On October 27, ATM, the Portuguese Investors Association and member of BETTER FINANCE, filed two class actions in the Administrative Court of Lisbon in defense of small shareholders and holders of subordinated bonds of Banco Espirito Santo, aggrieved by the decisions taken by the Portuguese State that determined the creation of the New Bank with assets held by BES.
Share- and bondholders were thus deprived of the value of such assets that had not even been assessed nor quantified.
Both class actions involve about 350 shareholders from different countries who jointly hold several million shares and subordinated bonds.
The two class actions respectively concern the Bank of Portugal and the New Bank on the one hand and the State and the Bank of Portugal on the other, and reflect the principles set out in the petition promoted by ATM which gathered about 5,000 signatures and was delivered and received in the Portuguese Parliament, having already been assessed by the Parliamentary Committee.
It is important to note that it is still possible to join these initiatives. Interested persons are invited to subscribe for free to the petition pending in the Portuguese Parliament here and join the class actions already legally filed.
To this end, one should send a proxy (according to instructions in the template) with proof of ownership of BES’ shares and/or subordinated bonds - also accompanied by proof of payment of a contribution of 30 euros to all administrative costs and a letter accepting that financial compensation is rewarded to the attorneys (only) in case the class action is successful. This information is to be sent to the following email address carmo.araujo.pereira(at)gmail.com.
For more information, please read ATM’s press release (in Portuguese). Do not hesitate to contact the BETTER FINANCE office if any questions arise.