European payments processor Equens was transformed into a Societas Europaea and became Equens SE. This legal form is in line with Equens’ ambitions and positioning as a truly European player within the European payments market.
The new company is the result of the legal mergers of Equens Nederland B.V. and the German Equens Deutschland AG into the holding Equens N.V., followed by the conversion into a Societas Europaea.
As a result of the finalised co-determination process associated with the formation of an SE, Equens will establish an SE Works Council and thereby implement a stable and future-orientated international co-determination regime. The existing two-tier governance structure with Supervisory Board and Board of Directors will remain unchanged. The SE conversion will lead to cost savings at operative level. Equens is the first significant operational SE in the Netherlands. Other prominent examples of SEs in Europe are Allianz, BASF, Fresenius, Porsche and Strabag.
A Societas Europaea, also referred to as ‘Europe Inc.’ or ‘Europa AG’ is a legal form under the laws of the European Union. Since the end of 2004, this legal form permits internationally operating companies like Equens to transform into European public limited-liability companies, which are governed by a largely uniform European body of law based on an EU directive.
“We are glad that we have taken the next step towards achieving our European ambition,” says Gtz Mller, a member of Equens’ Board of Directors. “It is a logical move after the successful operative integration of the – until now – separate legal entities in Germany and the Netherlands. This new legal form is in line with our European strategy to further improve our strong position through internal optimisation, as well as national and international partnerships, in order to further reduce the costs per transaction. With an explicit growth strategy Equens aims to maintain a top position in the European payments industry.”
The two-tier governance structure of Equens SE consists of:
Equens Supervisory BoardE. Dralans, ING Groep (Chairman)G. Roth, DZ BANK (Deputy Chairman)Dr J.J. Bos, Rabobank NederlandM.C.A. Buitenhek, ING GroepC. Defrancq, KBC GroepDr. J.J. Kamp, ABN AMRO BankH. Op den Brouw, Rabobank NederlandJ. Riecke, DZ BANK (nominated)R.Teerlink, ABN AMRO Bank
Equens Board of DirectorsM. Steinbach (Chairman)A. Kuijpers, MBT (Deputy Chairman)Dr. G. MllerJ. Sonneveld