Ad-hoc | 13 March 2000 07:27

Ad hoc-Service: MLP AG MLP AG / english

Ad-hoc announcement sent by DGAP. The sender is solely responsible for the contents of this announcement. —————————————————————————— MLP Business Year 1999: High investments in the Internet / MLP combines e-brokerage with Personal Advice Pre-tax group profit from income and earnings increases by 63.2 percent following publication of year-end results for all companies – Inclusion in the Dax major objective for 2000 Heidelberg, March 13th 2000 – MLP AG, Heidelberg, leading in Europe in the field of financial consultation for sophisticated private clients, has mainly used 1999 to prepare its massive Internet presence. MLP CEO Termühlen: “Realising our Internet offer is a further important strategic step for us. At MLP we have placed a major focus upon our clearly expanded concept for Private Finance.” Under this term, explains Termühlen, MLP means dovetailing personal advice and online brokerage for the various financial service areas. The broker platforms built up over recent years allow MLP to provide customer solutions made up from a combination of insurance and banking services. Termühlen explains that MLP has already reached a position today which other market participants are striving for with mergers or restructuring measures. This is where MLP sees its future and the guarantees for the continuation of the stable, dynamic growth of at least 30 percent p.a. established over many years. The services have been and will always continue to be targeted at the sophisticated private clients, hence taking advantage of the growing vacuum in consultation in the upper private customer market. Consequent advantage will also be taken of the new opportunities arising from the planned mega-mergers to win new employees. Group revenues plus 54.4 percent The total revenue reached 513 million euro and were hence 54.4 percent higher than the revenues recorded in the previous year of 332 million euro. Despite the high outlays for the Private Finance concept MLP has been able to increase the pre-tax group profit from income and earnings by 62 percent from 47 million to 75.9 million euro. This now means, explained Termühlen, that the current preliminary estimates for the MLP Group will again have to be adjusted upwards significantly following publication of all year-end subsidiary results. Pre-tax profit from income and earnings at MLP AG increases by over 44.6 percent The pre-tax profit from income and earnings at MLP AG increased significantly and reached 71 million euro in comparison with 49 million in 1998. This represents a plus of over 44 percent. MLP companies are the pillars of the success in 1999 All MLP subsidiaries have contributed to the corporate success in 1999: MLP Finanzdienstleistungen AG, the consulting operation within the MLP Group, is the most important single company and recorded significant growth rates in all areas. Sales revenues reached 263 million euro compared with 185 million in 1998, an increase of 42 percent. The customer base increased by over 54,000 to more than 304,000 clients. The payments into mutual funds grew by almost 40 percent to 667 million euro in the “financial investment” segment. Mortgages and loans were negotiated to the value of 783 million euro. This represents an increase in comparison with the previous year of 39 percent. Increases of almost 33 percent were recorded in the life insurance field to 4.3 billion euro after total premiums in 1998 of 3.22 billion euro. MLP Lebensversicherung AG, the second largest single company in the MLP Group, recorded an increase in managed in-force business of over 84 percent to 8.66 billion euro. The company’s premium receipts reached 169 million euro, a plus of 77 percent. The pre-tax result from income and earnings grew by 174 percent from 1.61 million euro to 4.42 million. Die MLP Vermögensverwaltung AG structures and manages the assets of the MLP Group clients. At the end of 1999 the total managed assets reached 1.976 billion euro. The pre-tax result from income and earnings grew by 40 percent from 1.34 million to 1.87 million euro. The MLP Bank AG increased the number of clients by fivefold in the second effective year of business. At the end of 1999 the bank had 80,235 customers, in comparison with 16,000 in 1998. Despite the considerable investments in the growth, the young bank almost reached the “breakeven” point. Losses were reduced by 66 percent from 0.9 to 0.3 million euro. MLP CEO Termühlen: “The 1999 figures are excellent. We expect continued high level growth which will also be determined by our new Internet-influenced dimension.” MLP is the first financial services company worldwide to link highly qualified personal advice with the Internet. And as such, has extended the term online brokerage – which until now has only been used in association with securities trading – to the other financial services areas. Striving for inclusion in the Dax 30 Termühlen emphasised that MLP is sticking to its objective of entering the Dax 30 in the year 2000. “We are ready for the Dax”, he commented. Termühlen believes that an index like the Dax needs not only innovative and highly successful companies such as MLP, but also companies with long-term consistent solid growth rates. MLP has proven this year for year since its listing on the stock market in 1988. At the end of February MLP was the 21st company in terms of market capitalisation, and in position 34 for volume of trading among all listed stocks. With such results MLP now definitely fulfils the criteria set by the Deutsche Börse AG for inclusion in the Dax 30. Contact: Jutta Funck Tel.: 0 62 21-3 08-3 30 Fax: 0 62 21-3 08-2 58 Email: jutta.funck@mlp-ag.com End of Message