Plus500 Regulatory News (PLUS)

25 March 2021

Plus500 Ltd.

("Plus500", "the Company" or together with its subsidiaries "the Group")

Directorate Change

Proposed Appointment of New Chairman

Plus500, a leading technology platform for trading Contracts for Difference ("CFDs") internationally, today announces the proposed appointment of Professor Jacob A. Frenkel as Chairman of its Board of Directors ("the Board"). It is intended that he will succeed Penny Judd as Chairman following the conclusion of the 2021 Annual General Meeting ("AGM") on 4 May 2021, subject to shareholder approval.

Penny Judd, Chair of the Board of Plus500 since April 2017, has notified the Board of her intention not to nominate herself for re-election at the AGM, in order to focus on other business interests and directorships. In her time as Chairman, Penny has overseen a substantial enhancement of the expertise and breadth of the Board, as well as a major diversification of its composition, and has helped to lead continued improvement in the Company's governance approach and practices.

Professor Frenkel is a renowned global economist and business leader, with a track record of over 40 years in global macroeconomics, during which time he has built up significant experience in leading and advising a number of high profile multi-national financial institutions. He was most recently the Chairman of JPMorgan Chase International, between 2009 and 2020. Professor Frenkel also serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Group of Thirty ("G-30"), a private non-profit consultative group on international economic and monetary affairs. He also serves as Chairman of the Board of BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics Inc., since 2020, and has been Chairman of the Board of Governors of Tel Aviv University since 2013.

Prior to these roles, he was Chairman and CEO of the G-30, between 2001 and 2011, Vice Chairman of American International Group, Inc. ("AIG") between 2004 and 2009, and Chairman of Merrill Lynch International, and Chairman of Merrill Lynch's Sovereign Advisory and Global Financial Institutions Groups, between 2000 and 2004. Additionally, Professor Frenkel served for two terms as Governor of the Bank of Israel between 1991 and 2000.

Professor Frenkel was previously the Economic Counsellor and Director of Research at the International Monetary Fund, having been on the faculty of the University of Chicago, where he held the position of the David Rockefeller Professor of International Economics and served as Editor of the Journal of Political Economy. Professor Frenkel holds a B.A. in economics and political science from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago.

David Zruia, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"I am honoured to welcome Professor Jacob Frenkel as the Company's proposed new Chairman. He has substantial and wide-ranging corporate and regulatory experience, with a distinguished career working in high profile leadership roles for several major international financial services organisations. Professor Frenkel's significant experience and knowledge of the financial services sector will be a huge asset for Plus500, as we enter a new phase of development, evolving into a multi-asset fintech group over time. With Professor Frenkel as our proposed new Chairman, I believe we are very well placed to access a number of major growth opportunities in the future, thereby delivering value for Plus500 and our shareholders over the coming years. 

"I would also like to take this opportunity, both personally and on behalf of the Board, to wish Penny Judd all the best for the future. Penny has helped to lead continued improvement in our governance approach and practices. Her guidance, support and advice will be greatly missed."

Professor Jacob A. Frenkel, Chairman-elect of Plus500, commented:

"I am proud and honoured to have the opportunity to become the proposed Chairman of Plus500 at such an exciting time. The Company has a strong and agile technology platform and a compelling vision to enable simplified, universal access to financial markets, as Plus500 evolves to become a multi-asset fintech group over time, by expanding into new markets and launching new products.

"I am looking forward to joining and leading the Company's strong and diverse Board, with a view to ensuring that the business continues to deliver value for its stakeholders in the future."

Penny Judd, Chairman of Plus500, commented:

"I have been honoured to serve Plus500 as a Non-executive Director since 2016 and as Chair since 2017. During this time the Company has successfully navigated a period of significant and challenging regulatory change and has moved from AIM to become a constituent of the FTSE250 with a premium listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange.

"With a strong governance framework and a newly enhanced Board, Plus500 delivered record results for FY 2020 in unprecedented markets and is strongly positioned to execute its recently announced new strategy and I look forward to following the Company's further success in the future."

The Company confirms that there is no further information to be disclosed pursuant to paragraph LR 9.6.13R of the Listing Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority with regard to this appointment.

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.

About Plus500

Plus500 operates a proprietary technology platform for individual customers to trade CFDs internationally. The Group offers more than 2,500 different underlying global financial instruments, comprising equities, indices, commodities, options, ETFs, foreign exchange and cryptocurrencies. Customers of Plus500 can trade CFDs in more than 50 countries and in 32 languages. The trading platform is accessible from multiple operating systems (Windows, iOS, Android and Surface) and web browsers. Plus500 retains operating licences and is regulated in the United Kingdom, Australia, Cyprus, Israel, New Zealand, South Africa, Singapore and the Seychelles. Customer care is and always been integral to Plus500, as such, customers cannot be subject to negative balances. A free demo account is available on an unlimited basis for platform users and sophisticated risk management tools are provided free of charge to manage leveraged exposure, and stop losses to help customers protect profits, while limiting capital losses. Plus500 does not utilise cold calling techniques and does not offer binary options. Plus500 shares have a premium listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange (symbol: PLUS) and are a constituent of the FTSE 250 index. www.plus500.com.