A total of 38.8% of the voting capital was represented at our General Meeting on June 9, 2003 in the Festhalle in Frankfurt, three percentage points more than in 2002. By contrast, shareholder attendance, at 5,500, was 1,000 below the previous year’s figure. One reason for the increased presence of voting capital was that we made it easier for our institutional shareholders to exercise their voting rights. Increasing use was made of our user-friendly Internet applications relating to the General Meeting. For the first time, shareholders were able to register for electronic mailings of documentation for the General Meeting. All counterproposals were published without delay on our website, as required by law.
After the customary review of business performance, Josef Ackermann, Spokesman of the Board of Managing Directors and Chairman of the Group Executive Committee, introduced the new phase of our management agenda that focuses mainly on improving revenues. This was followed by an animated exchange of views between shareholders and management. Towards the end of the event, shareholders approved all items of the agenda with large majorities.
