Document:

Exhibit

Exhibit 10.1

EXECUTION VERSION

TRANSACTION AGREEMENT

between

OSLO BØRS VPS HOLDING ASA

and

NASDAQ AB

	
		
	Contents

	Clause
	Page

		
	1.
	Definitions    1

		
	2.
	The Offer    4

		
	3.
	Board recommendation; Matching Right    5

		
	4.
	Announcement    8

		
	5.
	Oslo Børs VPS’ covenants    8

		
	6.
	Offeror’s covenants    13

		
	7.
	Joint covenants    13

		
	8.
	Representations and warranties    15

		
	9.
	Termination    16

		
	10.
	Miscellaneous    17

TRANSACTION AGREEMENT

This agreement (the Agreement) is entered into on _29January 2019 between

		
	(1)
	Oslo Børs VPS Holding ASA, a public limited liability company (Nw.:allmennaksjeselskap) incorporated under the laws of Norway with registered number 983 268 617, having its registered business address at Tollbugata 2, 0152 Oslo, Norway (Oslo Børs VPS); and

		
	(2)
	NASDAQ AB, a private limited company incorporated under the laws of Sweden with registered number 556243-8001, having its registered business address at Tullvaktsvägen 15, 105 78 Stockholm, Sweden (the Offeror).

The Target and the Offeror are jointly referred to as the Parties and individually as a Party. WHEREAS
		
	(A)
	Following the announcement on 24 December 2018 by Euronext N.V. (Euronext) of its intention to launch a voluntary public offer for all of the shares in Oslo Børs VPS (the Oslo Børs VPS Shares), Oslo Børs VPS and the Offeror have conducted discussions regarding a possible combination of their businesses in order to create additional value for the Oslo Børs VPS shareholders and other stakeholders.

		
	(B)
	Following such discussions, the Offeror has agreed to make a recommended voluntary tender offer for the Oslo Børs VPS Shares, on the terms and conditions set out in this Agreement (the Offer).

		
	(C)
	This Agreement sets out, among other things, the Parties’ agreement on the final terms and conditions upon which the Offeror will make the Offer, the form of recommendation of the Offer by the Oslo Børs VPS board of directors (the Oslo Børs VPS Board), and the form and contents of the announcement of the Offer.

		
	(D)
	The Offeror has entered into irrevocable pre-acceptances with certain of Oslo Børs VPS’ major shareholders, in aggregate representing 35.11% of the Oslo Børs VPS Shares.

		
	(E)
	On 14 January 2019, Euronext published an offer document for its all-cash tender offer to acquire the Oslo Børs VPS Shares at a price of NOK 145 per share (the Euronext Offer).

		
	1.
	Definitions

		
	1.1
	Affiliate shall mean, with reference to a specified Person, a Person that, directly or indirectly, controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with, the specified Person. The term «control” as used in this definition (including its correlative meanings “controlled by” and “under common control with”) shall mean the ability, directly or indirectly, to direct the management or policies of another body corporate, whether through ownership of voting rights or otherwise.

		
	1.2
	Applicable Law shall mean all foreign, federal, state, local, municipal or other laws, ordinances, regulations, rules and other provisions having the force or effect of law, applicable to the Parties, their Affiliates or their respective businesses (which for the avoidance of doubt shall include the rules of any listing authority or stock exchange on which the securities of a Party or any Affiliate of a Party are listed (and which for Oslo Børs VPS shall include the rules applicable to N-OTC listed companies)).

		
	1.3
	Board Recommendation has the meaning given to it in clause 3.1.1.

		
	1.4
	Business Day shall mean a day other than a Saturday or Sunday on which banks are open for general business in Oslo, Norway and New York, the United States of America.

		
	1.5
	Clearances shall mean the permits, consents, approvals and actions referred to in item (c) of the Closing Conditions.

		
	1.6
	Closing Conditions has the meaning given in clause 2.3.1.

		
	1.7
	Competing Offer means any agreement, offer or proposal for, or any indication of interest in, any acquisition of (i) more than 1/3 of the Oslo Børs VPS Shares, (ii) more than 1/3 of the Group’s total assets based on the latest approved annual accounts, or (iii) any assets representing more than 1/3 of the Group’s revenue, earnings before interests, taxes, depreciation and amortization or net income, on an annual basis based on the latest approved annual accounts, whichever is lower, whether by way of a merger, consolidation, asset sale, purchase of shares, tender offer or other business combination or otherwise, other than any offer, proposal or indication of interest made by or on behalf of the Offeror.

		
	1.8
	Contract shall mean any contract, subcontract, note, bond, mortgage, indenture, lease, license, sublicense, guaranty, security agreement, franchise or other legally binding instrument, commitment or obligation, whether oral or in writing.

		
	1.9
	Euronext has the meaning given to in Recital (A).

		
	1.10
	Euronext Offer has the meaning given to it in Recital (E).

		
	1.11
	Euronext Representative means Euronext and each of its Affiliates and each of its and their respective directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives and advisors.

		
	1.12
	Group shall mean Oslo Børs VPS and its subsidiaries.

		
	1.13
	Higher Priced Offer shall mean a written offer that constitutes a Competing Offer (provided that, for purposes of this definition, each instance of “1/3” in the definition of Competing Offer shall be read as “1/2”) that the Oslo Børs VPS Board has determined, in good faith and after consulting with its financial advisors and outside counsel, to satisfy each of the following conditions:

		
	(a)
	that such Competing Offer is more favourable, from a financial point of view, to the holders of Oslo Børs VPS' Shares than the Offer (including any adjustment to the terms and conditions of the Offer proposed by the Offeror in accordance with this Agreement);

		
	(b)
	that such Competing Offer is reasonably capable of being completed in accordance with its terms without undue delay, taking into account all legal, financial, regulatory and other aspects (including but not limited to any financing condition) of such Competing Offer and the party making such Competing Offer; and

		
	(c)
	that such Competing Offer did not result from a breach of clause 3.3.

		
	1.14
	Inside Information shall have the meaning ascribed to such term in section 3-2 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

		
	1.15
	Interim Period shall mean the period from the date of this Agreement until the earlier of

(i)the termination of this Agreement, (ii) the lapse or withdrawal of the Offer, or (iii) completion of the Offer.

		
	1.16
	Joint Announcement has the meaning given in clause 4.1.1.

		
	1.17
	Long Stop Date means 31 December 2019 or such later date as is mutually agreed in writing between Oslo Børs VPS and the Offeror.

		
	1.18
	Main Terms and Conditions has the meaning given in clause 2.1.

		
	1.19
	Matching Offer has the meaning given in clause 3.2.2.

		
	1.20
	Matching Period has the meaning given in clause 3.1.2.

		
	1.21
	Material Adverse Change means any fact, circumstance, development, event, change or effect, individually or in aggregate, that is, or is reasonably likely to be, materially adverse to the business, assets, operations, condition (financial or otherwise), assets, or result of operations of the Group taken as a whole, but excluding any fact, circumstance, development, event, change or effect resulting from (i) the announcement of the Offer and the identity of the Offeror as the prospective acquirer of the Group, or any communication by or on behalf of the Offeror regarding the Offeror’s plans or intentions with respect to the Group; (ii) general economic, regulatory or political conditions, or (iii) changes in conditions generally affecting the industries in which the  Group operates, in the case of (ii) and (iii) except to the extent such fact, circumstance, development, event, change or effect disproportionately affects the Group when taken as a whole.

		
	1.22
	Offer has the meaning given in Recital (B).

		
	1.23
	Offer Price shall mean NOK 152 per Oslo Børs VPS Share, subject to adjustment in accordance with this Agreement and the terms and conditions of the Offer.

		
	1.24
	Offeror Representatives means the Offeror and each of its Affiliates and each of its and their respective directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives and advisors.

		
	1.25
	Oslo Børs VPS Board has the meaning given in Recital (C).

		
	1.26
	Oslo Børs VPS Representatives has the meaning given in clause 3.3.1.

		
	1.27
	Oslo Børs VPS Shares has the meaning given in Recital (A).

		
	1.28
	Permitted Statement has the meaning given in clause 3.1.2.

		
	1.29
	Person shall mean an individual, a corporation, a partnership, a limited liability company or partnership, a trust, an unincorporated organization, a government or any department or agency thereof, or any other juridical entity.

		
	1.30
	Relevant Authority shall mean any (a) nation, principality, state, commonwealth, province, territory, county, municipality, district or other jurisdiction of any nature; (b) federal, state, local, municipal, foreign or other government (including any subdivision, court, administrative agency or commission or other authority thereof); (c) central bank, ministry, governmental, quasi-governmental (including the European Union), supranational, statutory, regulatory or investigative body or authority (including any national or supranational anti-trust or merger authority) (d) individual, entity or body exercising, or entitled to exercise, any executive, legislative, judicial, administrative, regulatory, police, military or taxing or arbitral authority or power of any nature; or (e) trade agency, association, institution or professional or environmental body in any jurisdiction.

		
	2.
	The Offer

		
	2.1
	Terms and conditions of the Offer

The Offeror will make the Offer on the main terms and conditions set out in this Agreement and in appendix 1 (the Main Terms and Conditions).

		
	2.2
	Offer document

		
	2.2.1
	The Offeror will prepare an offer document for the Offer substantially in accordance with Chapter 6 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act (the Offer Document), setting out the terms and conditions of the Offer. The Offer Document shall include the Main Terms and Conditions.

		
	2.2.2
	Oslo Børs VPS shall have the right to review and comment upon the draft Offer Document prior to its publication but shall not have any right or obligation to approve or authorise the contents of the Offer Document, except for the statement of the Oslo Børs VPS Board.

		
	2.2.3
	The Offeror shall use its commercially reasonable efforts to ensure that the Offer Document is finalised in time for the acceptance period in the Offer to commence no later than on 28 February 2019. Oslo Børs VPS shall provide the Offeror and its advisers with such assistance, including access to, and procuring the provision of assistance by, relevant professional advisors, and information concerning the business, assets, contracts, properties, liabilities, personnel and other aspects of the Group as they may reasonably request in order to enable the Offeror to finalise the Offer Document and make the Offer in accordance with this Agreement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Offeror acknowledges and accepts that due diligence will be permitted only when the Offeror has obtained the Clearances.

		
	2.2.4
	Oslo Børs VPS undertakes that the information supplied by Oslo Børs VPS or its representatives for the purposes of preparing the Offer Document will be in accordance with the facts in all material respects and will not omit any material information likely to affect the import of such information.

		
	2.3
	Closing Conditions

		
	2.3.1
	The completion of the Offer shall be subject to the “Conditions for completion of the Offer” set out in appendix 1 (the Closing Conditions), each one of which may be waived by the Offeror in its sole discretion.

		
	2.3.2
	If the Offeror has not publicly announced that the Closing Conditions are satisfied or waived by the Offeror on or before the Long Stop Date the Offer will lapse.

		
	2.4
	Compulsory acquisition

		
	2.4.1
	As soon as practicable after the completion of the Offer, assuming that the Closing Conditions shall have been either satisfied or waived and the Offeror has acquired at least 90% of the Oslo Børs VPS Shares, the Offeror shall complete a compulsory acquisition of  the remaining Oslo Børs VPS Shares in accordance with clause 4-25 of the Norwegian Public Limited Companies Act.

		
	3.
	Board recommendation; Matching Right

		
	3.1
	Oslo Børs VPS Board recommendation

		
	3.1.1
	The Oslo Børs VPS Board undertakes to announce the unanimous recommendation of the Offer in the form attached as appendix 2 (the Board Recommendation). The Board Recommendation shall be included as an attachment to the Offer Document. If Oslo Børs VPS requires that an additional statement on behalf of Oslo Børs VPS is made by an independent third party, any such statement shall not entitle the Oslo Børs VPS Board to withdraw or modify the Board Recommendation.

		
	3.1.2
	The Board Recommendation shall, when issued, not be withdrawn, modified or amended by the Oslo Børs VPS Board, provided however that if:

		
	(a)
	a Competing Offer is made and is not withdrawn;

		
	(b)
	Oslo Børs VPS provides the Offeror with written notice of the Competing Offer in accordance with clause 3.3.6 below;

		
	(c)
	the Oslo Børs VPS Board determines that such Competing Offer constitutes a Higher Priced Offer and the Offeror is immediately notified in writing of such decision;

		
	(d)
	the Offeror is provided with the opportunity to announce a Matching Offer (as defined below) during a period of five Business Days commencing when the Offeror is given notice and information as set out under c) above (the “Matching Period”); and

		
	(e)
	the Offeror does not announce a Matching Offer in accordance with clause 3.2 by the end of the Matching Period,

then any public statement it may make with respect to the Higher Priced Offer shall comply with the following requirements (the Permitted Statement): the Oslo Børs VPS Board may only acknowledge that the Higher Priced Offer is more favourable from a purely financial point of view than the Offer and that Oslo Børs VPS shareholders whose focus is on the financial perspective will prefer the Higher Priced Offer but shall (i) reiterate and maintain unaltered all statements from the Board Recommendation regarding the Offeror as the preferred owner of Oslo Børs VPS from an industrial/strategic perspective; (ii) advise Oslo Børs VPS shareholders that the Offer would be more likely than the Higher Priced Offer to promote the long term success of the Group having regard to the strategic interests of capital market participants based in Norway and elsewhere in the Nordic region and (iii) reiterate the fact that Oslo Børs VPS shareholders holding in excess of 35.11% of Oslo Børs VPS Shares, including customers of Oslo Børs VPS, have irrevocably undertaken to accept the Offer.

		
	3.1.3
	Oslo Børs VPS undertakes not to enter into any agreement in relation to, or make or  permit the making of, any announcement or other public statement (unless required by Applicable Law) in respect of any Competing Offer unless the Matching Period has expired and the Offeror has not announced a Matching Offer, in which case any announcement or other public statement which Oslo Børs VPS makes or permits 

to be made in respect of such Competing Offer shall not be inconsistent in any respect with the Permitted Statement.

		
	3.2
	Right to match

		
	3.2.1
	In case of a Higher Priced Offer the Oslo Børs VPS Board shall permit the Offeror to amend the Offer during the Matching Period.

		
	3.2.2
	If the Offeror prior to expiry of the Matching Period amends its Offer so that the amended Offer Price is as high as the offer price in the Higher Priced Offer and otherwise on terms not significantly less favourable than the terms of the Offer on the date of this Agreement (a Matching Offer), then the Oslo Børs VPS Board shall issue a statement whereby the Oslo Børs VPS Board maintains its recommendation of the Offer (as amended). In such event, the provisions of this Agreement shall to the extent applicable, apply to such Matching Offer.

		
	3.2.3
	If the Offeror does not amend its offer within the Matching Period, or if the amended  Offer is not a Matching Offer, then subsequent to the expiry of the Matching Period, Oslo Børs VPS may make a statement with respect to the Higher Priced Offer in accordance  with the provisions of clause 3.1.2. For the avoidance of doubt, in such circumstances, Oslo Børs VPS shall not make, or permit to be made, any announcement or other public statement in respect of a Higher Priced Offer which is inconsistent in any respect with the Permitted Statement.

		
	3.3
	Non-solicitation

		
	3.3.1
	Oslo Børs VPS undertakes to the Offeror that, with effect from the entry into this Agreement, Oslo Børs VPS and its Affiliates and their respective directors, officers, key employees, agents, representatives and advisors (collectively Oslo Børs VPS Representatives) shall terminate immediately any discussions or negotiations with any person which could reasonably be expected to result in any Competing Offer being announced or made.

		
	3.3.2
	Subject to clause 3.3.5, Oslo Børs VPS shall also discontinue access to any of its confidential information (and not establish or allow access to any of its confidential information, or any data room, virtual or otherwise).

		
	3.3.3
	Subject to clause 3.3.5, until the earlier of the date on which (i) the Offer is completed and (ii) the Offer lapses, Oslo Børs VPS shall not, and shall procure that no Oslo Børs VPS Representative shall, directly or indirectly, (i) solicit, seek, encourage, assist or initiate the making of any inquiries, expressions of interest, proposals, offers or announcement from any Person (including, without limitation, brokerage firms, corporate advisors and/or other advisors), relating to any possible Competing Offer; (ii) furnish any information regarding the Group or its businesses and Affiliates to any Person in connection with or in response to a Competing Offer, or an inquiry or indication of interest that could  reasonably be expected to lead to a Competing Offer; (iii) engage or participate in discussions or negotiations with any Person with respect to any Competing Offer; (iv) approve, endorse or recommend any Competing Offer; or (v) enter into any letter of intent, agreement, commitment, understanding or transaction with any entity or Person relating to any transaction which is a Competing Offer.

		
	3.3.4
	Without prejudice to the generality of clause 3.3.3, until the earlier of the date on which

(a)    the Offer is completed and (b) the Offer lapses, Oslo Børs VPS shall not, and shall procure that none of the Oslo Børs VPS Representatives, directly or indirectly, (i) furnish any information regarding itself or its businesses and Affiliates to any Euronext Representative with respect to the Euronext Offer; (ii) unless required by Applicable Law, engage in discussions or negotiations with any Euronext Representative with respect to the Euronext Offer; (iii) approve, endorse or recommend the Euronext 

Offer; or (iv) enter into any letter of intent, agreement, commitment, understanding or transaction with any Euronext Representative or any other Person with respect to the Euronext Offer.

		
	3.3.5
	Notwithstanding the restrictions in clauses 3.3.2, 3.3.3 and 3.3.4, if Oslo Børs VPS subsequent to the date of this Agreement receives an unsolicited bona fide written proposal which makes it likely that a potential Competing Offer (which for the avoidance of doubt can be an improved unsolicited offer from Euronext) will be presented, it shall be entitled to enter into discussions and share confidential information with such parties (and enter into a confidentiality agreement for the disclosure of such confidential information on terms that are not more favourable to such parties than the terms of the confidentiality agreement between Oslo Børs VPS and the Offeror (or its Affiliates), but shall not enter into any other agreement or make any other commitment in connection with a Competing Offer unless required by Applicable Law) to the same extent as such information at such point in time has been shared with the Offeror, if and to the extent that (i) the Oslo Børs VPS Board has determined in good faith and after consulting with its financial advisors and outside counsel that such potential Competing Offer is likely to result in a Higher Priced Offer being made within a reasonable time frame; and (ii) that the Oslo Børs VPS Board determines in good faith, after consulting with its outside counsel, that it would breach its fiduciary duties if it did not respond to such potential Competing Offer.

		
	3.3.6
	Subject to Applicable Laws, if Oslo Børs VPS subsequent to the announcement of the Offer receives a Competing Offer, it shall if it has decided to pursue such Competing Offer immediately notify the Offeror in writing of such Competing Offer, the material terms and conditions of any such Competing Offer (including, but not limited to the proposed price) and any subsequent amendment thereof, and the identity of the proposing party, such notice to be given as promptly as practicable and in any event within two Business Days of such decision to proceed, and Oslo Børs VPS shall provide the Offeror with any other reasonably requested information which the Offeror may require in order to evaluate the Competing Offer. If Oslo Børs VPS enters into discussions with a third party in accordance with clause 3.3.5 it shall on a timely basis inform and keep informed the Offeror of all significant developments in such discussions and provide the Offeror with all non-public information furnished to the proposing party which has not been disclosed to the Offeror yet. Oslo Børs VPS shall, subject to Applicable Laws, as soon as possible on a no name basis inform the Offeror of the contemplated announcement of any Competing Offer of which Oslo Børs VPS is made aware. For the avoidance of doubt, notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement and subject only to the requirements of Applicable Law, Oslo Børs VPS shall not make, or permit to be made, any announcement or other public statement in respect of any Competing Offer which is inconsistent in any respect with the Permitted Statement.

		
	3.3.7
	Oslo Børs VPS undertakes to the Offeror that, prior to the Long Stop Date, it shall not agree with any other person or its representatives any break fee, work fee, payment, benefit, incentive, indemnity, contribution for costs or similar arrangement in relation to the evaluation, preparation, submission, completion or termination of any actual or potential Competing Offer.

		
	4.
	Announcement

		
	4.1
	Joint announcement

		
	4.1.1  
	The Parties shall issue a joint press release/stock exchange notice reflecting the terms of  the Offer and the recommendation of the Offer by the Board, in the form set out in appendix 3 (the Joint Announcement) immediately after the execution of this Agreement.

		
	4.2
	No other announcements

		
	4.2.1
	Except as set out clause 4.1, the Parties shall not make any announcements relating to the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, including but not limited to press releases and stock exchange notices relating to the Offer, except with the other Party's prior consent, such consent not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed.

		
	4.2.2
	This clause 4.2 shall not prohibit any public announcement or notice required to be made by any Applicable Law, provided that the Parties shall, to the extent practicable, consult with each other concerning the timing and content of any such announcement before it is made and shall give a copy thereof to the other Party at the same time as, or as soon as reasonably practicable after, the making of such announcement.

		
	4.2.3
	This clause 4.2 shall not prohibit any public announcement or notice, and the Parties shall be entitled to make such announcements as they deem appropriate, in response to any Competing Offer (subject to clause 3) or if the Board Recommendation is withdrawn, amended or modified, subject to, in the case of Oslo Børs VPS, any such announcement or notice not being inconsistent in any respect with the Permitted Statement.

		
	4.2.4
	Subject to clause 3.1.2, Oslo Børs VPS shall not, and shall procure that no Oslo Børs VPS Representative shall, make any statement or express any opinion regarding the Offer which is inconsistent with the Board Recommendation.

		
	5.
	Oslo Børs VPS’ covenants

		
	5.1
	Conduct of business

Subject to any requirements pursuant to Applicable Laws, including the requirement to comply with the Group's permits from Relevant Authorities and related conditions, Oslo Børs VPS undertakes to the Offeror that during the Interim Period:

		
	(a)
	except as contemplated by any other provision of this Agreement, the business of Oslo Børs VPS and the Group shall in all material respects be conducted only in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice or plans that have been publicly disclosed or disclosed in writing to the Offeror prior to the date of this Agreement and in accordance with Applicable Law, it will pay or perform all of its obligations when due and seek to: (i) preserve its present business organisation, (ii) keep available the services of its present officers and key employees, (iii) preserve its present lines of business, and (iv) unless reasonably and in good faith considered by the Oslo Børs VPS Board or management not to be in the best interest of the Group, preserve its present relationships with customers, suppliers and other third parties;

		
	(b)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will incur capital expenditures (i.e. CAPEX according to Group's relevant accounting principles) which exceed NOK 100 million in aggregate;

		
	(c)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will (whether by one transaction or by a series of transactions) undertake any acquisitions or disposals (including, without limitation, by way of sale of shares in a subsidiary or disposals by way of sale, leasing or licensing) with a value in excess of NOK 100 million or which may otherwise be outside the ordinary course in the context of the Group’s business or novate or enter into binding agreements for such acquisitions or disposals, or enter into any form of joint venture, association or partnership, in each case if such joint venture, association or partnership is or would reasonably be expected to be material in the context of the Offer or of the Group taken as a whole;

		
	(d)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will enter into any Contracts (which when used in this clause 5.1(d) for the avoidance of doubt shall not comprise business terms generally applicable) or agree to materially amend any existing Contracts which agreement or amendment individually involve or may involve total annual expenditure, before or after any amendment, in excess of NOK 50 million or which are otherwise outside the ordinary course in the context of the business of the Group;

		
	(e)
	it will use all reasonable endeavours to ensure that neither it nor any of its Affiliates will in any material respect breach any terms of any material Contracts and neither it nor any of its Affiliates shall, except in the ordinary course of the Group's business, novate any of its material Contracts (which for the avoidance of doubt shall not comprise business terms generally applicable);

		
	(f)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will enter into any Contracts which are: (i) not on arm’s length terms or for full value; (ii) not in the ordinary course of business; (iii) on unusual, abnormal or onerous terms; or (iv) with a person who directly or indirectly holds shares in Oslo Børs VPS or members of Oslo Børs VPS’ executive management except, in each case, in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice;

		
	(g)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will make or agree to any material change of the terms of employment or engagement of its directors or of any member of the executive management (other than changes in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and at normal market terms);

		
	(h)
	it will not make any proposal or pass any resolution to (i) amend or propose to amend its articles of association; (ii) allot or issue shares or change its share capital or number of Oslo Børs VPS Shares, (iii) declare or distribute any dividend or make any other distribution to its shareholders other than regular cash dividends in a manner and in amounts consistent with past practice, or (iv) issue any financial instrument giving a right to acquire or subscribe for Oslo Børs VPS Shares;

		
	(i)
	it will not, and will procure that none of its Affiliates will, acquire or sell any treasury shares, except for any treasury shares acquired and/or sold as part of Oslo Børs VPS' existing employee share saving scheme in the ordinary course of business, consistent with past practice, and in an amount not to exceed 100,000 shares;

		
	(j)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will merge, consolidate with or into any other corporation, enter into any reorganisations, corporate restructuring, liquidation, dissolution or change in any manner the rights of its capital stock or the character of its business;

		
	(k)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will acquire (by merger, consolidation or acquisition of stock or assets) any corporation, partnership or other business organization or division thereof or make any equity investments therein (other than equity investments in majority-owned members of the Group);

		
	(l)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will incur any indebtedness from any party that is not a member of the Group for borrowed money, or issue any debt securities, in excess of NOK 100 million;

		
	(m)
	neither it nor any of its Affiliates will repay, accelerate or otherwise materially amend the terms of any indebtedness of any member of the Group from any party that is not a member of the Group otherwise than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice;

		
	(n)
	it will not adopt, materially amend or withdraw any employee benefit, bonus, profit sharing or equity incentive program;

		
	(o)
	it will in connection with the Offer, the Euronext Offer or any Competing Offer not agree, incur or pay any fees, bonuses, consulting fees, advisory fees, monitoring fees, services fees or directors fees, other than to Oslo Børs VPS’ currently retained advisors in connection with the Offer and the Euronext Offer;

		
	(p)
	except as disclosed to the Offeror in writing prior to the date of this Agreement, it will not change any member of its executive management, nor implement any lay- offs or new general hires, that is outside the ordinary course or material in the context of the Offer, provided, however, that Oslo Børs VPS shall not be in breach of this clause 5.1(p) in the event of any member of Oslo Børs VPS's executive management voluntarily resigning from his/her position and Oslo Børs VPS, after such resignation, hiring a new member of the executive management;

		
	(q)
	it shall give prompt written notice to the Offeror of any Material Adverse Change;

		
	(r)
	it will not, subject as otherwise envisaged or permitted in this Agreement, take any action which it knows would or might reasonably be expected to be prejudicial to the successful completion of the Offer or which would or might reasonably be expected to have the effect of preventing any of the conditions to the Offer from being fulfilled or resulting in a delay to the expected timetable for the completion of the Offer, including not entering into any other transaction comprised by Section 6-17 (1) of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act;

		
	(s)
	it will refrain from announcing, agreeing or committing to do anything in breach of the matters referred to in items (a) to (r) above,

in each case except with the prior written consent of the Offeror, such consent not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed (and if no response is given within five Business Days of receiving written notice from Oslo Børs VPS with sufficient details for the Offeror to conclude on the matter, such consent shall be deemed to have been given).

		
	5.2
	Duty to inform

Oslo Børs VPS shall promptly, to the extent not prohibited by Applicable Law, notify the Offeror if it becomes aware that any fact, circumstance, act, matter or thing that is inconsistent with its obligations under clause 5.1 that has occurred or if it becomes aware of any matter that may cause any of the Closing Conditions not to be capable of satisfaction.

		
	5.3
	Call for extraordinary general meeting

Following an announcement by the Offeror that all of the Closing Conditions have been satisfied or waived by the Offeror, Oslo Børs VPS shall as soon as possible upon request from the Offeror, but no later than four Business Days after the request from the Offeror, convene a general meeting of Oslo Børs VPS to be held on a date following completion of the Offer as determined by the Offeror, subject to applicable advance notice rules, for the purpose of electing new members of the Oslo Børs VPS Board nominated by the Offeror.

		
	5.4
	Release of inside information

No later than simultaneously with the release of the Joint Announcement, Oslo Børs VPS shall upon specific request by the Offeror in respect of the information to be disclosed take all reasonable actions to ensure that the Offeror is released from any trading or disclosure restrictions that may have been caused by the disclosure by Oslo Børs VPS to the Offeror or its Affiliates of any information that constitutes Inside Information in respect of Oslo Børs VPS or securities issued by Oslo Børs VPS, including by, if and to the extent necessary, disclosure of all such information to the market. Subsequent to the date of the release of the Joint Announcement, Oslo Børs VPS shall publicly disclose any Inside Information made available to the Offeror or its Affiliates by or on behalf of Oslo Børs VPS as soon as reasonably practicable until the completion of the Offer, unless such Inside Information is made subject to delayed disclosure by Oslo Børs VPS pursuant to the continuing obligations for N-OTC listed companies.

		
	5.5
	Information and Employees

Without limiting clause 7, with effect from receipt of the Clearances by the Offeror , Oslo Børs shall:

		
	a)
	co-operate with the Offeror and its Affiliates and their respective directors, officers, employees, advisers, agents and representatives and afford them, upon reasonable notice, access to the properties, books and management, advisers and representatives of the Group for the purposes of the Offer and to facilitate business integration planning, and shall furnish to them such information in relation to the operation, trading, tax affairs and strategy of the business of the Group as they may from time to time reasonably request, subject always to any requirement of Applicable Law restricting the same; and

		
	b)
	provide the Offeror with access to identified key employees to allow it to discuss and agree incentive packages. Oslo Børs VPS shall be given the opportunity to participate in any such meeting. Oslo Børs VPS agrees that it will assist wherever possible to encourage key employees to remain with Oslo Børs VPS.

		
	5.6
	Third party consents

Oslo Børs VPS shall upon the request from the Offeror make reasonable efforts to seek to obtain such consents of clients, customers and other third parties as are  necessary to avoid termination or variation of any Contract which is material to the Group (including financing agreements) as a consequence of the Offer, provided, however that the Offeror shall have no claim against Oslo Børs VPS in case Oslo Børs VPS is unable to obtain such consents and completion of the Offer is not conditional upon such consents being obtained.

		
	6.
	Offeror’s covenants

		
	6.1
	If the Offeror in the period until the later of 31 December 2019 and six months from completion of the Offer acquires Oslo Børs VPS Shares or rights to acquire Oslo Børs VPS Shares (in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions or otherwise) at a price which is higher than the Offer Price, then the Offeror will increase the Offer Price to be at least equal to such higher consideration and Oslo Børs VPS shareholders tendering in the Offer will be entitled to receive such higher consideration. Any non-cash element in such higher consideration shall be valued and converted into cash based on fair market value for the purpose of determining the increase of the Offer Price.

		
	6.2
	If the Offeror in the period until the later of 31 December 2019 and six months from completion of the Offer should sell or enter into an agreement to sell Oslo Børs VPS Shares acquired in the Offer to any third party at a consideration higher than the Offer Price, then the Offeror shall distribute any net profit from such sale to the Oslo Børs VPS shareholders tendering in the Offer on a pro rata basis.

		
	6.3
	If the Offeror, prior to expiry of the acceptance period for the Offer, pays or agrees to pay a higher price than the Offer Price for any Oslo Børs VPS Share or the terms of the Offer are otherwise amended or improved, the Offer shall be deemed to have been amended with an offer price equivalent to the higher payment or price or otherwise with the amended or improved terms, as applicable. In such event, any acceptances of the Offer already made shall be deemed an acceptance of the Offer as revised. In such event, the acceptance period for the Offer shall be extended so that at least two weeks remain to its expiry, and any acceptances of the Offer already made shall be deemed an acceptance of the Offer as revised.

		
	6.4
	If (i) the condition for the completion of the Offer set out in paragraph (a) of appendix 1 has not been satisfied or waived prior to the expiry of the offer period for the Offer and

(ii)the Euronext Offer (as revised if applicable) is withdrawn after the expiry of the offer period for the Offer but prior to the Long Stop Date, the Offeror undertakes to reopen the offer period for the Offer or by other adequate means permit the Oslo Børs VPS shareholders to accept the Offer in order to satisfy such condition.

		
	7.
	Joint covenants

		
	7.1
	General

The Parties undertake to cooperate for the purpose of completing the Offer and the acquisition of control of Oslo Børs VPS by the Offeror as described in this Agreement.

		
	7.2
	Clearances

		
	7.2.1
	The Offeror shall diligently pursue the Clearances with a view to obtaining these as soon as is reasonably practicable and, in any event, by the Long Stop Date and Oslo Børs VPS shall provide information, assistance and access as further set out in this section 7.2 to assist the Offeror to achieve this.

		
	7.2.2
	Subject to Applicable law, the Offeror and Oslo Børs VPS shall cooperate with each other and provide each other with all reasonable information, assistance and access in a timely manner in order to allow the Offeror, or the Offeror and Oslo Børs VPS jointly, as may be required, to make any filings with the Relevant Authorities as are necessary in connection with the Clearances, taking into account all applicable waiting periods and/or deadlines and ensure that all information necessary for the making of (or responding to any requests for further information consequent upon) any such filings (including draft versions) is supplied accurately and promptly, provided that the co-operation will be conducted in a manner reasonably designed to preserve applicable lawyer/client and lawyer work product privileges and to limit the exchange of any competitively sensitive information to outside counsel or pursuant to an appropriately established clean team arrangement.

		
	7.2.3
	The Offeror and its Affiliates shall be responsible for determining the strategy for obtaining the Clearances and (except where Oslo Børs VPS is required by Applicable Law to do so) contacting and corresponding with the Relevant Authorities in relation to such Clearances.

		
	7.2.4
	Without prejudice to the foregoing, and except to the extent that to do so is prohibited by Applicable Law:

		
	(a)
	The Offeror will submit the notices and applications to obtain the required Clearances for completion of the Offer, including the application to the Norwegian FSA and Norwegian Ministry of Finance (as applicable) as soon as is reasonably practicable after the signing of this Agreement and in any case the Offeror shall commence discussions with the Relevant Authorities with respect to the Clearances within 20 Business Days from the date of this Agreement, provided that the Offeror's obligations under this clause 7.2.4(a) are subject to the provision by Oslo Børs VPS on a timely basis of the cooperation, information, assistance and access contemplated by clause 7.2.2;

		
	(b)
	The Offeror and Oslo Børs VPS shall co-operate in the preparation of all such filings referred to in this clause 7.2 and in relation to the preparation of any other submissions, material correspondence or material communications to any Relevant Authority in connection with the Clearances;

		
	(c)
	to the extent reasonably practicable each Party shall provide, or procure the provision of, draft copies of all filings, submissions, material correspondence and material communications intended to be sent to any Relevant Authority in relation to obtaining any Clearances to the other Party and its legal advisers at such time as will allow the receiving Party a reasonable opportunity to provide comments on such filings, submissions, correspondence and communications before they  are submitted, sent or made and each Party shall provide the other Party with copies of all such filings, submissions, material correspondence and material communications in the form finally submitted or sent (including, in the case of non-written communications, reasonably detailed summaries of material non-written communications);

		
	(d)
	each Party shall have regard in good faith to comments made in a timely manner by the other Party on draft copies of filings, submissions, material correspondence and material communications provided pursuant to item (c) above;

		
	(e)
	the Offeror and Oslo Børs VPS shall notify each other, and provide copies (including, in the case of non-written communications, reasonably detailed summaries of material non-written communications), in a timely manner of any material communication or material correspondence from any Relevant Authority in relation to obtaining any Clearance. Each Party further agrees to keep the other Party reasonably informed as to the progress of any notification submitted pursuant to item (a) above and shall reasonably consider requests by the other Party or its advisers to attend all meetings or material calls with any Relevant Authority or  other persons or bodies (unless prohibited by the Relevant Authority, Applicable Law or other person or body or where commercially sensitive information is likely to be discussed at such meetings or on such calls) relating to obtaining any Clearance and requests to make oral submissions at such meetings or calls; and

		
	(f)
	where reasonably requested by a Party, and insofar as permitted by the Relevant Authority, the other Party shall make available appropriate representatives for meetings and calls with any Relevant Authority in connection with the obtaining of any Clearances,

provided that in respect of any information the circulation of which would adversely affect the relevant Party’s legitimate business interests, items (a) to (f) above shall only require the disclosing Party to provide, or procure the provision of, non-confidential versions of such information to the other Party and in respect of any competitively sensitive information, to provide such information on an outside counsel basis only or pursuant to an appropriately established clean team arrangement.

		
	7.2.5
	Each Party undertakes to keep the other informed promptly of (i) developments which are material or reasonably likely to be material to the obtaining of a Clearance and (ii) the attainment of a Clearance.

		
	8.
	Representations and warranties

		
	8.1
	Representations and warranties by Oslo Børs VPS

Oslo Børs VPS hereby represents and warrants as of the date of this Agreement to the Offeror as follows:

		
	8.1.1
	Organisation and good standing

		
	(a)
	Oslo Børs VPS is a corporation duly organized and validly existing under the laws of Norway, and has the requisite corporate power and authority to conduct its business as it is presently being conducted and to own, lease or operate its properties and assets; and

		
	(b)
	Oslo Børs VPS is not in violation of its certificate of incorporation or bylaws.

		
	(c)
	The share capital of Oslo Børs VPS is NOK 86,008,000.- divided on 43,004,000 shares, each with a nominal value of NOK 2.00. Oslo Børs VPS has not issued to any of its employees, directors or any third party any options, warrants or rights to subscribe for and/or to acquire shares in Oslo Børs VPS other than pursuant to the existing share saving scheme for employees.

		
	(d)
	No Material Adverse Change has occurred during the period from December 31, 2017 to the date of this Agreement.

		
	8.1.2
	Corporate power and enforceability

		
	(a)
	Oslo Børs VPS has the requisite corporate power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement, to perform its covenants and obligations hereunder and consummate the transactions contemplated hereby (provided however, that the shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS will decide whether to accept the Offer in respect of their Oslo Børs VPS Shares). The execution and delivery by Oslo Børs VPS of this Agreement, the performance by Oslo Børs VPS of its covenants and obligations hereunder and the consummation by Oslo Børs VPS of the transactions contemplated hereby have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate action on the part of Oslo Børs VPS, and no additional corporate proceedings on the part of Oslo Børs VPS are necessary to authorize the execution and delivery by Oslo Børs VPS of this Agreement, the performance by Oslo Børs VPS of its covenants and obligations hereunder or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby.

		
	(b)
	This Agreement has been duly executed and delivered by Oslo Børs VPS and, assuming the due authorization, execution and delivery by the Offeror, constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of Oslo Børs VPS, enforceable against Oslo Børs VPS in accordance with its terms.

		
	(c)
	The Oslo Børs VPS Board, at a meeting duly called and held at which all directors of Oslo Børs VPS were present, duly and unanimously adopted resolutions (i) approving the execution of this 

Agreement, and (ii) resolving to recommend that the shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS accept the Offer.

		
	8.2
	Representation and warranty of the Offeror

The Offeror hereby represents and warrants as at the date of this Agreement to Oslo Børs VPS as follows:

		
	(a)
	it has the requisite power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement, to perform its obligations hereunder and to consummate the transactions as contemplated hereby. The execution and delivery by the Offeror of this Agreement, the performance of its obligations hereunder and the consummation of the transactions as contemplated hereby, have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate action on the part of the Offeror, and no additional corporate proceedings on the part of the Offeror are necessary to authorize the execution and delivery of this Agreement, the performance of its obligations hereunder or the consummation of the transactions as contemplated hereby;

		
	(b)
	this Agreement has been duly executed and delivered by the Offeror and, assuming the due authorization, execution and delivery by Oslo Børs VPS, constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of the Offeror, enforceable against the Offeror in accordance with its terms; and

		
	(c)
	the Offeror has access to sources of financing sufficient to complete the Offer.

		
	9.
	Termination

		
	9.1
	Termination

This Agreement may be terminated:

		
	(a)
	by the Offeror by written notice to Oslo Børs VPS: (i) if the Oslo Børs VPS Board has amended, modified or withdrawn the Board Recommendation without the Offeror’s consent, or (ii) upon a material breach of this Agreement by Oslo Børs VPS, if such breach is not cured within five Business Days of delivery of a written notice by the Offeror to Oslo Børs VPS requesting Oslo Børs VPS to cure such breach, provided that, for the purposes of this clause 9.1(a)(ii) and clause 9.1(b)(iv), any breach of this Agreement shall be determined without regard to any materiality qualifiers set forth in this Agreement (including any warranty, representation or covenant), as if such materiality qualifiers were deleted from the applicable provision in this Agreement, where materiality qualifiers shall mean words or phrases including the term "material", "material adverse change" or "material adverse effect" or other variations of the term "material" set forth in this Agreement;

		
	(b)
	by Oslo Børs VPS by written notice to the Offeror: (i) if the Offeror has not consented to the issuance of the Joint Announcement by 08:00 CET on 31 January 2019, (ii) if the Offeror has not published the offer document and commenced the offer period for the Offer on or before 28 February 2019, (iii) if the Offeror has not commenced discussions with the Relevant Authorities with respect to the Clearances within 20 Business Days from the date of this Agreement, subject to Oslo Børs VPS having provided on a timely basis the cooperation, information, assistance and access contemplated by clause 7.2.2, or (iv) upon a material breach of this Agreement by the Offeror, if such breach is not cured within five Business Days of delivery of a written notice by Oslo Børs VPS to the Offeror requesting the Offeror to cure such breach;

		
	(c)
	by either Party if (i) a Closing Condition is or becomes incapable of being satisfied and will not be waived and the Offeror has made a public announcement in this respect (such announcement 

not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed by the Offeror in such event); or (ii) the public announcement by the Offeror of the satisfaction or waiver of all Closing Conditions has not been made by the Long Stop Date, provided however, that the right to terminate under clause 9.1(c) shall not be available to a Party whose failure to fulfil any obligation hereunder has been the principal cause of the failure of any Closing Condition to be satisfied by the Long Stop Date; and

		
	(d)
	by mutual written consent of both Parties.

		
	9.2
	Effect of Termination

In the event of the termination of this Agreement in accordance with clause 9.1 above, this Agreement shall be of no further force or effect; provided, however, that termination of this Agreement shall be without prejudice to the rights of a Party which have arisen prior to termination, including (without limitation) any claim in respect of a breach of this Agreement. Clauses 4 and 10 shall survive termination.

		
	10.
	Miscellaneous

		
	10.1
	Costs and Expenses

The Parties shall bear their own costs and expenses rendered in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, whether or not the Offer is completed.

		
	10.2
	Assignment

The rights and obligations of the Parties under this Agreement shall not be assignable, provided that the Offeror shall have the right to assign any of its rights and obligations under this Agreement to any of its Affiliates if it undertakes to Oslo Børs VPS to procure the Affiliate's performance of such obligations.

		
	10.3
	Notices

Any notices required to be given hereunder by either Party shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been given if mailed by prepaid registered mail or sent by e-mail or delivered to the address of the other Party which is hereinafter set forth:

If to Oslo Børs VPS: Oslo Børs VPS Holdings ASA

Att: Øivind Amundsen, Executive Vice President Telephone: + 47 91 18 15 26
Email: Oivind.Amundsen@oslobors.no
With a copy to: Advokatfirmaet Thommessen AS Att: Anders Arnkværn
Haakon VIIs gate 10 0161 Oslo, Norway
Telephone: + 47 90 59 54 45 Email: aar@thommessen.no

If to the Offeror: Nasdaq AB 
c/o Nasdaq, Inc.
Att: Office of General Counsel 805 King Farm Blvd.

Rockville, MD 20850 USA Email: ogc@nasdaq.com

With a copy to:

Lars Kristian Sande BAHR
Tjuvholmen allé 16
P.O. Box 1524 Vika No-0117 Oslo Norway
Telephone: + 47 908 58464 Email: Iks@bahr.no

And:

Arne Tjaum BAHR
Tjuvholmen allé 16
P.O. Box 1524 Vika No-0117 Oslo Norway
Telephone: + 47 950 39851 Email: at@bahr.no

		
	10.4
	Confidentiality

		
	10.4.1
	The existence of this Agreement shall be treated as strictly confidential information until the publication of the Joint Announcement in accordance with clause 4.1. The content of this Agreement is strictly confidential unless otherwise disclosed in the Joint Announcement, to be disclosed in the Offer Document, or otherwise as required by Applicable Law.

		
	10.4.2
	The confidentiality obligations shall terminate on the second anniversary of the date hereof.

		
	10.5
	Modifications

This Agreement may be modified or amended only by written agreement of the Parties.

		
	10.6
	Entire Agreement, etc.

This Agreement and the documents referred to herein constitute the entire agreement between the Parties. The provisions of this Agreement are binding upon and inure solely to the benefit of the parties hereto. Notwithstanding the foregoing the non-disclosure agreement between the Parties shall continue to apply to the extent not inconsistent with or superseded by this Agreement and the Parties shall enter into a separate due diligence agreement on mutually acceptable terms prior to the due diligence to be conducted by the Offeror when the Offeror has obtained the Clearances.

		
	10.7
	Governing Law and Arbitration

		
	10.7.1
	This Agreement is governed by and construed in accordance with Norwegian law.

		
	10.7.2
	Any dispute arising under or in connection with this Agreement shall be finally settled by arbitration pursuant to the Norwegian Arbitration Act 2004. The arbitration shall be held in Oslo, Norway. All arbitrators shall be appointed by the Oslo District Court if the Parties cannot agree on the composition of the arbitration tribunal. The language of any arbitration proceeding is English. The arbitration proceedings and arbitration award shall be confidential.

* * *

This Agreement is executed in two (2) originals, one for each of the Parties.

[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]

For and on behalf of OSLO B0RS VPS HOLDING ASA

Name in block letters: CATHARINA E. HELLERUD Title: Board of Directors Chair

20
1483594 . 02-LONSR 0IA - MSW

For and on behalf of NASDAQ AB

21
14 83594.0 2-LONSR0 I A - MSW

Appendix 1 – Main terms and conditions of the Offer

	
		
	Offeror
	NASDAQ AB, business registration number 556243-8001 (the Offeror).

	Target
	Oslo Børs VPS ASA, business registration number 983 268 617 (Oslo Børs VPS).

	Offer Price
	NOK 152 per Oslo Børs VPS Share. The Offer Price will be reduced by the amount of any dividends or other distributions declared on the Oslo Børs VPS Shares after 29 January 2019.

	Interest Payment
	In addition to the Offer Price, each accepting shareholder will receive an interest payment at a rate of 6% per annum on the Offer Price, pro-rated per day from 29 January 2019 until the completion conditions have been fulfilled and/or waived.

	Blocking   of tendered Shares
	By delivering a duly executed acceptance form, shareholders give the receiving agent an authorization to block the Oslo Børs VPS Shares to which the acceptance form relates, in favour of the receiving agent. The receiving agent is at the same time authorized to transfer such Oslo Børs VPS Shares to the Offeror against payment of the Offer Price and the Interest Payment. In the event the Offer is cancelled, the blocking will be terminated. It is not possible for the shareholder to dispose of the Oslo Børs VPS Shares when they are blocked. The shareholder is free to dispose of any other securities registered in the same VPS- account as the blocked Oslo Børs VPS Shares.

	Offer Period
	The Offer Period shall commence at the latest on 28 February 2019 and shall remain open for a period of no less than four weeks. The Offeror may in its sole discretion extend the Offer Period (one or more times) up to a total of ten weeks. Any extension of the Offer Period will be announced on or before the last day of the prevailing Offer Period.

	Conditions for completion of the Offer
	Completion of the Offer is subject to the following conditions, each one of which may be waived by the Offeror in its sole discretion:
(a)    Minimum acceptance. The Offer shall have been validly accepted by shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS representing (together with any shares in Oslo Børs VPS already owned by the Offeror or its Affiliates at such point in time) more than 90% (or such lower percentage as the Offeror may determine in its sole discretion) of the issued and outstanding share capital and voting rights of Oslo Børs VPS on a Fully Diluted (as defined below) basis, and such acceptances not being subject to any third party consents in respect of pledges or other rights. If such minimum acceptance has not been satisfied by the end of the acceptance period, the Offeror may, at its sole discretion, elect to seek to satisfy the minimum acceptance condition by re-opening the acceptance period (to no later than 31 December 2019) or by other adequate means. For this purpose, Fully Diluted shall mean all issued Oslo Børs VPS Shares together with all shares which Oslo Børs VPS would be required to issue if all rights to subscribe for or otherwise require Oslo Børs VPS to issue additional shares, under any agreement or instrument, existing at or prior to completion of the Offer, were exercised.

(b)    Board Recommendation. That an unanimous recommendation from the board of directors of Oslo Børs VPS to its shareholders to accept the Offer, in
such form as set out in Appendix 2, has been issued and not been withdrawn

	
		
	 
	or amended or qualified in any manner adverse to the Offeror.

(c)    Clearances. The necessary permits, consents, approvals and actions from competent Relevant Authorities (including but not limited to, the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway, the Norwegian Ministry of Finance and relevant competition authorities, which also shall include a filing to the competition authority in Norway, Sweden and United Kingdom to the extent such filing is recommended) in connection with the Offer shall have been obtained either without conditions or upon conditions that are acceptable to the Offeror in its reasonable discretion.

(d)    No action by Relevant Authority. No Relevant Authority of a competent jurisdiction shall have taken any form of legal action (whether temporary, preliminary or permanent) that is in effect and restrains or prohibits the consummation of the Offer or shall in connection with the Offer have imposed any conditions upon the Offeror, Oslo Børs VPS or any of their respective Affiliates which are not acceptable to the Offeror in its reasonable discretion.

(e)    Accuracy of information. That the information relating to Oslo Børs VPS and the Group made public, or disclosed privately to the Offeror or its Affiliates, by Oslo Børs VPS prior to the date of the Transaction Agreement, taken as a whole, was not materially inaccurate or materially misleading.

(f)    No Material Adverse Change. That no Material Adverse Change has occurred since the date of the Transaction Agreement (whether as a result of facts, circumstances, events or conditions occurring after the date of the Transaction Agreement, or facts circumstances, events or conditions not publicly disclosed by Oslo Børs VPS nor disclosed by Oslo Børs VPS in writing to the Offeror prior to the date of the Transaction Agreement, or a combination of both).

(g)    No material breach. There shall have been no material breach by Oslo Børs VPS of the Transaction Agreement, provided that, for the purposes of this Condition, any breach of the Transaction Agreement shall be determined without regard to any materiality qualifiers set forth in the Transaction Agreement (including any warranty, representation or covenant), as if such materiality qualifiers were deleted from the applicable provision in the Transaction Agreement, where materiality qualifiers shall mean words or phrases including the term "material", "material adverse change" or "material adverse effect" or other variations of the term "material" set forth in the Transaction Agreement.

(h)    Completion of Limited Confirmatory Due Diligence. The Offeror shall have completed a short and limited confirmatory due diligence to the Offeror’s satisfaction, limited to certain key contracts, financial and regulatory matters, as identified and communicated to the Board of Oslo Børs VPS.

	Settlement of the
	Settlement will be made within two weeks after announcement that all conditions have

Offer    been met or waived.
On settlement, the relevant amount to each shareholder who has accepted the Offer will be transferred to the bank account that at the time of acceptance was registered in VPS as the account for payment of dividends to the shareholder. Settlement will be made in cash in Norwegian Kroner (NOK).

		
	Long Stop Date     
	In the  event the conditions for closing of the Offer have not been met or waived by 16:30    CET on the Long Stop Date, the Offer will not be completed and shareholders who have tendered their Shares will be released from their acceptance of the Offer.

		
	Acceptance binding 
	The acceptance of the Offer is irrevocable, and may not be withdrawn, in whole or in part, once the settlement agent has received the acceptance form.

Shareholders that accept the Offer will remain the legal owners of their Shares and retain voting rights and other shareholder rights related thereto to the extent permitted under Norwegian law until settlement has taken place.

Amendments to the 
		
	Offer
	The Offeror reserves the right to amend the Offer, including the Offer Price, in its sole discretion at any time during the Offer Period (in addition to in any Competing Offer situation), provided however that the Offeror may not amend the Offer in a manner which disadvantages Oslo Børs VPS shareholders. Any acceptance received is binding even if the Offer Period or the Long Stop Date is extended and/or the Offer is otherwise amended in accordance with the terms of the Offer. Shareholders who have already accepted the Offer in its original form or with previous amendments will be entitled to any benefits arising from such amendments.

Governing Law and 
		
	Jurisdiction 
	The Offer is governed by Norwegian law. Any dispute that may arise in relation to this Offer shall be subject to the Norwegian Courts with Oslo city as legal venue.

Appendix 2 – Board Recommendation

STATEMENT FROM THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF OSLO BØRS VPS HOLDING ASA IN CONNECTION WITH THE OFFER FROM NASDAQ AB
This statement is made by the Board of Directors (the "Board") of Oslo Børs VPS Holding ASA ("Oslo Børs VPS" or the "Company") in connection with the offer (the "Offer") from Nasdaq AB ("Nasdaq") to acquire all issued and outstanding shares in Oslo Børs VPS against a consideration of NOK 152 per share in cash (the "Offer Price"). The statement is attached as an appendix to the offer document prepared by Nasdaq for the Offer dated [•] 2019 (the "Offer Document").

The Offer is not subject to the take-over rules in chapter 6 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act, and the Board is not under any legal obligation to make any statements on the Offer.
However, pursuant to clause 14 (Takeover) of Oslo Børs VPS' corporate governance policy, the Board shall in the event of a take-over offer arrange for a valuation by an independent expert and issue a statement evaluating the offer, including a recommendation to shareholders as to whether or not they should accept the offer.

Introduction and background
On 24 December 2018 Euronext N.V. ("Euronext") announced its intention to launch an offer in January 2019 for all the outstanding shares in Oslo Børs VPS. Euronext launched such offer on 14 January 2019 by the publication of an offer document (the "Euronext Offer").

The Euronext Offer was a result of a compact auction process conducted by Carnegie ASA on the initiative of certain minority shareholders of the Company and without any involvement of the Board and management of the Company. Against this background, and in light of the fact that it surfaced that several relevant parties did not participate in the auction process, the Board announced on 4 January 2019 that it had decided to invite parties that may be interested in the opportunity of making an offer for the shares in Oslo Børs VPS to participate in an offer process. Based on this invitation, and within the time frame and other limitations imposed on the Board by the Euronext Offer, Nasdaq and the Company entered into negotiations regarding a combination of the two companies.

The negotiations between Nasdaq and Oslo Børs VPS resulted in a joint press release on 30 January 2019, announcing that the two parties had entered into a transaction agreement (the "Transaction Agreement") whereby Nasdaq agreed to launch the Offer and the Board undertook to announce its unanimous recommendation of the Offer to Oslo Børs VPS’s shareholders in this form.

The Offer
Nasdaq launched the Offer through the Offer Document submitted to Oslo Børs VPS’ shareholders on [•] 2019, with an acceptance period commencing on [•] 2019 and ending on [•] 2019 at 16:30 hours (CET), subject to extensions. Completion of the Offer is made subject to fulfilment or waiver of the conditions for the Offer. Detailed information about the Offer, including the conditions for completion of the Offer, is included in the Offer Document.

Pursuant to the Offer, the Oslo Børs VPS shareholders are offered NOK 152 in cash per share (subject to adjustment for any dividends or other distributions declared on the shares in the Company after 29 January 2019). In addition, each accepting shareholder will receive an interest payment at a rate of 6% per annum on the Offer Price, pro-rated per day from [●] January 2019 until the completion conditions have been fulfilled and/or waived.

The Offer Price (excluding the interest compensation) values the aggregate of Oslo Børs VPS' issued and outstanding shares at NOK 6,537 million (based on 43,004,000 issued and outstanding shares in the Company). The Offer Price represents a premium of 38% to the undisturbed N-OTC closing price per share on 17 December 2018. Further, the Offer Price represents a premium of 5% to the offer price of NOK 145 in the Euronext Offer. Nasdaq has obtained irrevocable undertakings from shareholders representing approximately 35.11% of the Shares to tender their Shares pursuant to the Offer and they are binding, including in the event of any other offer.

As is further detailed and specified in the Offer Document, the completion of the Offer will be subject to the following conditions being satisfied or waived by Nasdaq (acting in its sole discretion): [Conditions from Appendix 1 of the Transaction Agreement to be inserted].

Pursuant to the Norwegian Public Limited Liability Companies Act, Nasdaq will have the right to commence a compulsory acquisition for cash of the Oslo Børs VPS shares not already owned by Nasdaq if Nasdaq becomes the owner of Oslo Børs VPS shares representing more than 90% of the total number of shares issued by Oslo Børs VPS. The Board notes that Nasdaq in such case intends to effectuate a compulsory acquisition upon completion of the Offer.

Recommendation: The Board recommends the shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS to accept the Offer made by Nasdaq.
The Board has reviewed the Offer Document and duly considered all factors considered significant when assessing whether the Offer should be accepted by the shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS. Furthermore, the Board has compared the Offer with the Euronext Offer.

Terms of the Offer

The Board has concluded that the Offer Price (i) falls within the valuation ranges derived by a full set of valuation techniques; (ii) represents the highest value received following the Board's invitation to make offers for the shares in the Company; (iii) provides better value relative to the Euronext Offer; and (iv) provides a fair value to the shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS.

The Board has received a fairness opinion from its financial advisor Arctic Securities AS, [attached hereto as Appendix 1], which concludes that the Offer Price represents a fair consideration to all the shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS from a financial point of view.

With respect to other terms of the Offer, and in particular the transaction risk relating to completion of the Offer created by the conditions for completion, a public offer for the shares of Oslo Børs VPS Holding will necessarily involve such risk. Both the Offer and the Euronext Offer involve risks relating to the ability of the offerors to complete the offers. Based on an overall assessment, the Board has concluded that the Offer does not involve a higher degree of risk in this respect than the Euronext Offer.

On this basis, the opinion of the Board is that the Offer is made on fair terms and offers a fair consideration to all its shareholders.

Future operations of Oslo Børs VPS and the Norwegian capital market

In order to ensure the function of the Norwegian securities market and the ability to access capital, the Norwegian market must be maintained and further enhanced. It is therefore important for Oslo Børs VPS to become part of a structure that (i) provides good visibility for Norwegian issuers, (ii) offers strong local influence, (iii) demonstrates adaptability to local considerations, and
(iv)has a strategy for the further development and modernisation of the central securities depository’s functions and products.

The Board is committed to ensuring that the competitive advantages of Oslo Børs VPS and the attractiveness of its local marketplaces are maintained and further enhanced in relation to both Norwegian and international issuers, particularly within the group’s sectors of particular strength.

Based on thorough discussions with Nasdaq, it is the view of the Board that there is strong industrial, market and strategic logic to a combination between Nasdaq and Oslo Børs VPS, and that Nasdaq would continue to uphold the strong values of Oslo Børs VPS and enhance the Norwegian capital market through:

		
	i)
	Nasdaq's expressed intent to maintain the Norwegian model of regulation, governance and supervision in combination with a unique Norwegian Advisory Board and Norwegian representation on Nasdaq's Nordic committees;

		
	ii)
	Nasdaq’s expressed intent to retain the Oslo Børs brand and to continue to enhance its global leading positions in energy, shipping and seafood, to leverage its talent and experience in these sectors, to further develop Norway as a centre of excellence in commodities and to enable Oslo Børs to benefit from the full global reach of Nasdaq’s resources, technology, data and brand;

		
	iii)
	Nasdaq's expressed intent to capitalize on, and develop, VPS in a Nordic perspective and to make it Nasdaq's regional centre of excellence for custody and settlement services;

		
	iv)
	Nasdaq’s expressed intent to develop international solution offerings in the post-trade area based on VPS’ expertise;

		
	v)
	Nasdaq's expressed intent to maintain and further develop Oslo Børs’ marketplaces as venues for the listing and trading of equity, bonds and equity certificates; and

		
	vi)
	Nasdaq’s expressed intent to enhance the securities environment with strong expertise in Oslo, including co-location with Nasdaq’s commodity exchange as well as to leverage the local talent pool’s expertise in exchange and post-trade services, product offerings and IT competence.

The Board is of the opinion that a combination with Nasdaq would combine and strengthen the Nordic region as a capital market with strong international distribution and visibility for Norwegian issuers as well as efficient infrastructure and limited adaptation requirements for Norwegian and Nordic companies. Oslo Børs VPS’ largest customers are Nordic financial groups preferring harmonised services in the Nordic region and Nordic delivery models. There is already a well- established collaboration between, inter alia, Nordic banks, brokers, broker associations and supervisory authorities, which will help ensure focus on and development of the Norwegian market following such a combination.

Employees

The employees of the Oslo Børs VPS group have been informed about the Offer through a meeting held on [•] 2019. We have been informed of the following by Nasdaq.  Nasdaq operates on a global basis with a strong local presence leveraging the local talent pool’s unique areas of expertise. Nasdaq operates as a meritocracy, and national market employees have the opportunity to assume global roles and responsibilities and a combination with Nasdaq would accord the same benefits to Oslo Børs VPS and its employees. Further, as both Oslo Børs VPS and Nasdaq are highly committed to providing superior service to clients, Nasdaq would seek to ensure that any combination retains and enhances the respective strengths of each business.

Nasdaq also believes in an effective, collaborative and customer-focused integration process. To that end, Nasdaq would work collaboratively with the Oslo Børs VPS management team to approach the integration in a constructive fashion, and to ensure that appropriate arrangements are made, including working to find opportunities in other areas and functions.

Based on the above, including the presentation held for the employees, the involved employees have stated that[to be inserted when statement from employees has been obtained].]

Other factors
The Offer must also be considered in light of the situation created by the Euronext Offer and the time limitations and other limitations thereby imposed on the subsequent auction process conducted by the Board.

Furthermore, the Board has noted that shareholders representing 35.11% of the shares in the Company have pre-accepted the Offer, while shareholders representing 45.2% of the shares in the Company have pre-accepted the Euronext Offer (in addition to the shares already acquired by Euronext representing 5.3% of the shares in the Company).

Conclusion
Based on an overall evaluation of the factors considered relevant, the Board considers the Offer as the best alternative for all stakeholders (including shareholders, issuers, banks, investors and investment banks operating in the Norwegian capital market) and therefore recommends the shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS to accept the Offer made by Nasdaq and not to accept the Euronext offer.

The recommendation is unanimous.

Own shareholding
[To be inserted prior to publication of the statement].

[date]

The Board of Directors of Oslo Børs VPS Holding ASA

Appendix 3 – Joint Announcement

*** DRAFT joint press release ***

Nasdaq to Make an Offer to Acquire Oslo Børs VPS with Unanimous Support from Oslo Børs VPS Board of Directors

		
	•
	Cash offer to acquire all issued and outstanding shares in Oslo Børs VPS Holding ASA to be made by Nasdaq AB

		
	•
	Oslo Børs VPS’ Board of Directors and executive management team have unanimously decided to recommend that its shareholders accept the Offer and do not accept the offer from Euronext

		
	•
	Nasdaq AB has received irrevocable pre-acceptances of the Offer from shareholders representing 35.11% of the total shares of Oslo Børs VPS. Pre-accepting shareholders include Oslo Børs VPS’ two largest shareholders (DNB and KLP)

		
	•
	The proposed transaction is expected to achieve Nasdaq’s stated ROIC target of at least 10% within 3-5 years, and be accretive to non-GAAP EPS within 12 months of closing

		
	•
	The transaction is consistent with Nasdaq’s existing capital deployment priorities including its organic business investment, shareholder capital return and leverage objectives

Oslo, Norway and Stockholm, Sweden, Jan. 30, 2019 – Nasdaq AB, an indirect subsidiary of Nasdaq Inc. (Nasdaq: NDAQ) (“Nasdaq”), announced today that it will make a public offer to acquire all of the issued shares of Oslo Børs VPS Holding ASA (NOTC: OSLO/OTCMKTS: OSBHF) (“Oslo Børs VPS”) at NOK 152 per share (the “Offer”). The formal Offer will be made pursuant to an offer document (the “Offer Document”), which is expected to be published on or around 4 February 2019.

Based on an overall evaluation of the factors considered relevant, the Board of Directors of Oslo Børs VPS considers that the Offer is the best alternative for all stakeholders (including shareholders, issuers, investors, banks and investment banks operating in the Norwegian capital market) and therefore unanimously recommends that the shareholders of Oslo Børs VPS accept the Offer and do not accept the offer to acquire the shares of Oslo Børs VPS made by Euronext NV (the "Euronext Offer").

The key features of the Offer include:

		
	•
	Nasdaq AB is offering NOK 152 in cash per share in Oslo Børs VPS (the “Offer Price”), plus an interest payment of 6% per annum on the Offer Price, pro-rated per day from 29 January 2019 until the conditions to the Offer have been fulfilled or waived.

		
	•
	The Offer Price represents a 5% premium to the price of the offer to acquire the shares of Oslo Børs VPS made by Euronext of NOK 145 per share, excluding the interest payment which Euronext has offered to pay.

		
	•
	The Offer Price values the entire issued share capital of Oslo Børs VPS at NOK 6,537 million, or approximately $770 million, and represents a premium of 38% to the undisturbed closing price of the Oslo Børs VPS shares on the NOTC on 17 December 2018.

		
	•
	Nasdaq has obtained pre-acceptances of the Offer from shareholders representing approximately 35.11% of the shares in Oslo Børs VPS, including DNB and KLP. These pre- acceptances are irrevocable and unconditional, including in the event of a higher offer until the long stop date of 31 December 2019.

		
	•
	Nasdaq AB and Oslo Børs VPS have entered into a transaction agreement (the “Transaction Agreement”), pursuant to which Oslo Børs VPS and Nasdaq AB have provided certain undertakings to each other in connection with the Offer.

		
	•
	The Offer can, subject to extension, be accepted in the period from publication of the Offer Document (expected on or around 4 February 2019) to and including the expiry of the offer period (expected on or around 4 March 2019). The Offer is subject to the fulfillment or waiver of certain customary conditions, including but not limited to Nasdaq AB obtaining acceptances of the Offer from shareholders holding 90% or more of the shares of Oslo Børs VPS, certain regulatory clearances, a limited confirmatory due diligence and completion of the Offer by 31 December 2019.

Based on thorough discussions with Nasdaq, it is the view of the Board of Oslo Børs VPS that there is strong industrial, market and strategic logic to a combination between Nasdaq and Oslo Børs VPS, and that this combination will uphold the strong values of Oslo Børs VPS and enhance the Norwegian capital market as demonstrated by the following expressed intentions of Nasdaq:

		
	•
	Maintain the Norwegian model of regulation, governance and supervision in combination with a unique Norwegian Advisory Board and Norwegian representation on Nasdaq's Nordic committees;

		
	•
	Retain the Oslo Børs brand and to continue to enhance its global leading positions in energy, shipping and seafood, to leverage its talent and experience in these sectors, to further develop Norway as a centre of excellence in commodities and to enable Oslo Børs to benefit from the full global reach of Nasdaq’s resources, technology, data and brand;

		
	•
	Capitalize on, and develop, VPS from a Nordic perspective and to make it Nasdaq's regional centre of excellence for custody and settlement services;

		
	•
	Develop international solution offerings in the post-trade area based on VPS’ expertise;

		
	•
	Maintain and further develop Oslo Børs VPS’ marketplaces as venues for the listing and trading of equity, bonds and equity certificates; and

		
	•
	Enhance the securities environment with strong expertise in Oslo, including co-location with Nasdaq’s commodity exchange as well as to leverage the local talent pool’s expertise in exchange and post-trade services, product offerings and IT competence.

The Board of Oslo Børs VPS is of the opinion that a combination with Nasdaq would combine and strengthen the Nordic region as a capital market with strong international distribution and visibility for Norwegian issuers as well as efficient infrastructure and limited adaptation requirements for Norwegian and Nordic companies. Oslo Børs VPS’ largest customers are Nordic financial groups that are likely to prefer harmonized services in the Nordic region and Nordic delivery models. There is already a well-established collaboration between, inter alia, Nordic banks, brokers, broker associations and supervisory authorities, which will help ensure focus on and development of the Norwegian market following such a combination.

The Board of Oslo Børs VPS has further noted that (i) completion of the Euronext Offer is conditional upon acceptance from shareholders representing (together with shares already owned by Euronext N.V.) 50.01% of the shares in the Company and that (ii) Euronext N.V. currently owns 5.3% of the shares in the Company, while shareholders representing 45.2% of the shares in the Company have pre-accepted the Euronext Offer.

Both the Euronext Offer and the Offer from Nasdaq AB are made conditional upon receipt of relevant regulatory approvals. The Norwegian Ministry of Finance will decide on the matter, based on advice from the Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority. The Board of Oslo Børs VPS has concluded that the Offer from Nasdaq AB will provide a better industrial and strategic solution for the Norwegian capital market. Furthermore, a situation in which 1/3 or more of the shareholders refuse to accept the Euronext Offer is likely to result in a sub-optimal ownership- and governance structure. Several of such minority shareholders would be significant Norwegian financial institutions. Oslo Børs VPS has assumed that such considerations will be relevant in the broad suitability assessment to be made by

the authorities, taking due account of the fact that Oslo Børs VPS represents a key financial infrastructure of national significance.

“The addition of Oslo Børs VPS to Nasdaq will be a tremendous step to unite the Nordic financial markets,” said Adena Friedman, President and CEO of Nasdaq. “Combining Oslo Børs VPS’ exchange and securities depository expertise with our technology leadership and experience supporting the growth of small- and medium- sized enterprises and investors in the region, will not only help make the Norwegian markets stronger but the region in its entirety can become an even greater economic engine for long term growth.”

“We have reviewed the offer from Nasdaq thoroughly, and duly considered all factors significant when assessing whether it should be accepted by our shareholders, including comparing the offer with the one made by Euronext,” said Catharina E. Hellerud, Chair of the Board of Directors of Oslo Børs VPS. “Our conclusion is unanimous and clear in that Nasdaq represents a more attractive partner, both from a shareholder value perspective and from an industrial, market and strategic perspective.”

“Our customers are primarily Nordic financial groups preferring harmonized services throughout the Nordic region and Nordic delivery models,” said Bente A. Landsnes, President and CEO of Oslo Børs VPS. “There is already a well-established collaboration between Nordic banks, brokers, broker associations and supervisory authorities. We see a combination for Oslo Børs with Nasdaq to be a natural step to further develop both the Norwegian and Nordic markets.”

“Oslo Børs VPS is a unique financial institution with a strong national heritage and international position,” said Lauri Rosendahl, President of Nasdaq Nordic. “We see a tremendous opportunity to further strengthen Oslo Børs VPS’ offering and position in Norway as well as increase the strategic relevance of the exchange and the CSD in the Nordic region and around the world. Retaining the unique qualities of Oslo Børs VPS as part of Nasdaq Nordic, while further strengthening its leading positions in energy, shipping and seafood would be our two main priorities.”

Nasdaq operates exchanges, clearinghouses and central securities depositories in eight countries across the Nordic and Baltic regions. Through Nasdaq First North, Nasdaq Nordic also offers alternative marketplaces for small and medium sized growth companies. Nasdaq’s Nordic and Baltic exchanges, together with Nasdaq First North, employs more than 1,100 people and is home to more than 1,000 listed companies. Since 2016, Nasdaq’s Nordic operations have added more than 290 new company listings, including 198 initial public offerings raising in excess of €14 billion of capital.

Among other things, the Transaction Agreement:

		
	•
	Includes an undertaking from Oslo Børs VPS not to solicit any competing offers and to notify Nasdaq AB of any unsolicited competing offers it receives.

		
	•
	Regulates the Offer, including the main terms of the Offer and certain undertakings by Nasdaq AB relating to the Offer, including an undertaking to launch it.

		
	•
	Provides that the Oslo Børs VPS board’s unanimous recommendation may not be withdrawn, modified or amended, provided that in the event an unsolicited competing offer is a higher priced offer which Nasdaq AB does not match, the Oslo Børs VPS board may acknowledge that the competing offer is more favorable from a purely financial point of view, but shall also reiterate that Nasdaq AB is the preferred owner of Oslo Børs from an industrial and strategic perspective and advise Oslo Børs VPS shareholders that the Offer would be more likely than the competing offer to promote the long term success of Oslo Børs VPS and its group having regard to the strategic interests of capital market participants based in Norway and elsewhere in the Nordic region.

		
	•
	Includes customary undertakings from Oslo Børs VPS as to the conduct of its business in the period from its entry into the Transaction Agreement to the completion of the Offer or its earlier lapse or withdrawal.

		
	•
	Includes certain representations and warranties by both parties and a limited termination right (mainly in the event of a material breach of the agreement by the other party).

As of the date of this release, neither Nasdaq AB nor Nasdaq owns any shares in Oslo Børs VPS.

Nasdaq intends to fund the Offer through a mix of debt and cash on hand. The proposed transaction is expected to achieve Nasdaq’s stated ROIC target of at least 10% within 3-5 years, and be accretive to non-GAAP EPS within 12 months of closing. The acquisition of Oslo Børs VPS would be consistent with Nasdaq’s existing capital deployment priorities. As such, Nasdaq does not expect any change to its organic business investments, its intention to continue growing dividends as income and cash flows grow, or its equity repurchase program. Assuming a close in the third quarter of 2019, Nasdaq’s gross leverage would rise to approximately 3.1x debt to EBITDA, and the company would be in position to reduce leverage to the mid 2x’s during the second half of 2020.

The Offer Document containing the complete terms and conditions of the Offer is expected to be published on or around 4 February 2019. Subject to restrictions under applicable securities laws, the Offer Document will be distributed to all shareholders listed in Oslo Børs VPS’ share register.

The recommendation by the Board will be included in the Offer Document and also be made available on Oslo Børs VPS’ website when Nasdaq AB publishes the Offer Document. Arctic Securities AS has provided the Board of Oslo Børs VPS an independent fairness opinion of the Offer, which is also included in the recommendation.
For further information, please contact: Nasdaq:
David Augustsson
+46-734496135; david.augustsson@nasdaq.com

Oslo Børs VPS:
Per Eikrem
+47 93 06 00 00; per.eikrem@oslobors.no

Important Information about the Offer:

This joint press release is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell shares. The Offer to purchase all the shares of Oslo Børs VPS will be contained in the Offer Document to be published by Nasdaq AB. The complete Offer Document will, subject to restrictions under applicable securities laws, be distributed free of charge to all Oslo Børs VPS’ shareholders registered in Oslo Børs VPS’ share register in Verdipapirsentralen (the Norwegian Central Securities Depository).

About Oslo Børs

Oslo Børs VPS offers listing and trading in equities, equity certificates, ETPs, fixed income products and derivatives products on six different marketplaces: Oslo Børs, Oslo Axess, Merkur Market, NOTC, Nordic ABM and Oslo Connect. Through its business areas, the Oslo Børs VPS Group operates marketplaces for trading in financial instruments, together with settlement, securities registration and information services, in order to give customers access to an efficient and effective capital market.

About Nasdaq

Nasdaq is a leading provider of trading, clearing, exchange technology, listing, information and public company services across six continents. Through its diverse portfolio of solutions, Nasdaq enables customers to plan, optimize and execute their business vision with confidence, using proven technologies that provide transparency and insight for navigating today’s global capital markets. As the creator of the world's first electronic stock market, its technology powers more than 100 marketplaces in 50 countries, and 1 in 10 of the world's securities transactions.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release relating to future status and circumstances, including statements regarding the anticipated offer timeline, future performance, growth and other projections as well as benefits of the Offer, are forward-looking statements. These statements may generally, but not always, be identified by the use of words such as “anticipates”, “expects”, “believes”, or similar expressions. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements due to many factors, many of which are outside the control of Nasdaq and its subsidiaries. Such risk factors may include the performance of the global economy, ability of Nasdaq to integrate Oslo Børs VPS, ability of Nasdaq to receive regulatory approvals necessary for the Offer, ability of Nasdaq to complete the Offer and any other risk factors detailed in Nasdaq's annual report on Form 10-K, and periodic reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Any such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they were made and Nasdaq has no obligation (and undertake no such obligation) to update or revise any of them, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except for as required by applicable laws and regulations.

Website Disclosure

Nasdaq intends to use its website, ir.nasdaq.com, as a means for disclosing material non-public information and for complying with SEC Regulation FD and other disclosure obligations. These disclosures will be included on Nasdaq’s website under “Investor Relations.”Exhibit 10.1

 

CANCELLATION AGREEMENT

 

THIS CANCELLATION
AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”), is entered into effective as of April 26, 2019, by and between CBAK Energy
Technology, Inc., a Nevada corporation (the “Company”) and each of the persons listed on the Schedule of Creditors
attached hereto as Exhibit A(individually, a “Creditor” and collectively, the “Creditors”).

 

RECITALS

 

WHEREAS, from
time to time, the Creditors have provided financing to the Company or its subsidiaries, and, as of the date hereof, each of the
Creditors holds outstanding debt in the Company, including both principals and accrued interests, as is set forth opposite such
Creditor’s name on the Schedule of Creditors (collectively, the “Debts”);

 

WHEREAS, the
Company desires to reduce its debt load in order to improve its balance sheet and to enhance its ability to secure additional financing;
and

 

WHEREAS, each
of the Creditors agrees to cancel all of its respective amount of the Debts in exchange for certain amount of shares of common
stock of the Company, calculated at the price of $1.10 per share (the “Exchange Price”), on the terms set forth
herein, and the Company is willing and able to issue shares of common stock to the Creditors on the terms described herein.

 

NOW THEREFORE,
in consideration of the foregoing and the representations, warranties, covenants, and agreements set forth herein, and other good
and valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby acknowledged, and intending to be legally bound hereby,
the parties hereto hereby covenant and agree as follows:

 

1. Cancellation
of the Debts; Issuance of the Shares. At the Closing (as defined in Section 2 hereof) and subject to the terms and conditions
of this Agreement, all of the Debts shall be cancelled and the Company shall issue an aggregate of 5,205,905 shares of common stock,
par value $0.001 per share (the “Shares”), calculated at the Exchange Price, to the Creditors as is set forth
opposite such Creditor’s name on the Schedule of Creditors.

 

2. Closing;
Delivery of Shares.

 

(a). The closing of the
cancellation of Debts and the issuance of the Shares shall occur as soon as practicable after the execution of this Agreement,
but in no event later than thirty (30) calendar days from the execution of this Agreement (the “Outside Date”),
at the offices of the Company, or such other place, date and time as set forth in this Agreement or as the parties hereto may otherwise
agree (the “Closing”).

 

     

     

    

 

(b). At the Closing,
the Company shall use its best efforts to cause the Company’s transfer agent to deliver to each of the Creditors, by
courier or FedEx, stock certificate, or certificates, registered in the name of such Creditor and representing the amount of
Shares as is set forth opposite such Creditor’s name on the Schedule of Creditors.

 

3. Representations
and Warranties of Creditor. Each Creditor, severally and not jointly, represents and warrants to the Company with respect to
only itself that, as of the date hereof and as of the date of Closing:

 

(a).Qualification,
Authorization and Enforcement. This Agreement has been duly executed by such Creditor, and when delivered by such Creditor
in accordance with the terms hereof, will constitute the valid and legally binding obligation of such Creditor, enforceable against
it in accordance with its terms, except as such enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization,
moratorium, liquidation or similar laws relating to, or affecting generally the enforcement of, creditors’ rights and remedies
or by other equitable principles of general application.

 

(b).No Conflict.
The execution, delivery, and performance of this Agreement do not and will not: (i) conflict with or violate any law or governmental
order applicable to the Creditor; or (ii) conflict with, result in any breach of, constitute a default (or event which with the
giving of notice or lapse of time or both would become a default) under, require any consent under, or give to others any rights
of termination, amendment, acceleration, suspension, revocation or cancellation of, or result in the creation of any encumbrance
on any of the assets or properties of the Creditor pursuant to, any contract to which the Creditor is a party or by which any of
such assets or properties is bound or affected.

 

(c).Governmental
Consents and Approvals. The execution, delivery, and performance of this Agreement by the Creditor do not and will not require
any consent, approval, authorization, or other order of, action by, filing with, or notification to, any governmental authority.

 

(d).Purchase Entirely
for Own Account. Creditor is acquiring the Shares for Creditor’s own account for investment purposes only, not as nominee
or agent, and not with a view to, or for sale in connection with, a distribution of the Shares within the meaning of the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and Creditor has no present intention of selling, granting any
participation in, or otherwise distributing the same in violation of the Securities Act without prejudice; however, Creditor has
a right at all times to sell or otherwise dispose of all or any part of such Shares in compliance with applicable federal and state
securities laws. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed a representation or warranty by Creditor to hold Shares for any period
of time.

 

(e).Investor Status.
Creditor is not a registered broker-dealer under Section 15 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”)
or an entity engaged in a business that would require it to be so registered. Creditor has such experience in business and financial
matters that it is capable of evaluating the merits and risks of an investment in the Shares. Creditor acknowledges that an investment
in the Shares is speculative and involves a high degree of risk. If such Creditor is a U.S. Person (as such term is defined in
Rule 902(k) of Regulation S), at the time such Creditor was offered the Shares, it was, and at the date hereof it is, an “accredited
investor” as defined in Rule 501(a) under the Securities Act, and such Creditor has completed and executed the Creditor Questionnaire
attached as Exhibit B to this Agreement.

 

    2

     

    

 

(f).Regulation
S. If such Creditor is not a U.S. Person, such Creditor (i) acknowledges that the certificate(s) representing or evidencing
the Shares contain a customary restrictive legend restricting the offer, sale or transfer of any Shares except in accordance with
the provisions of Regulation S, pursuant to registration under the Securities Act, or pursuant to an available exemption from registration,
(ii) agrees that all offers and sales by such Creditor of Shares shall be made pursuant to an effective registration statement
under the Securities Act or pursuant to an exemption from, or a transaction not subject to the registration requirements of, the
Securities Act, (iii) represents that the offer to purchase the Shares was made to such Creditor outside of the United States,
and such Creditor was, at the time of the offer and will be, at the time of the sale and is now, outside the United States, (iv)
has not engaged in or directed any unsolicited offers to purchase Shares in the United States, (v) is neither a U.S. Person nor
a Distributor (as such terms are defined in Rule 902(k) and 902(d), respectively, of Regulation S), (vi) has purchased the Shares
for its own account and not for the account or benefit of any U.S. Person, (vii) is the sole beneficial owner of the Shares specified
on signature pages hereto opposite its name and has not pre-arranged any sale with an investor in the United States, and (ix) is
familiar with and understands the terms and conditions and requirements contained in Regulation S, specifically, without limitation,
each Creditor understands that the statutory basis for the exemption claimed for the sale of the Shares would not be present if
the sale, although in technical compliance with Regulation S, is part of a plan or scheme to evade the registration provisions
of the Securities Act. Such Creditor has completed and executed the Creditor Questionnaire attached as Exhibit B to this
Agreement.

 

(g).Access to
Information. Creditor has been afforded (i) the opportunity to ask such questions as it has deemed necessary of, and to receive
answers from, representatives of the Company concerning the terms and conditions of the offering of the Shares and the merits and
risks of investing in the Shares; (ii) access to information about the Company and its financial condition, results of operations,
business, properties, management and prospects sufficient to enable it to evaluate its investment; and (iii) the opportunity to
obtain such additional information that the Company possesses or can acquire without unreasonable effort or expense that is necessary
to make an informed investment decision with respect to the investment.

 

(h).Independent
Investment Decision. Creditor has independently evaluated the merits of its decision to purchase the Shares pursuant to the
this Agreement, and such Creditor confirms that it has not relied on the advice of any other Creditor’s business and/or legal
counsel in making such decision. Creditor understands that nothing in the Agreement or any other materials presented to Creditor
in connection with the purchase and sale of the Shares constitutes legal, tax or investment advice. Creditor has consulted such
legal, tax and investment advisors as it, in its sole discretion, has deemed necessary or appropriate in connection with its purchase
of the Shares.

 

    3

     

    

 

(i).Restricted
Securities. Creditor understands and acknowledges that:

 

i. the
Shares are characterized as “restricted securities” under the U.S. federal securities laws and will bear a customary
restrictive legend inasmuch as they are being acquired from the Company in a transaction not involving a public offering and that
under such laws and applicable regulations such securities may be resold without registration under the Securities Act only in
certain limited circumstances;

 

ii. the
Shares have not been registered under the Securities Act or any state securities laws and are being offered and sold in reliance
upon specific exemptions from the registration requirements of the Securities Act and state securities laws, and the Company is
relying upon the truth and accuracy of, and Creditor’s compliance with, the representations, warranties, covenants, agreements,
acknowledgments and understandings of Creditor contained in this Agreement in order to determine the availability of such exemptions
and the eligibility of Creditor to acquire the Shares; and

 

iii. the
Shares must be held indefinitely unless such Shares are registered under the Securities Act or applicable state securities laws,
or an exemption from registration is available.

 

(j).No Registration
Rights. Creditor further understands that there are no registration rights associated with the Shares being acquired pursuant
to this Agreement.

 

4. Representations
and Warranties of the Company. The Company hereby represents and warrants to each of the Creditors that, as of the date hereof
and as of the date of Closing:

 

(a).Qualification,
Authorization and Enforcement. The Company is duly incorporated or otherwise organized, validly existing and in good standing
under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation, with the requisite power and authority to own and use its properties and
assets and to carry on its business as currently conducted. The Company has the requisite corporate power and authority to enter
into and to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and otherwise to carry out its obligations there under.
The execution and delivery of this Agreement by the Company and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby
and thereby have been duly authorized by all necessary action on the part of the Company and no further action is required by the
Company in connection therewith. This Agreement has been duly executed by the Company and, when delivered in accordance with the
terms hereof, will constitute the valid and binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with
its terms, except as such enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, liquidation
or similar laws relating to, or affecting generally the enforcement of, creditors’ rights and remedies or by other equitable
principles of general application.

 

(b).No Conflicts. The execution,
delivery and performance of this Agreement by the Company and the consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated
hereby and thereby do not and will not (i) conflict with or violate any provision of the Company’s articles of incorporation,
bylaws or other organizational or charter documents as in effect on the date hereof, or (ii) conflict with, or constitute a default
(or an event that with notice or lapse of time or both would become a default) under, or give to others any rights of termination,
amendment, acceleration or cancellation (with or without notice, lapse of time or both) of, any agreement, credit facility, debt
or other instrument (evidencing a Company debt or otherwise) or other understanding to which the Company is a party or by which
any property or asset of the Company is bound or affected, or (iii) result in a violation of any law, rule, regulation, order,
judgment, injunction, decree or other restriction of any court or governmental authority to which the Company is subject (including
federal and state securities laws and regulations), or by which any property or asset of the Company is bound or affected; except
in the case of each of clauses (ii) and (iii), such as could not, individually or in the aggregate, have or reasonably be expected
to result in a material adverse effect.

 

    4

     

    

 

(c).Filings, Consents and Approvals.
The Company is not required to obtain any consent, waiver, authorization or order of, give any notice to, or make any filing or
registration with, any United States or People’s Republic of China court or other federal, state, local or other governmental
authority or other person in connection with the execution, delivery and performance by the Company of this Agreement, other than
(i) filings if required by state securities laws, (ii) if required, the filing with NASDAQ of an applicable additional shares listing
application or notification relating to the Shares issuable hereunder, (iii) if required, the filing of a Notice of Sale of Securities
on Form D with the Securities and Exchange Commission under Regulation D of the Securities Act, (iv) the filings required in accordance
with the Exchange Act and (v) those that have been made or obtained prior to the date of this Agreement.

 

(d).Issuance of Shares. The Shares
are duly authorized and, when issued and paid for in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement, will be validly
issued, fully paid and non assessable, free and clear of all liens imposed by the Company. There are no subscriptions, warrants,
rights of first refusal or other restrictions on transfer relative to, or options exercisable with respect to, the Shares. The
Shares are not the subject of any present or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened suit, action, arbitration, administrative
or other proceeding, and the Company knows of no reasonable grounds for the institution of any such proceedings.

 

5. Amounts
Repaid in Full. For and in consideration of the issuance of the Shares to the Creditors, the Debts shall be deemed to be repaid
in full, and the Company shall have no further obligations in connection with the Debts.

 

6. Release
by the Creditors. Upon receipt of the Shares, each Creditor releases and discharges the Company, the Company’s subsidiaries,
Company’s and each of its subsidiaries’ officers, directors, principals, control persons, past and present employees,
insurers, successors, and assigns (“Company Parties”) from all actions, cause of action, suits, debts, dues,
sums of money, accounts, reckonings, bonds, bills, specialties, covenants, contracts, controversies, agreements, promises, variances,
trespasses, damages, judgments, extents, executions, claims, and demands whatsoever, in law, admiralty or equity, which against
Company Parties such Creditor ever had, now have or hereafter can, shall or may, have for, upon, or by reason of any matter, cause
or thing whatsoever, whether or not known or unknown, from the beginning of the world to the day of the date of this release relating
to the Debts. Each of the Creditors represents and warrants that no other person or entity has any interest in the matters released
herein, and that it has not assigned or transferred, or purported to assign or transfer, to any person or entity all or any portion
of the matters released herein.

 

    5

     

    

 

7. Fees,
Expenses. Each party shall pay the fees and expenses of its advisers, counsel, accountants and other experts, if any, and all
other expenses incurred by such party incident to the negotiation, preparation, execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement.
The Company shall pay all transfer agent fees (including, without limitation, any fees required for same-day processing of any
instruction letter delivered by the Company), stamp taxes and other taxes and duties levied in connection with the delivery of
any Shares to the Creditors.

 

8. General
Provisions.

 

(a).Governing
Law; Jurisdiction; Waiver of Jury Trial. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed under the laws of the State of New
York without regard to the choice of law principles thereof. Each party hereby irrevocably submits to the exclusive jurisdiction
of the state and federal courts sitting in the State of New York located in The City of New York, Borough of Manhattan for the
adjudication of any dispute hereunder or in connection herewith or therewith or with any transaction contemplated hereby or thereby,
and hereby irrevocably waives any objection that such suit, action or proceeding is brought in an inconvenient forum or that the
venue of such suit, action or proceeding is improper. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to limit in any way any right to
serve process in any manner permitted by law. EACH PARTY HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES ANY RIGHT IT MAY HAVE, AND AGREES NOT TO REQUEST,
A JURY TRIAL FOR THE ADJUDICATION OF ANY DISPUTE HEREUNDER OR IN CONNECTION WITH OR ARISING OUT OF THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY TRANSACTION
CONTEMPLATED HEREBY.

 

(b).Termination.
This Agreement may be terminated prior to Closing:

 

i. by
written agreement of the Creditors and the Company; or

 

ii. by
either the Company or an Creditor (as to itself but no other Creditor) upon written notice to the other, if the Closing shall not
have taken place by 6:30 p.m. Eastern time on the Outside Date; provided, that the right to terminate this Agreement under
this Section 8(b) shall not be available to any person whose failure to comply with its obligations under this Agreement has been
the cause of or resulted in the failure of the Closing to occur on or before such time.

 

Upon a termination in
accordance with this Section 8(b), the Company and terminating Creditor(s) shall not have any further obligation or liability (including
as arising from such termination) to the other and no Creditor will have any liability to any other Creditor under this Agreement
as a result here from and there from.

 

(c).Notices.
All notices or other communications required or permitted by this Agreement shall be writing and shall be deemed to have been duly
received:

 

i. if
given by facsimile or electronic version, when transmitted and the appropriate telephonic or electronic confirmation received if
transmitted on a business day and during normal business hours of the recipient, and otherwise on the next business day following
transmission;

 

ii. if
given by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, three business days after being deposited in
the U.S. mails; and

 

    6

     

    

 

iii. if
given by courier or other means, when received or personally delivered, and, in any such case, addressed as indicated herein, or
to such other addresses as may be specified by any such party to the other party pursuant to notice given by such party in accordance
with the provisions of this Section.

 

(d).Further Assurances.
The parties shall execute and deliver all such further instruments and documents and take all such other actions as may reasonably
be required to carry out the transactions contemplated hereby and to evidence the fulfillment of the agreements herein contained.

 

(e).Successors
and Assigns. The terms and conditions of this Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the respective successors
and assigns of the parties.

  

(f).No Third-Party
Beneficiaries. This Agreement is intended for the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and permitted
assigns and is not for the benefit of, nor may any provision hereof be enforced by, any other person, except as otherwise set forth
in Section 6.

 

(g).Modification
and Waivers. No provision of this Agreement may be waived or amended except in a written instrument signed by the Company and
the Creditor(s) holding a majority of the Shares. No waiver of any default with respect to any provision, condition or requirement
of this Agreement shall be deemed to be a continuing waiver in the future or a waiver of any subsequent default or a waiver of
any other provision, condition or requirement hereof, nor shall any delay or omission of either party to exercise any right hereunder
in any manner impair the exercise of any such right.

 

(h).Severability.
If any provision of this Agreement is held to be invalid or unenforceable in any respect, the validity and enforceability of the
remaining terms and provisions of this Agreement shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby and the parties will attempt
to agree upon a valid and enforceable provision that is a reasonable substitute therefor, and upon so agreeing, shall incorporate
such substitute provision in this Agreement.

 

(i).Entire Agreement.
This Agreement contains the entire understanding of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede all prior
agreements, understandings, discussions and representations, oral or written, with respect to such matters, which the parties acknowledge
have been merged into such documents, exhibits and schedules.

 

(j).Headings.
The headings used in this Agreement are for convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to limit, characterize or in
any way affect the interpretation of any provision of this Agreement.

 

(k).Survival.
The representations, warranties, agreements and covenants contained herein shall survive the Closing and the delivery of the Shares,
until the second anniversary of the date hereof.

 

(l).Counterparts.
This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, but all of which together
shall constitute one and the same Agreement. A facsimile or PDF copy of this Agreement shall be deemed an original.

 

[Signature Page Follows]

  

    7

     

    

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF,
the parties have executed this Agreement or caused their duly authorized officers to execute this Agreement as of the date
first above written.

 

	 	COMPANY:
	 	 
	 	CBAK ENERGY TECHNOLOGY, INC.
	 	 	 
	 	By:	/s/ Wenwu Wang
	 	 	Name: Wenwu Wang
	 	 	Title: Chief Financial Officer

 

[REMAINDER OF PAGE INTENTIONALLY
LEFT BLANK

SIGNATURE PAGE FOR CREDITORS FOLLOWS]

  

     

     

    

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF,
the parties have executed this Agreement or caused their duly authorized officers to execute this Agreement as of the date
first above written.

 

	 	CREDITORS
	 	 
	 	Asia EVK Energy Auto Limited
	 	 
	 	By:	/s/ Mu Li
	 	 	Name: Mu Li
	 	 	Title: Authorized Signatory For and on 

behalf of Asia EVK Energy Auto Limited

 

	 	/s/ Jun Lang
	 	Name: Jun Lang
	 	 
	 	/s/ Jing Shi
	 	Name: Jing Shi

  

     

     

    

 

Exhibit A

Schedule of Creditors

 

	Name	 	Debt Amount ($)	 	 	Number of Shares	 
	Jun Lang	 	 	330,587	 	 	 	300,534	 
	Jing Shi	 	 	135,529	 	 	 	123,208	 
	Asia EVK New Energy Auto Limited	 	 	5,260,379	 	 	 	4,782,163	 
	Total	 	 	5,726,495	 	 	 	5,205,905	 

 

     

     

    

 

EXHIBIT B

Regulation S Representation Letter

 

Date: _____________

 

		Re:	Company Name: CBAK Energy Technology, Inc. (the “Company”)

Number of Shares of Common Stock
of the Company: _________(collectively, the “Shares”)

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

Pursuant to certain Cancellation Agreement
between the undersigned and the Company, dated as of April 26, 2019, the undersigned hereby represents, warrants and covenants
to the Company as follows:

 

		1.	The undersigned is not a “U.S. Person,” as such term is defined in Regulation S (“Regulation
S”) promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”).

 

		2.	No offer or sale of the Shares was made to the undersigned in the United States.

 

		3.	The undersigned is not acquiring the Shares for the account or on behalf of any U.S. Person.

 

		4.	The undersigned has not made any prearrangement to transfer the Shares to a U.S. Person or to return
the Shares to the United States securities markets (which includes short sales in the United States within the applicable “distribution
compliance period,” as defined in Regulation S (hereinafter referred to as the “Restricted Period”) to
be covered by delivery of the Company’s Shares) and is not acquiring the Shares as part of any plan or scheme to evade the
registration requirements of the Securities Act.

 

		5.	All offers and sales of the Shares by the undersigned in the United States or to U.S. Persons or
otherwise whether prior to the expiration or after the expiration of the applicable Restricted Period shall be made only pursuant
to a registration of the Shares under the Securities Act or an exemption from registration, and in compliance with Regulation S.

 

		6.	The undersigned is not a “distributor,” as defined in Regulation S. However, if the
undersigned should be deemed to be a distributor prior to reselling the Shares to a non-U.S. Person during the Restricted Period,
the undersigned will send a notice to each new purchaser of Shares that such new purchaser is subject to the restrictions of Regulation
S during the Restricted Period. The undersigned further agrees that it is not to engage in any hedging transactions with regard
to the Shares prior to the expiration of the applicable Restricted Period unless in compliance with the Securities Act.

 

     

     

    

  

		7.	The undersigned is not an “underwriter” or “dealer” (as such terms are
defined in the Securities Act), and the acquisition of the Shares by the undersigned is not a transaction (or part of a series
of transactions) that is part of any plan or scheme to evade the registration provisions of the Securities Act.

 

		8.	The undersigned does not have a short position in any securities of the Company and will not have
a short position in such securities at any time prior to the expiration of the Restricted Period.

 

		9.	If at any time after the expiration of the Restricted Period, the undersigned wishes to transfer
or attempts to transfer the Shares to a U.S. Person, the undersigned agrees to notify the Company if at such time it is an “affiliate”
of the Company or is then acting as an “underwriter,” “dealer,” or “distributor” as to such
securities (as such terms are defined in the Securities Act or the regulations promulgated thereunder, including but not limited
to, Regulation S), or if such transfer is being made as part of a plan or scheme to evade the registration provisions of the Securities
Act.

 

		10.	The undersigned acknowledges that the undersigned may only be able to resell the Shares pursuant
to the provisions of Regulation S and otherwise pursuant to the Securities Act, and that it may not be possible for the undersigned
to liquidate its investment in the Shares. The undersigned is prepared, therefore, to hold its, his or her Shares in the Company
indefinitely.

 

     

     

    

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF,
the undersigned has executed this Regulation S Representation Letter as of the date first set forth above.

 

	 	 
	 	Name:

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