BNY Mellon has been appointed by Covestro as depositary bank for its sponsored American depositary receipt (ADR) programme, replacing previously unsponsored facilities.
The ADRs will continue to trade on the US over-the-counter market under the symbol COVTY.
Headquartered in Germany, Covestro is among the world’s largest polymer companies, with sales of EUR12.1 billion in 2015. The company focuses on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. Its products are used in the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction and sports and leisure industries.
Formerly Bayer MaterialScience, Covestro has 30 production facilities worldwide and employed approximately 15,800 people as of year-end 2015.
”The US is a crucial strategic market for Covestro, both operationally as well as in terms of our investor base. With the conversion to a sponsored Level I ADR programme, we aim to facilitate access to the stock for global investors and further broaden our shareholder base in the long term,” says Frank H Lutz, chief financial officer of Covestro. “It also enables us to roll out our employee share programme, Covestment, for our US colleagues.”
"Germany continues to be an important market for US investors,” says Christopher M Kearns (pictured), CEO of BNY Mellon's depositary receipts business. “We look forward to working closely with Covestro and providing the resources and market expertise to help the company take its new sponsored DR to the next level."
Covestro is the latest global firm to convert from an unsponsored to a sponsored depositary receipt programme, which can add value in terms of enhanced visibility, liquidity, and other benefits from being serviced by a single depositary bank. Over the last three years, 21 companies from a dozen countries with unsponsored programmes have appointed BNY Mellon as their sponsored depositary.
