About the Bank

Information Policy

Information Policy

Information Policy

DECLARATION
specifying the information policy of Bank Handlowy
w Warszawie S.A. and the Bank's contacts with the media and determining
the scope of information disclosed by the Bank at its headquarters and on its website

Taking account of the fact that the determination of transparent and clear information policy rules of Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A. and rules on contacts with the media provides the public with a consistent and reliable information on the Bank, and carrying into effect the statement made by the Management Board about compliance with the corporate governance rules, the following Declaration setting out the information policy rules of Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A. and the rules of the Bank's contacts with the media and determining the scope of information that the Bank provides at its headquarters and on its website is adopted.

Due to the size and the market position of Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A., operating under the brand name of Citi, listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, as well as due to the Bank's membership to Citi, one of the largest financial institutions in the world, there is a great demand for information about the Bank's activities. The ones interested in obtaining information about the Bank are shareholders, investors, analysts, the media, customers and people who, for various reasons, are interested in the activities of the Bank.

The aim of the Bank is to meet the information needs of all individuals and institutions interested in the information about the company. The Bank takes every effort to ensure that access to the information in the scope guaranteed by all applicable laws is equal and that all groups of stakeholders asking for information are treaded with same care and respect. The Bank carries out a transparent information policy, taking into account the needs of its shareholders and customers.

The scope of information to be provided by the Bank is largely defined by the Polish law and regulations and stems from the fact that the Bank is a company of public trust.

The most important legal acts having a decisive influence on the information policy of the Bank are the following: the Banking Law Act of 29 August 1997, the Trading in Financial Instruments Act of 29 July 2005, the Act of 29 July, 2005 on Public Offering and the Conditions for Introducing Financial Instruments to the Organized Trading System and on Public Companies as well as the Ordinance of the Minister of Finance of 29 March 2018 on Current and Periodic Information Published by Issuers of Securities and the Conditions for Regarding as Equivalent the Information Required by the Law of a Non-Member State.

The Management Board of the Bank and the Communication and Media Relations Department, which is designated to manage all information activities of the Bank, coordinate the Bank's information policy. It takes place on two levels. One of them is the disclosure of information arising from the fact of being a public company, listed on the stock exchange in Warsaw. The Bank, which is listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange as "Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A.," fulfils the information obligations imposed on the listed companies specified in the Ordinance of the Minister of Finance of 29 March 2018 on Current and Periodic Information Published by Issuers of Securities and the Conditions for Regarding as Equivalent the Information Required by the Law of a Non-Member State. The publication of information in accordance with the above legal act ensures that the public has equal access to the information on the company's current operations and the financial situation of the company. The information is available through the Polish Press Agency.

The second level at which the Bank's information policy is implemented covers all the publicly accessible sources of information about the Bank, the aim of which is to reach the public as widely as possible through various channels and forms of communication developed by the Bank. The include, among others, such forms of communication as:

  • press conferences,
  • press releases,
  • the Bank's website,
  • newsletters for customers,
  • social media.

The organizational structure of the Communication and Media Relations Department, run by the Director who at the same time acts as a Spokesperson for the Bank, includes the Press Office, which provides up-to-date information to the representatives of the mass media. The task of this organizational unit of the Bank is also to provide answers to any questions asked by representatives of the media, which do not lead to the disclosure of banking secrecy, trade secrets or other information that could in any way contribute to the weakening of the competitive position of the Bank.

With respect to the financial information reporting, the Press Office is supported by the Investor Relations Office, which is supervised by the Chief Financial Officer of the Bank. The Office is responsible for providing information to investors and financial analysts. Responses to queries from investors are given by the Financial Planning and Investor Relations Office. All queries are answered promptly, no later than within 7 working days. However, in justified cases this time limit may be extended after informing the investor about the expected date of response. The Department of Communication and Media Relations assists the Investor Relations Office to ensure the consistency of the information provided to investors with the information policy of the Bank.

There are two internal normative acts in the Bank regulating the sphere of external contacts. They are: Order No. 76/ST/2016 of the President of the Management Board of the Bank of 1 July 2016 on Information Obligations of Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A. as an Issuer of Securities, Decision No. P-300/SZF/2019 of 29 March 2019 on the Obligations of Organizational Units of the Bank with Respect to Preparing Periodic Reports and Modes and Deadlines for Their Preparation, Order No. 107/DK of the President of the Management Board of the Bank of 30 June 2004 "Policy on Contacts with the Media and Marketing Projects in Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A".

The employees of Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A., a member of the Capital Group of Citi, are obliged to comply with the rules set out in the document "The Rules of Conduct of Employees of Bank Handlowy w Warszawie S.A. ". This document constitutes an essential element of the internal regulations that decide about the information policy of the Bank. It regulates, among other things, the principles of representing Citi to Customers, external partners and the mass media.

The full range of information that the Bank provides on its web pages, at branches and at its headquarters takes into account the product offering of individual business areas of the Bank, i.e.:

  • Retail Banking,
  • Small Business Banking,
  • Corporate and Commercial Banking,

and additional information about the Bank, available at
http://www.citibank.pl/poland/homepage/polish/mapa-serwisu.htm