Kessler Topaz Announces Record-Setting €1.3 Billion Settlement with Ageas (f/k/a Fortis)

AMSTERDAM, July 17, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Amsterdam Court of Appeal approved and declared binding and enforceable a €1.3 Billion ($1.5 Billion) global settlement between Ageas N.V./S.A. (the successor entity to Fortis Bank N.V./S.A.) and investors who purchased or held shares of Fortis Bank anytime between 28 February 2007 and 14 October 2008.  The €1.3 billion settlement resolves all shareholder claims that relate to the 2007-2008 acquisition of ABN Amro and is the largest shareholder recovery in Europe to date.  The settlement was the result of extensive multiparty negotiations between Ageas, SICAF, and three other groups of investors who actively pursued claims in either the Netherlands or Belgium.  The settlement was declared binding and enforceable by the court under the WCAM, a provision of Dutch law that allows for the settlement of mass claims on a global basis.    

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP, along with co-counsel Grant & Eisenhofer P.C. and DRRT, represented institutional investors that comprised the SICAF Group.  The SICAF group was a group of over 180 institutional investors who collectively held more than 80 million shares of Fortis Bank.  Investors who formed SICAF lost up to ninety percent of the value of their investments in Fortis shares after the bank's financial status and ties to subprime mortgage securities were revealed surrounding its acquisition of the Dutch bank ABN Amro Holding N.V. in 2007.  The first complaint filed by the SICAF group was filed in 2011 and alleged that Fortis misrepresented the value of its collateralized debt obligations, its exposure to subprime-related mortgage-backed securities, and the extent to which the decision to acquire ABN Amro jeopardized its solvency.  After the ABN Amro acquisition failed, Fortis encountered financial difficulties and ultimately was bailed out by the governments of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg before being forced to break up in the fall of 2008. 

While investors who did not take steps to actively pursue litigation are included in this resolution, the SICAF plaintiffs represented by Kessler Topaz and other investors who actively pursued litigation will receive a twenty-five percent premium and will receive the majority of their recovery proceeds earlier than those who took no steps and remained passive.  The inclusion of "absent" shareholders is common in U.S. class actions, but in Europe it is unique to the Netherlands.  In most European jurisdictions it is not possible and aggrieved investors must take active steps to pursue their claims. 

Stuart Berman, who led the litigation and settlement efforts from Kessler Topaz, noted that "This was an extraordinary result achieved for the benefit of all Fortis shareholders.  By approving this global settlement through the WCAM – the Dutch statute for settling mass damages – the court reinforced the importance for a mechanism designed to protect all shareholders, not just those who have the largest damages or those who can afford legal representation."

Kessler Topaz continues to be at the forefront of global shareholder litigation.  The firm is currently pursuing claims on behalf of investors in Volkswagen (in Germany), Vivendi (in France), Mitsubishi and Toshiba (in Japan) and BHP Billiton (in Australia), among others.  Notably, Kessler Topaz was instrumental in achieving precedent-setting recoveries for investors in Royal Bank of Scotland (UK settlement of $1.1 Billion), Royal Dutch Shell (Dutch settlement of $450 Million) and Olympus (Japanese settlement of $92 Million).

Kessler Topaz is one of the world's leading advocates for institutional investors from around the world.  The firm has recovered billions of dollars for clients resulting from securities class actions, shareholder derivative suits, antitrust litigation and other complex litigation in jurisdictions around the globe. For more, visit www.ktmc.com.

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP
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Radnor, PA 19087
General Firm Phone: (610) 667-7706

SOURCE Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

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