Public Offering 3.- Market Organization 4.- Tender Offers 5.- Inside Information and Market Fraud 6.- Punishment and Procedure Regime. Guarantees II. DIRECT PROTECTIONMECHANISMS (Securities´s Act New Section) 1.- Financial Information 2.- Flexibilization rules for capital increases 3.- Types of shares. Voting rights. Stock Options and repurchase of shares 4.- Functioning of corporate structure and shareholders meetings. Request of Proxy 5.- Rules about conflict of interest. Directors’ compensation 6.- Minority shareholders rights. Stockholder´s appraisal rights and cumulative vote 7.- Auditing Committee Regime MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

3. Indirect Protection Mechanisms 1.- Basic concepts CONSUMER LAW: Concept of investor as a “financial products consumer”. PUBLIC OFFER: Different disclosure regimes according to the issuer’s nature, amount of the issuance, investor’s number or characteristics and other circumstances. SECURITY DEFINITION: Open definition: “securities issued or combined in series and capable of generalized or impersonal trade in financial markets”. Residual legal concept of “investment contract”. Freedom to create marketable securities. Legal Regime of securities registered on book entry systems INSIDE INFORMATION: Specific Information, referred to one or more securities or issuers that it is not public and if it were public it would have a material influence on the security’s price. CONCERTED ACTION: Wide definition for cooperation among a group of persons to acquire, hold or dispose securities MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

4. Indirect Protection Mechanisms 2.- Transparency on Public Offering DUTY TO DISCLOSE : Issuers:disclosure of material information. Investors Relation Person. (in a direct, truthful, Intermediaries:disclosure of non habitual situations. sufficient and Insiders, Rating Agencies and Regulators “CNV” information opportune manner) regarding holding of stock. Every person in respect of any change of control or acquisitions over 5%. Every person in respect of agreements which affect the corporation’s control. DUTY TO KEEP RESERVE: Rule (“disclose or abstain rule”) Persons included: insiders, persons with special, temporal or accidental relationship and subordinated persons. DUTY OF LOYALTY AND Insiders: priority of the corporate interest. FAIR DEALING. Intermediaries: professional conduct, loyalty and priority of the principal interest. MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

5. Indirect Protection Mechanisms 3.- Capital Markets’ Organization SUPERVISION AND INSPECTION OF SELF- REGULATED ENTITIES: Minimum standards in rules and regulations MARKET ARBITRATION: Mandatory for Agents and Public Companies. Optional for investors. NEGOCIATION SYSTEMS (General Principles): Investors protection, fairness, efficiency, transparency and no fragmentation and reduction of systemic risk. RULES ON EXTERNAL AUDITORS: Affidavit. Publicity of Sanctions. Designation by the shareholders meetings, proposed by the audity committee. CNV authority to require information, perform inspections, suggest principles, establish independence criteria. Shareholders’ right to request a special audit. LIMITS ON SECURITIES DISTRIBUTION AND MARKET STABILIZATION: Aim: Avoid artificial prices and other manipulative practices. DICLOSURE: Availability of such materials to investors Misleading Publicity (“publicidad engañosa”) and the CNV power to stop it. Publicity of CNV resolutions. Prohibition of False News. MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

6. 4.- Tender Offers • Create a mechanism of mandatory, previous and partial tender offers (optional for listed public companies). • Guiding principles: a) Equal Treatment; b) Full Disclosure; c) Duty of Administrators of non-obstruction of Public Tender Offers; d) the corporation’s activities must not be affected • The Tender Offer Rules a) Significant participation (never less than 35%) b) “Road Rules”: periods, pro rata distributions, participation calculation, best price, revocation, etc. c) Irrevocability and guarantees, if applicable d) Competitive Offers e) Information: Tender Offer´s Prospect • Squeez Out: Procedure for public companies. Controls shareholders right to buy minorities over 95% and minority right to be bought. • Tender Offer and Voluntary Delisting: 1. Payment: net profits, subject to the liquidity report that assures solvency. 2. Price: concept of “fair price”, among the different market indicators. 3. CNV power to object the price: focus on decision process and reports produced by the parties 4. Shareholders right to object the price. MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

7. Indirect Protection Mechanisms 5.- Inside information and Market fraud INSIDE INFORMATION: Prohibition to all those people who have the duty to keep reserve and the individuals mentioned in section 35 of the Act 24.083. Short swing profit (purchase and sale within six months) MARKET FRAUD AND MANIPULATION: Legal norm which prevents the manipulation prices or volumes. Market fraud: general legal norm antifraud. Aggravating penalties when performed by insiders or controlling shareholders LIABILITY FOR PROSPECTUS : Impose liability on the issuer, the directors, the corporate comptroller and signers, as well as the controlling shareholders, experts and intermediaries that act as organisers and/or underwriters and arrangers. PROHIBICION TO INTERVENE IN THE PUBLIC OFFER: Sanctions for public offer without authorisation CIVIL ACCTION: Contemporary participants MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

8. Indirect Protection Mechanisms 6.- Punishment and Procedure Regime. Guarantees SANCTIONS: Warning, fine (up to $ 1.5 MM); Disablement (up to 5 years); Suspension (up to 2 years); Prohibition of Public Offering. Standards to be considered: a) damage to market trust; b) infraction’s magnitude; c) benefits generated by the infringing person; d) corporate volume; e) individual performance; f) sanctions record. SUMMARY AND PROCEDURE: Amendment to Act 17.811. Administrative Law principles enforcement. PREVENTIVE SUSPENTION OF PUBLIC OFFER: By reason of systemic risk or serious danger Limits for self-regulated entities (Act 17.811) INVESTORS GUARANTIES: Guaranty Fund MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

9. Direct Protection Mechanism 1. Financial Information • CNV power to require consolidated financial statements. • CNV power to require the projected cash flows. (forward looking statement) • Complementary notes: include agreements for the lien and/or disposition of goods and risk administration policies. • Additional Information of the annual report of public corporations. E.g. dividends policies and administrators compensations. • Filing information in the CNV by electronic means. • Directors, corporate comptrollers and managers liability for information supplied to the market and the duty to watch for the independence and capability of the auditors. MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

10. Direct Protection Mechanisms 2. Flexibilization of Rules for Capital Increases. • “Green shoe” clause, except that the shareholders meeting decides otherwise. • Non-common shares have the preemptive right, unless the issuance act establishes otherwise. • Improvement in the limitation to the preemptive right by request of Directors and corporate comptrollers report, stating the necessity, fairness and benefit for all the shareholders • Public Corporations, the determination of the issuance’s premium may be delegated to the Board of Directors MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

11. Direct Protection Mechanisms 3. Types of shares. Voting rights. Options and repurchase of shares • Freedom of issuance of non common shares: preferred stock, shares without right to vote and shares with participation. • Right to vote: “one share one vote” in public corporations. Regulation on exchange offers which may alter the voting structure. • Non common shares of Public Corporations : have the right of information, voice and objection. Maximum limit 49 % of the corporation´s capital • Options: Legal protection regime for the holders of options similar to the protection of convertible bonds. • Repurchase: authorises the repurchase of shares in public corporations, subject to a resolution, a Corporate Comptroller’s report and payment with liquid reserves plus the liquidity report. MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

12. Direct Protection Mechanisms 4. Functioning of Corporate Structure and Shareholders Meetings. Proxy Request. • Board of Directors and Shareholders meetings by non-presential means. • Broad powers of the Extraordinary shareholders meetings, for the disposition of total or substantial part of assets and contracts related to corporate profits. • Longer term to call shareholders meetings (between 25 and 45 days). Increase of information to be considered. Shareholder’s right to include issues when represent at least 2% of the stock. • Limits to one day the prohibition to dispose the shares. (blocking shares) • Regulates the public requests for proxy. MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

13. Direct Protection Mechanisms 5. Rules about the Conflict of Interests. Director’s compensation • Clarifies the conflict of interests rules. • Allows the director’s compensation by option plans in the terms to be established by the CNV. MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA

14. Direct Protection Mechanisms 7. Minority Shareholders rights. Appraisal rights and cumulative vote (sections 245 and 263) • Appraisal rights: the criteria for price settlement in public corporations is modified in a way similar to the Delisting of shares. • Cumulative vote: it extends and ratifies its application within each class MINISTERIO DE ECONOMIA