|
•
|
Purpose of the Procedure: to review the main prohibitions pertaining to the use of Inside Information and outline the rules of conduct for Employees of ICL who may be in possession of Inside
Information.
|
|
•
|
The main prohibitions: Prohibited use of Inside Information is either of two principal actions, which are prohibited when the person performing such actions or ICL has Inside Information:
|
|
◾
|
Transactions. It is prohibited to execute Transactions in
Securities of ICL, of Israel Corporation or of publicly held subsidiaries of ICL (referred to as "Covered Securities").
It is also prohibited for an Employee to execute Transactions in Securities of other publicly traded companies, if the Employee was
exposed to material non-public information concerning such companies as part of his/her work at ICL
|
|
◾
|
Disclosure of Information. It is prohibited to deliver
information to another person or an opinion on the Covered Securities to another person who may use such information or opinion for a Transaction or disclose them to another person.
|
|
•
|
“Inside information” is, in brief, material information concerning the ICL Group that if it were known to the public this would have materially changed the price of a Covered Security.
|
|
◾
|
Information may be deemed Inside Information even before there is an obligation to publicly
disclose it.
|
|
•
|
Permitted Trading Windows: Transactions in Securities of ICL may only be executed during "Trading Windows" which commence two days following the publication of ICL’s financial statements unless
otherwise specifically instructed, and only pending written confirmation as to the opening of the window, and end on the last day of a calendar quarter.
|
|
◾
|
Transactions while the Trading Window
is closed are strictly forbidden without specific prior approvals as described in the Procedure.
|
|
◾
|
Even during Trading Windows, directors and members of T15
should apply to ICL's Corporate Secretariat ahead of conducting a Transaction in Covered Securities, to verify that there is no Inside Information in ICL.
|
|
•
|
Specifically prohibited types of Transactions in Covered
Securities: The Procedure sets forth several types of Transactions in Covered Securities that Employees are required to
categorically abstain from: Pledging Covered Securities, hedging Transactions, speculative Transactions. Key Insiders are also required not to enter into opposing Transactions (sale and then purchase and vice versa) within a 3
month period.
|
|
•
|
Non-Disclosure Undertakings: In order to ensure that third parties who have access to Inside Information of ICL do not disclose such information or trade on the basis of such information, all
such third parties are required to execute a non-disclosure and no-trade undertaking.
|
| 1. |
Scope and Purpose
|
| 2. |
Responsibilities
|
| 2.1. |
The General Counsel of ICL and the GCO are responsible for implementing the Procedures set forth in this Procedure at ICL.
|
| 2.2. |
The relevant Regional General Counsel is responsible for implementing this Procedure in each region.
|
| 2.3. |
The CEO of ICL is authorized to change the identity or duties of the entities responsible for this Procedure.
|
| 3. |
Definitions of Key Terms
|
|
Covered Securities
|
Securities of ICL, of Israel Corporation and of publicly held subsidiaries of ICL (if any exist).
|
|
Employee
|
Any of the following –
1. Any person that
is employed by ICL
2. Insiders
3. Key Insiders
4. Employees of
entities in the ICL Group
|
|
Family Member
|
A spouse, sibling, parent, offspring or offspring of the spouse, or any household member of any of the above.
|
|
Insider
|
Any of the following -
1. Directors of ICL,
the CEO of ICL, Major Shareholders of ICL, or any other person whose status or function in, or relations with, ICL gives him/her access to Inside Information on, or within six months prior to, the day on which use of the inside
information is made.
2. Family Members
of any person mentioned in sections 1 and 2.
3. Entities
Controlled by any person mentioned in sections 1 and 2.
4. Employees of
ICL's headquarters.
5. Members of
T100.
|
|
Key Insider
|
Any of the following -
1. Directors of ICL,
the CEO of ICL, the deputy CEO of ICL, T100 members, controller, internal auditor, and any person carrying out one of the said functions under a different title.
2. Major
Shareholders of ICL;
3. A Family Member
of any person mentioned in sections 1 and 2;
4. An entity
Controlled by any person mentioned in sections 1, 2 and 3.
|
|
Major Shareholder
|
A shareholder holding, directly or indirectly, alone or in concert with others, 5% or more of a company's issued share capital or voting power or entitled to
appoint one or more directors.
|
|
Securities
|
Certificates issued in series by a company, a cooperative society or any other corporation conferring a right of membership or
participation in them or claim against them, and certificates conferring a right to acquire securities, all of which whether registered or bearer securities, excluding certain securities issued by the Government or by the Bank of Israel.
|
|
Underlying Asset
|
The asset to which an obligation in a Security is linked.
|
| • |
Affiliate – mean as defined in Section 1 of the Securities Law.
|
| • |
Control, Subsidiary - mean as defined in Section 1, and Holding,
for the purpose of this Procedure - directly or indirectly, alone or in concert with others. .
|
| 4. |
Restrictions on the Use of Inside Information - The Basic Rules
|
| 4.1. |
General. Israeli and U.S. securities laws prohibit companies and individuals from executing Transactions in securities while possessing
Inside Information. The main purpose of the prohibition is to prevent the exploitation of an unfair advantage in trading securities, arising from access to information on a company, which is not accessible to the public of investors.
|
| 4.2. |
Use of Inside Information. Generally, a person would be deemed to have used Inside Information if he or she did one of the following:
|
| a. |
Transactions while in possession of Inside Information. Performed a Transaction in Security of a company, or in a Security of which the Security of such company is an
Underlying Asset, while in possession of Inside Information or while the company is in possession of Insider Information.
|
|
Note: there is no requirement to prove that there is a connection between the possession of
Inside Information and the Transaction in order for it to be considered use of Inside Information.
|
| b. |
Provision of Inside Information to another person. Delivered Inside Information or opinion on the Securities of a company, or on a Security of which the Security of such
company is an Underlying Asset, while in possession of Inside Information, to any person, who he/she knows or has grounds to believe that will use the Inside Information or the opinion, or will pass it to another, for the purpose of a
Transaction in Securities.
|
| 4.3. |
The Key Prohibitions. The Israeli Securities Law sets forth the following main prohibitions:
|
| a. |
an Insider may not make use of Inside Information. Under the Israeli Securities Law, an Insider may be deemed to have made use of Inside
Information even if such information was not in his or her possession but in the possession of the company.
|
| b. |
a person may not make use of Inside Information if it came into his or her possession, directly or
indirectly, from an Insider.
|
| 4.4. |
When would ICL or another ICL Group Entity be deemed to have access to Inside Information? - As a rule, a corporation will be deemed to
have access to Inside Information or to be in possession of Inside Information if a director or Employee of the corporation has access to information or has information in his possession, subject to the exceptions set forth in the Israeli
Securities Law.
|
|
WHEN IN DOUBT - ABSTAIN AND CHECK
A breach of the insider trading laws could expose the Insider to imprisonment, criminal fines, administrative enforcement
measures and civil penalties.
In case of doubt as to whether or not a certain Transaction is prohibited, abstain from executing the Transaction and
check the restrictions with the legal department.
|
| 5. |
What is “Inside Information”?
|
| 5.1. |
The Israeli Securities Law defines “Inside Information” as -
|
|
"Information regarding a development or expected development
in a company or regarding a change or expected change in its situation, or any other information regarding a company, which is not known to the public and which, if it became known to the public, might cause a significant change in the price of the company’s securities, or in the price of a different security for which the company’s Security is the Underlying Asset"
|
| 5.2. |
Materiality.
|
| a. |
General. Although the Securities Law does not explicitly address the materiality of the information, it is customary, as an auxiliary tool,
to examine the materiality of the information in question in order to assess its potential impact on the price of the company’s securities.
|
| b. |
Examining Materiality. As a general rule of thumb, an information regarding a certain event would be deemed material if it is considered a
"Material Event" under ICL's Periodic and Immediate Reports Procedure (Chapter 3 of the Program), i.e., if its potential quantitative effect crosses a 5% threshold. An event may be deemed insider information even if it does not meet such
materiality threshold, based on qualitative considerations.
|
| c. |
U.S. law definitions. “Inside information” and “materiality” under U.S. law are concepts similar to Inside Information and “materiality,”
under Israeli law. Information is “inside information” under the U.S. securities laws if it has not been publicly disclosed in a manner making it available to investors generally on a broad-based non-exclusionary basis. Information is
“material” under the U.S. securities laws if there is a substantial likelihood that a reasonable investor would consider it important in making an investment decision. The meanings of these terms have been further elaborated in the United
States primarily through case law.
|
|
All queries as to whether information may be considered material inside information under the U.S.
securities laws should be referred to ICL's General Counsel.
|
| d. |
"Red Flags" – below is a non-exhaustive list of events that may deemed Inside Information:
|
|
The intention to issue immediate reports and the withholding of the filing of an immediate report .
|
|
Information that was gathered on the results of operations, including annual or quarterly results, primarily during the period between formulation of the financial results as part
of the process of preparing the consolidated financial statements of ICL and their formal publication.
|
|
Note: According to ICL’s policy, from the time that
drafts of financial statements or financial data arrive at ICL headquarters by means of the SAP system or in another manner, of the subsidiaries or segments of ICL (such data is usually transferred up to seven business days from the end
of the quarter), such information is considered to be Inside Information.
Without derogating from the provisions below regarding "trading windows", when considering a Transaction between the end of a financial
quarter and the publication of ICL's financial results, the existence of Inside Information should be checked with ICL's legal department.
|
|
Intention to raise equity and/or debt of substantial amount.
|
|
Information on significant Transactions, such as a significant merger, purchase or sale of material assets/operations, or material joint ventures, and material events that
occurred, are occurring or expected to occur in companies of ICL Group, whether their effect on the company’s results is positive or not.
|
|
Change of business plan or dividend distribution policy in ICL.
|
|
Known material effects arising from implementing accounting standards (that were not published in the past).
|
|
Valuation of material asset of ICL.
|
|
Significant regulatory developments.
|
|
Information in connection with changes in debt ratings.
|
|
Significant developments in connection with important customers.
|
|
Ongoing or possible material legal proceedings, to which a company of the ICL Group is a party.
|
|
Negotiations with regard to one of the above, including a development in negotiations, renewal of negotiations that were halted and/or closing business conditions.
|
|
Material changes (or expected material changes) in the market or business environment of the ICL Group.
|
|
Any other information which, due to its nature, could be deemed material information.
|
|
Note: The above list of "red flags" is aimed to assist ICL and its Employees in
identifying potential Inside Information. The fact that a certain type of information is on the List does not necessarily mean that said information will be deemed Inside Information, and vise versa. Each matter should be examined on a
case-by-case basis.
|
| 5.3. |
Withheld immediate reports are deemed as Inside Information. If ICL is withholding an immediate report pursuant to Regulation 36(B) of
the Israeli Securities Regulations (Reporting), the information to be reported in such immediate report is deemed to be Inside Information, as long as it is not
public.
|
| 5.4. |
When does information cease to be "Inside Information"? - The Securities Law defines a period of one trading day following the public
filing of the information with the ISA and TASE. However, according to the ISA’s interpretive position and proposed amendment to the Securities Law, information will no longer be deemed as Inside Information following 30 minutes of its
reporting to the public via MAGNA - ISA’s reporting system.
|
| 6. |
"Transactions" in "Securities" – what is a "Transaction"? what are "Securities"?
|
| 6.1. |
Types of Securities subject to this Procedure.
|
| a. |
General. Under the Israeli Securities Law, the restrictions on the use of Inside Information apply to Securities that have been offered to the public by a prospectus or that
are traded on the stock exchange, (including shares, bonds, convertible Securities and commercial papers) and other securities which the Securities of the company are their Underlying Asset. For purposes of compliance with U.S. securities
laws, the prohibition on trading securities while in the possession of material inside information includes orders for purchases and sales of stock and convertible securities.
|
| b. |
Exercise of Employee Options. Under US Securities Law, the exercise of employee stock options is not subject to this Procedure. However, it is subject to this Procedure
under Israeli Securities Law. In addition, the shares acquired when the option is exercised are treated like any other shares.
|
| c. |
Securities Subject to this Procedure. This Procedure generally applies to Transactions in the following Securities, although there may be additional types of Securities
subject to the Procedure if they fall within the above definition (which we refer to in this procedure as "Covered Securities"):
|
| • |
Securities of ICL.
|
| • |
Securities of Israel Corporation.
|
| • |
Securities of publicly held subsidiaries of ICL (to the extent there are any).
|
| 6.2. |
Types of Transactions subject to this Procedure.
|
|
Note: The size of the Transaction is not relevant when determining whether the prohibition
on insider trading was violated. There are precedents where legal proceedings were initiated for Transactions in relatively small amounts.
|
| 7. |
Permitted Trading Windows and prohibited periods for Transactions in ICL Securities
|
| 7.1. |
The Rule - Trading during Trading Windows Only. Transactions in Securities of ICL may only be executed during the period commencing two
trading days following the publication of ICL’s financial statements, and only pending written confirmation as to the opening of the window, and ending the last day of a calendar quarter (a "Trading Window"),
unless specifically instructed otherwise by ICL. The Trading Window for the first quarter will commence two trading days following the publication of the Q4 results and PR, unless otherwise specifically instructed by ICL.
|
| 7.2. |
Exceptions to the Rule - Transactions outside the Trading Window:
|
| a. |
Safe Harbor Plans. The foregoing restrictions do not apply to Transactions pursuant to written plans for trading securities that comply with Rule 10b5-1 under the U.S.
Securities Exchange Act and with the ISA guidelines (as applicable) (“Safe Harbor Plan”).
|
|
Note: Safe Harbor Plans may not be entered into, amended or terminated without the prior
approval of the General Counsel of ICL, which will be given only during a Trading Window period.
|
| b. |
Prior Approval. In unique circumstances, such as exceptional personal hardship or near expiration of options, ICL's CEO and General Counsel may approve executing a
Transaction in ICL Securities not during a trading window, provided that: (1) this exemption will not apply to T15 members, (2) prior to granting such approval, the Employee will certify that they do not possess Inside Information. Such
certification will be in writing and will be kept in the Global Corporate Secretariat.
|
| c. |
Extension of period for exercising options. In unique circumstances, when a “Prior Approval”, as
described in section b. above, is not applicable, ICL’s CEO and General Counsel may decide to extend the period for exercising the options by up to 60 business days starting from the day the trading window re-opens (for further details
regarding the trading window period, see section 7.1 above).
|
| 7.3. |
Closing of "Trading Window"; No Trading while in Possession of Inside Information even during a Trading Window.
|
| a. |
No Transaction in Securities of ICL is to be made if notification was given to the Employees by ICL regarding a prohibition on performing any Transactions in its Securities, from
the time of such notification until the receipt of another notification stating otherwise. A notification regarding the closing of a "Trading Window" may be sent only to some employees and not all Insiders and is not required to detail the
grounds for closing the "Trading Window".
|
| b. |
If an Insider or ICL are in possession of Inside Information during a Trading Window, the Insider is not allowed to trade ICL Securities, even if the Trading Window is "open".
|
|
Note: ICL may not always notify of the closing of a Trading Window when there is Inside
Information in the Company. An Insider who believes he or she are in possession of Inside Information may not trade ICL Securities before clearing with the ICL General Counsel.
The fact that there ICL issued a notification of the closing of a Trading Window may, in itself, be
deemed as Inside Information. An Employee is not allowed to disclose such matters.
|
| c. |
Even during Trading Windows, Directors and members of T15 should apply to ICL's Corporate Secretariat ahead of conducting a Transaction in Covered Securities, to
verify that there is no Inside Information in ICL.
|
| 8. |
Rules of Conduct
|
| 8.1. |
No Transactions in Covered Securities, except during Trading Windows. See section 7 above. This rule has
certain limited exceptions, all of which require approval by at least the ICL General Counsel.
|
| 8.2. |
No Transactions in Covered Securities while in possession of Inside Information (even during Trading Windows). An Employee who is in possession of Inside Information concerning the ICL Group, or who knows that ICL is in possession of such Inside Information, may not execute a Transaction in Covered Securities nor disclose any Inside
Information or opine on Covered Securities to any person. Any exception to this rule requires prior approval by the ICL General Counsel.
|
|
If an Insider has any doubt as to whether or not he or she is in possession of Inside Information, he/she must abstain
from making any Transaction and consult with the ICL General Counsel or Global Compliance Officer.
|
| 8.3. |
Transactions in Covered Securities by ICL or an ICL Group Company.
|
| a. |
Before executing a Transaction in a Covered Security on behalf of ICL or a member of the ICL Group, ICL's General Counsel or Global Compliance Officer and ICL's CFO will conduct a
process for examining whether ICL is in possession of Inside Information. The process will include verifying with the relevant Employees whether or not any Inside Information exists in the company.
|
| b. |
The process will be documented and the records of the examination and answers received will be kept at the Global Corporate Secretariat.
|
| c. |
In case of Transactions for buying/selling Securities over time, the examination should be made each day, and all relevant persons would be required to update of any changes or
developments since the last time they confirmed no Inside Information exists.
|
| d. |
In the absence of a confirmation that no Inside Information exists, a Transaction in Covered Securities will not be executed.
|
| 8.4. |
"Opposing Transactions" by Key Insiders should be avoided. The Israeli Securities Law sets forth
a presumption that if a Key Insider purchased Securities of a company, or other Securities of which Securities such Company an Underlying Asset, within three months from the date on which he sold such Securities, or vice-versa, this will
constitute prima facie evidence that the Key Insider made use of Inside Information, unless the Key Insider proves that he or she was not in possession of Inside Information at the time of the Transaction or that in the relevant circumstances
it is reasonable that the Key Insider was not in possession of Inside Information at that time. Key Insiders are therefore required to avoid executing opposing Transactions in Covered Securities within a three-month period.
|
| 8.5. |
Types of Transactions in Covered Securities that are NOT allowed:
|
| a. |
Pledging of securities; margin accounts. ICL prohibits Employees from pledging Covered Securities in any circumstance, including by purchasing Covered Securities on margin
or holding Covered Securities in a margin account. The reason for this prohibition is that pledged Securities may be sold by the pledgee without the pledgor’s consent under certain conditions. For example, Securities held in a margin account
may be sold by a broker without the customer’s consent if the customer fails to meet a margin call, and such a sale may occur at a time when an Employee has Inside Information or is otherwise not permitted to trade in the company’s
Securities.
|
| b. |
Hedging Transactions. Employees are prohibited from engaging in any hedging Transactions (including Transactions involving options, puts, calls, prepaid variable forward
contracts, equity swaps, collars and exchange funds or other derivatives) that are designed to hedge or speculate on any change in the market value of the equity securities of the Company. Trading in options or other derivatives is generally
highly speculative and very risky. People who buy options are betting that the stock price will move rapidly. For that reason, when a person trades in options in his employer’s stock, it will arouse suspicion in the eyes of the SEC or the ISA
that the person was trading on the basis of Inside Information, particularly where the trading occurs before a company announcement or major event. It is difficult for an Employee to prove that he did not know about the announcement or event.
For all these reasons, the Company prohibits its Employees from trading in options or other securities involving the Company’s shares
|
| c. |
Avoid speculation. Investing in the ICL’s ordinary shares and taking part in ICL’s future growth do not mean short range speculation
based on fluctuations in the market. Such activities put the personal gain of the Employee in conflict with the best interests of ICL and its shareholders. Although this Procedure does not mean that Employees may never sell shares, ICL
encourages Employees to avoid frequent trading of its shares, as speculation is ICL’s shares is not part of ICL’s culture.
|
| 8.6. |
No trading in Covered Shares through investment portfolio managers. If Employees manage their investments through investment portfolio
managers who are authorized to execute Transactions at their discretion, the portfolio managers must be instructed not to trade in Covered Securities.
|
| 8.7. |
No trading in Securities of other companies if in possession of material non-public information. Employees who learn material
information about suppliers, customers or competitors through their work at ICL should keep it confidential and not purchase or sell Securities of such companies until said information becomes public.
|
| 8.8. |
Inform Relatives of Restrictions. Under the Israeli Securities Law, an individual and Relatives who share residence with such individual
are viewed as one person. Insiders are required to inform their adult Relatives who reside with them of the substance of this Procedure and act, to the extent possible, to ensure compliance with the Procedure.
|
| 8.9. |
Limitations on disclosing information concerning the ICL Group.
|
| a. |
Cautious Disclosure of Information. An Employee of the ICL Group should refrain from discussing or providing Inside Information
concerning the ICL Group to persons outside the Group, except, and as required, in the framework of carrying out his ordinary duties. If the information is given to persons outside the Group, provided that such persons signed a
confidentiality agreement in accordance with ICL’s Procedures.
|
|
Employees are required to take extra precautions in their conversations (including with Family Members) in order not to
expose or disclose information that might be Inside Information.
|
| b. |
Obligation of external consultants to maintain confidentiality. If third party service providers to ICL are expected to be exposed
to Inside Information, they will be required to sign a confidentiality undertaking substantially in the form attached as Appendix A or such other form as shall be approved by ICL's Global Compliance Officer or General Counsel. Signing a
confidentiality undertaking is not mandatory where the service provider is subject to legal or ethical confidentiality obligations (e.g. - legal advisors or auditors).
|
| 8.10. |
Special cases. If it is suspected that, notwithstanding the provisions of this Procedure a Transaction in Covered Securities was
executed contrary to the provisions of this Procedure or in possession of Inside Information, it must be reported immediately to the ICL General Counsel and to the Global Compliance Officer. ICL's General Counsel or the Global Compliance
Officer will conduct an urgent examination of the matter in question and will decide if, indeed, there is any substance to said suspicion, and will determine the manner of the continued handling of the issue.
|
| 8.11. |
In any case of doubt the General Counsel of the Company must be consulted and, if necessary, the Compliance Officer as well.
|
| 9. |
Schedules and Appendices
|
|
Appendix A
|
Form of Undertaking Not to Use Inside Information
|
|
Schedule 1
|
List of persons to receive notices of opening and closing of Trading Windows
|
|
•
|
Purposes of the Procedure:
|
|
◾
|
To identify and prohibit certain types of practices and transactions that may be considered under
certain circumstances as fraudulent or manipulative according to Israeli and/or U.S. securities laws.
|
|
◾
|
To provide guidelines for other types of transactions in ICL securities, specifically repurchases
of shares and resales of securities.
|
|
•
|
The main prohibitions:
|
|
◾
|
General. It is prohibited for Employees of ICL to induce
or attempt to induce a person to purchase or sell securities of ICL or of any other entity, with statements, promises or projections, in writing, verbally or otherwise, when the Employee knows or ought to know that the statements,
promises or forecasts are false, misleading or materially incomplete.
|
|
◾
|
Suspicious Transactions. It is prohibited to execute
fraudulent transactions affecting the market price of securities. The following types or suspicious transactions are specifically forbidden:
|
|
-
|
"Single Trader Transactions" - simultaneous sales and purchases of the same security by the
same person or persons on his/her behalf.
|
|
-
|
"Coordinated Transactions" - sale and purchase of the same security by two persons acting
in coordination, affecting the price of the security.
|
|
-
|
"Stabilization" - purchasing or selling securities during a distribution period of the
securities (such as a public offering).
|
|
◾
|
Publication of Information about the ICL Group. Must be
made only in compliance with the Procedure governing periodic and immediate reports and disclosure of Material Non-Public Information (see Chapter No. 3 of the Program).
|
|
•
|
Other limitations on transactions in securities of ICL.
The Procedure addresses additional types of transactions in ICL securities, including repurchases of shares by ICL or its subsidiary (which may only be done with the prior approval of ICL's
General Counsel) and resales.
|
| 1. |
Scope and Purpose
|
| 1.1. |
Actions or Transactions that constitute fraud or manipulation in connection with securities are prohibited under the Israeli Securities Law and may constitute criminal offences or
administrative violations that do not require proof of criminal intent. In addition, the failure to disclose material facts or the use of false or misleading statements or any other manipulative or deceptive practices in connection with the
purchase or sale of any security is unlawful under the U.S. Exchange Act.
|
| 1.2. |
The purposes of this Procedure are -
|
| • |
to identify and prohibit certain types of practices and transactions that may be considered under certain circumstances as fraudulent or manipulative and Israeli and/or U.S.
securities laws.
|
| • |
To provide guidelines for other types of transactions in ICL securities, specifically repurchases of shares and resales of securities.
|
| 1.3. |
This Procedure applies to transactions in ICL securities by directors, Officers or employees of the ICL Group, referred to in this procedure as "Employees"
and also to transactions in securities of ICL or of other entities by ICL.
|
| 2. |
Responsibilities
|
| 2.1. |
ICL's General Counsel and Global Compliance Officer are responsible for implementing this Procedure at ICL.
|
| 2.2. |
The relevant Regional General Counsel is responsible for implementing this Procedure in each region.
|
| 2.3. |
The CEO of ICL is authorized to change the identity or duties of the entities responsible for this Procedure.
|
|
In any case of doubt as to the proper treatment of a contemplated or existing transaction in securities, the General
Counsel of ICL should be contacted immediately for instructions.
|
| 3. |
Guidelines and rules of conduct pertaining to fraud and manipulation
|
| 3.1. |
Using fraudulent, misleading, or nondisclosed information
|
| a. |
An Employee of ICL shall not motivate or attempt to induce a person to purchase or sell securities of ICL or of any other entity, with statements, promises or
projections, in writing, verbally or otherwise, when the Employee knows or ought to know that the statements, promises or forecasts are false, misleading or materially incomplete.
|
| b. |
An Employee of ICL shall not make any statement, promise or projection to a person, whether in writing, verbally or otherwise, which the Employee knows or ought to
know that is false, misleading or materially incomplete, when the Employee knows or should know that his actions would motivate such person to purchase or sell securities of ICL or of any other entity.
|
| c. |
Nondisclosure of information that is required to be disclosed by law, or the existence of a misleading fact in a report of ICL may also be considered a Securities
fraud.
|
| 3.2. |
Affecting the price of Securities - Prohibited Types of Transactions.
|
| a. |
General prohibition on fraudulent transactions affecting market price. Employees of ICL are prohibited from fraudulently
affecting the rate fluctuations of Securities (of ICL or any other corporation).
|
| b. |
Single Trader Transactions. Employees of ICL are prohibited from performing a "Single
Trader Transaction" in Securities, namely - The sale and purchase, at the same time, of the same security, by the same person or someone on his behalf, which affects the price of the security on the stock exchange.
|
| c. |
Coordinated Transactions. Employees of ICL are prohibited from performing "Coordinated
Transactions" in securities, namely - the sale and purchase of the same Security by two or more persons, executed by prior coordination among the parties, which affected the rate of the security on the TASE (except for a "Matching
Transaction" in securities on TASE, marked as such in accordance with the bylaws of the TASE).
|
| d. |
"Stabilization"; Regulation M.
|
| • |
It is prohibited for Employees of ICL to conduct "Stabilization" transactions, namely - the purchase or sale of Securities,
by an interested party, prior to or after the public filing of a prospectus (or other offering document such as a shelf offering report) that affected the rate of the Security in favor of the issue, all while concealing material information
pertaining to the Stabilization actions and the time of their implementation.
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| • |
In order to prevent market manipulation, the SEC adopted Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Regulation M generally restricts the Company or any of its affiliates
from buying Company shares, including as part of a share buyback program, in the open market during certain periods while a distribution, such as a public offering, is taking place. ICL's General Counsel should be consulted if any purchases
of ICL securities are to be made during any period that the Company is conducting an offering or buying shares from the public.
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Without derogating from the generality of the foregoing or from any other Procedure prohibiting
transactions in ICL securities, in order to avoid the risk of potential illegal Stabilization, all Employees of ICL are prohibited from selling or purchasing securities of ICL from the time a prospectus or
draft prospectus, shelf offering report or other offering document is published by ICL and until the lapse of 30 days from the completion of the offering of securities, unless specific prior approval was obtained from ICL's General
Counsel
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| 3.3. |
Publication of information about the ICL Group
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| a. |
Any message from ICL, regarding ICL, to entities outside the Company, such as the media, analysts, investors or other people in the financial community, will only
be delivered through the representatives authorized for that purpose.
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| b. |
Confidential information that has not yet been disclosed (including the fact that such information exists) may not be disclosed other than by those authorized for
such disclosure.
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| c. |
No opinion may be made or stated with respect to the prices of ICL's securities or on the advisability of investing in such securities.
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| d. |
Caution must be exercised to avoid being drawn into addressing sensitive subjects as specified above when responding questions from analysts / journalists.
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| 4. |
Other limitations on transactions in securities of ICL
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| 4.1. |
Repurchases of Shares by ICL or a Subsidiary of ICL
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| a. |
Repurchases of shares by ICL or by a subsidiary of ICL are subject to limitations set forth in the Israeli Companies Law, the Israeli Securities Law and U.S.
Securities laws.
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Any repurchase of shares, either in a one-time transaction or pursuant to a
repurchase program, either through orders placed on the stock exchange or in off-market transactions requires the prior approval of ICL's General Counsel.
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| b. |
When examining whether to approve a transaction in securities of ICL, ICL's General Counsel will, among other matters, examine the compliance of the proposed
transaction with the following restrictions and prohibitions:
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| • |
The rules of distribution set forth in the Israeli Companies Law.
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| • |
The Israeli Companies Law's requirement for a tender offer for acquisitions leading to the crossing of certain thresholds by shareholders of a company.
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| • |
The requirement in ICL's Articles of Association for approval of the Government of Israel for acquisitions leading to the crossing of certain thresholds.
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| • |
Israeli Antitrust merger rules.
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| • |
U.S. tender offer rules and disclosure requirements relating to repurchases.
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| • |
Israeli and U.S. laws prohibiting the use of inside information.
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| 4.2. |
Resales by ICL or a Subsidiary of ICL
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| 4.3. |
Restrictions on the Use of Inside Information
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