Methodology change | Solactive Battery Value-Chain Index | Effective Date 15 November 2021

Today, on the 11.11.2021 Solactive announces the following changes to the methodology of the following index (the ‘Affected Index’):

Rationale for methodology change

The Affected Index aims to track the performance of a basket of stocks of companies that are providers of certain electrochemical energy storage technology (i.e., battery technology) and mining companies that produce metals that are primarily used for manufacturing batteries. Solactive has determined that the current mechanism of the Index Universe may lead to an inclusion of companies as an index component that no longer qualify as eligible for inclusion. Hence, the companies that no longer fulfill the Strategy of the Affected Index as a result of the occurrence of a spin-off or an extraordinary event that occurred since the most recent Selection Day  shall be excluded from the Affected Index. With this change the more accurate sector representation will be reflected in the Affected Index.

The change is reflected in the description of the Index Universe in Section 2.1 and Selection of the Index Components in Section 2.2 of the index Guideline of the Affected Index. Other changes will bemade in order to reflect the updated guideline format structure.

Changes to the Index Guideline

As a result of update of the index guideline to a new format, the following changes will be made:

• Section 1 will be restructured
• Section 1.10 Index Universe will be shifted to Section 2.1 Index Universe Requirements
• Section 1.6 Index Committee will be shifted to Section 5.5 Oversight.
• Section 2 Composition of the Index was divided into Section 2 Index Selection and Section 3 Rebalance.
• Section 3.4 Dividends and other Distributions, Section 3.5 Corporate Actions and Section 3.8 Consequences of an Extraordinary Event will be merged and shifted to Section 4.4 Corporate Actions.
• Section 5 will be added

Clarifications to definitions:

• Index Committee will be renamed to Oversight Committee.
• Calculation Agent will be renamed to Index Administrator.
• A clear note on Solactive’s role as administrator under the Benchmark Regulation will be included.
• The correct legal name of Boerse Stuttgart will be updated.

The wording in Section 2.1 of the index guideline will be replaced by the following wording:

“On each Selection Day that occurs in the month of May, the Index Universe shall be determined by the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR as described below. On each Selection Day that occurs in the month of November, the Index Universe shall remain unchanged from the Index Universe determined on the immediately preceding SELECTION DAY unless the companies that were included in the INDEX UNIVERSE no longer qualify as eligible as a result of the occurrence of a spin-off or an extraordinary event. Such companies are excluded from the Index Universe in November if they no longer fulfill the Strategy of the Index outlined in Section 1.1.”

The wording in Section 2.2 of the index guideline will be replaced by the following wording:

“On each Selection Day that occurs in the month of May, the Index Universe shall be determined by the INDEX ADMINISTRATOR as described below. On each Selection Day that occurs in the month of November, the Index Universe shall remain unchanged from the Index Universe determined on the immediately preceding SELECTION DAY unless the companies that were included in the INDEX UNIVERSE no longer qualify as eligible as a result of the occurrence of a spin-off or an extraordinary event. Such companies are excluded from the Index Universe in November if they no longer fulfill the Strategy of the Index outlined in Section 1.1.”

Defined terms used in this announcement, but not defined herein, have the meaning assigned to them in the respective index guideline of the Affected Indices.