Target company: vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft; Bidder: Vienna GmbH

MUNICH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Publication of the Decision to Make a Takeover Offer pursuant to Section 10 para. 1 in conjunction with Sections 29 and 34 of the German Securities Acquisition and Takeover Act (Wertpapiererwerbs- und Übernahmegesetz)

Bidder:

Vienna GmbH
c/o Carlyle Beratungs GmbH
Promenadeplatz 8
80333 Munich
Germany

registered with the Commercial Register of the Lower Court of Munich under HRB 200612

Target:

vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft
Tilsiter Straße 1
60487 Frankfurt am Main
Germany
http://www.vwd.com

registered with the Commercial Register of the Lower Court of Frankfurt am Main under HRB 81011

ISIN: DE0005204705 (WKN: 520470)

Listed (shares): Regulated Market (Regulierter Markt) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (General Standard), as well as the regulated unofficial market (Freiverkehr) of the stock exchanges of Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Munich und Stuttgart

The offer document and further information regarding the offer will be published on the Internet at:

http://www.vienna-gmbh.com

Information by the Bidder:

Vienna GmbH ('Bidder') decided today to offer to the shareholders of vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft by way of a voluntary public takeover offer to acquire their no-par value bearer shares in vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft ('vwd Shares') against payment of a cash consideration of EUR 2.80 per vwd Share ('Takeover Offer'). The Bidder is a company that is indirectly controlled by the fund Carlyle Europe Technology Partners II, L.P. ('Carlyle'). In the course of the envisaged transaction Carlyle is acting jointly with the shareholder Edmund J. Keferstein as well as with Philipp Henrich and Prof. Dr. Lutz Johanning, who are members of the management board and supervisory board of EDG AG, which is a subsidiary of vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft.

The Takeover Offer will likely be made subject to clearance of the competent cartel authorities and a minimum acceptance threshold of 90% only. Several shareholders undertook vis-à-vis the Bidder to accept within the acceptance period the Takeover Offer with regard to their vwd Shares representing approx. 90.36% of the share capital of vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft.

The Bidder reserves the right, as far as legally permissible, to deviate in the final terms and conditions of the Takeover Offer from the basic information described herein.

Important Information:

This announcement is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell shares of vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft. The offer to purchase shares in vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft will only be made by the publication of the offer document and solely on the basis of the provisions contained therein. Investors and shareholders of vwd Vereinigte Wirtschaftsdienste Aktiengesellschaft are strongly advised to read the offer document and all other relevant documents regarding the Takeover Offer as soon as they are published, since they will contain important information.