EX-4.20 3 cntg-20221231xex4d20.htm EX-4.20

Exhibit 4.20

LONG-TERM INCENTIVE PLAN

CENTOGENE N.V.

INTRODUCTION

Article 1
1.1This document sets out the Company's long-term incentive plan for employees, officers and other service providers who qualify as Eligible Participants.
1.2The main purposes of this Plan are:
1.to attract, retain and motivate Participants with the qualities, skills and experience needed to support and promote the growth and sustainable success of the Company and its business; and
2.to incentivise Participants to perform at the highest level and to further the best interests of the Company, its business and its stakeholders.

DEFINITIONS AND INTERPRETATION

1
1In this Plan the following definitions shall apply:

Article

An article of this Plan.

Award

A grant under this Plan in the form of one or more Options, SGAs, SARs, Shares of Restricted Stock, RSUs, PSUs, Other Awards, or a combination of the foregoing.

Award Agreement

A written agreement between the Company and a Participant evidencing the grant of an Award to such Participant and containing such terms as the Committee may determine, consistent with and subject to the terms of this Plan.

Bad Leaver

A Participant who ceases to be an Eligible Participant for Cause.

Cause

With respect to a Participant, "cause" as defined in such Participant's employment, service or consulting agreement with the Company or a Subsidiary, or if not so defined (and unless determined otherwise in the applicable Award Agreement or otherwise by the Committee):


a.

such Participant's indictment for any crime which (i) constitutes a felony, (ii) has, or could reasonably be expected to have, an adverse impact on the performance of such Participant's services to the Company and/or any Subsidiary or (iii) has, or could reasonably be expected to have, an adverse impact on the business and/or reputation of the Company and/or any Subsidiary;

b.

such Participant having been the subject of any order, judicial or administrative, obtained or issued by any governmental or regulatory body for any securities laws violation involving fraud, market manipulation, insider trading and/or unlawful dissemination of non-public price-sensitive information;

c.

such Participant's wilful violation of the Company's code of business conduct and ethics, insider trading policy or other internal policies and regulations established by the Company and/or any Subsidiary, in each case to the extent applicable to the Participant concerned;

d.

gross negligence or wilful misconduct in the performance of such Participant's duties for the Company and/or any Subsidiary or wilful or repeated failure or refusal to perform such duties;

e.

material breach by such Participant of any employment, service, consulting or other agreement entered into between such Participant on the one hand and the Company and/or any Subsidiary on the other;

f.

conduct by such Participant which should be considered as an urgent cause within the meaning of Section 7:678 DCC, irrespective of whether that provision applies to such Participant's relationship with the Company and/or any Subsidiary; and

g.

such other acts or omissions to act by such Participant as reasonably determined by the Committee,


provided that the Committee may determine, at its absolute discretion, that occurrence of an event described in paragraphs c. through e. above shall only constitute Cause if and when such event has not been cured or remedied by the relevant Participant within thirty days after the Company has provided written notice to such Participant.

Change of Control

The occurrence of any one or more of the following events (in each case unless the Committee determines otherwise):

a.

the direct or indirect change in ownership or control of the Company effected through one transaction, or a series of related transactions within a twelve-month period, as a result of which any Person or group of Persons acting in concert, directly or indirectly acquires (i) beneficial ownership of at least 50% of the Company's issued share capital and/or (ii) the ability to cast at least 50% of the voting rights in the General Meeting;

b.

at any time during a period of twelve consecutive months, individuals who at the beginning of such period constituted the Supervisory Board cease to constitute a majority of members of the Supervisory Board, provided that any new member of the Supervisory Board who was nominated for appointment by the Supervisory Board by a vote of at least a majority of the Supervisory Directors who either were Supervisory Directors at the beginning of such twelve-month period or whose nomination for appointment was so approved, shall be considered as though such individual were a member of the Supervisory Board at the beginning of such twelve-month period;

c.

the consummation of a merger, demerger or business combination of the Company or any Subsidiary with another Person, as a result of which the legal or beneficial ownership of the Shares outstanding immediately prior to the consummation of such transaction no longer represents (either by remaining outstanding or by being converted into, or exchanged for,


voting securities of the surviving or acquiring Person or a parent thereof) (i) legal or beneficial ownership of at least fifty percent (50%) of all outstanding Shares, or at least fifty percent (50%) of the shares in the capital of such surviving or acquiring Person or parent, outstanding immediately after the consummation of such transaction or (ii) at least fifty percent (50%) of all voting rights attached to the securities referred to under (i) of this paragraph c.;

d.

the consummation of any sale, lease, exchange or other transfer to any Person or group of Persons acting in concert, not being Subsidiaries, in one transaction or a series of related transactions within a twelve-month period, of all or substantially all of the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries,

provided in each case that, under no circumstances, a delisting of the Shares in itself (i.e., without being combined with any of the events mentioned under paragraphs a. through d. above) will constitute a Change of Control.

Committee

Subject to Article 3.2, the Supervisory Board, acting at the recommendation of the Company's compensation committee.

Company

Centogene N.V.

Consultant

Any Person, other than a Managing Director, Supervisory Director or Employee, who is an adviser or consultant engaged by the Company and/or a Subsidiary to render bona fide services to the Company and/or a Subsidiary.

DCC

The Dutch Civil Code.

Eligible Participant

Any Managing Director, Supervisory Director, Employee or Consultant.

Employee

Any Person, other than a Managing Director or a Supervisory Director, who is an employee or officer of the Company and/or a Subsidiary.

Exercise Date

The date on which an Award is duly exercised by or on behalf of the Participant concerned.

Exercise Price

The exercise price applicable to an Award.


FMV

The volume weighted average closing price of a Share over a period of twenty trading days on the principal stock exchange where Shares have been admitted for trading, unless determined otherwise by the Committee.

General Meeting

The Company's general meeting of shareholders.

Good Leaver

A Participant who ceases to be an Eligible Participant and who is not a Bad Leaver.

Grant Date

The date on which the Committee decides to grant an Award, or such later effective date applicable to such Award as may be determined by the Committee.

Management Board

The Company's management board.

Managing Director

A member of the Management Board.

Option

The right to subscribe for, or otherwise acquire, one Plan Share.

Other Award

An Award which does not take the form of an Option, SGA, SAR, Share of Restricted Stock, RSU or PSU, and which may be denominated or payable in, valued in whole or in part by reference to, or otherwise based on or related to Shares or factors which may influence the value of Shares, including financial instruments which are convertible into or exchangeable for Plan Shares.

Participant

The holder of an Award, including, as the context may require, the rightful heir(s) of a previous holder of such Award having acquired such Award as a result of the death of such previous holder.

Performance Criteria

The performance criteria applicable to an Award.

Person

A natural person, partnership, company, association, cooperative, mutual insurance society, foundation or any other entity or body which operates externally as an independent unit or organisation.

Plan

This long-term incentive plan.

Plan Share

A Share underlying an Award.

PSU

Any RSU in respect of which the vesting is conditioned in whole or in part on the satisfaction of Performance Criteria.

Replacement Award

An Award granted in assumption of, or in substitution or exchange for, long-term incentive awards previously granted by a Person acquired (or whose business is


acquired) by the Company or a Subsidiary or with which the Company or a Subsidiary merges or forms a business combination, as reasonably determined by the Committee.

Restricted Stock

Plan Shares subject to such restrictions as the Committee may impose, including with respect to voting rights and the right to receive dividends or other distributions made by the Company.

RSU

The right to receive one or more Plan Shares valued at FMV on the Exercise Date.

SAR

The right to receive, in the form of Plan Shares valued at FMV, the excess of the FMV of one Share on the applicable Exercise Date over the applicable Exercise Price.

SGA

The right to receive one Plan Share, which shall be settled automatically through the delivery of such Plan Share to the Participant once the Award becomes fully vested in accordance with its terms.

Section 409A IRC

Section 409A of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and the rules, regulations and guidance promulgated pursuant thereto.

Share

A share in the Company's capital.

Subsidiary

A subsidiary of the Company within the meaning of Section 2:24a DCC.

Supervisory Board

The Company's supervisory board.

Supervisory Director

A member of the Supervisory Board.

2References to statutory provisions are to those provisions as they are in force from time to time.
3Terms that are defined in the singular have a corresponding meaning in the plural.
4Words denoting a gender include each other gender.
5Except as otherwise required by law, the terms "written" and "in writing" include the use of electronic means of communication.

ADMINISTRATION

Article 2
1This Plan shall be administered by the Committee. The Committee's powers and authorities under this Plan include the authority to perform the following matters, in each case consistent with and subject to the terms of this Plan:

1designating Persons to whom Awards are granted;
2deciding to grant Awards;
3determining the form(s), format(s) and type(s) of Awards being granted and setting the terms and conditions applicable to such Awards, including:
1the number of Plan Shares underlying Awards;
2whether, to which extent, and under which circumstances Awards may cancelled, forfeited or suspended;
3whether, to which extent and under which circumstances a Participant may designate another Person owned or controlled by him as recipient or beneficiary of his Awards;
4whether and to which extent Awards are subject to Performance Criteria and/or restrictive covenants (including non-competition, non-solicitation, confidentiality and/or Share ownership requirements);
5the method(s) by which Awards may be exercised, settled or cancelled;
6whether, to which extent and under which circumstances, the exercise, settlement or cancellation of Awards may be deferred or suspended;
4amending or waiving the terms applicable to outstanding Awards (including Performance Criteria), subject to the restrictions imposed by Article 9 and provided that no such amendment shall take effect without the consent of the affected Participant(s), if such amendment would materially and adversely affect the rights of the Participant(s) under such Awards, except to the extent that any such amendment is made to cause this Plan or the Awards concerned to comply with applicable law, stock exchange rules, accounting principles or tax rules and regulations;
5correcting any defect, supplying any omission or reconciling any inconsistency in the Plan or any Award Agreement;
6making any determination under, and interpreting the terms of, this Plan, any rules or regulations issued pursuant to this Plan and any Award Agreement;
7settling any dispute between the Company and any Participant (including any beneficiary of his Awards) regarding the administration and operation of this Plan, any rules or regulations issued pursuant to this Plan, and any Award Agreement entered into with such Participant; and
8making any other determination or taking any other action which the Committee considers to be necessary, useful or desirable in connection with the administration or operation of this Plan.
2The Management Board is authorized to submit proposals to the Company's compensation committee for the grant of Awards to Eligible Participants who are not Managing Directors or Supervisory Directors, provided that (i) the Management Board may not grant more Awards to

those Eligible Participants than an aggregate number of Awards approved by the Committee from time to time and (ii) when granting such Awards, the Management Board shall observe any other restrictions imposed by the Committee from time to time in connection with the administration or operation of this Plan. The Company's compensation committee may approve such proposals without further approval from the Supervisory Board.
3The Committee may issue further rules and regulations for the administration and operation of this Plan, consistent with and subject to the terms of this Plan.
4All decisions of the Committee shall be final, conclusive and binding upon the Company and the Participants (including beneficiaries of Awards).

AWARDS

Article 3
1Awards can only be granted to Eligible Participants, unless the Committee decides otherwise.
2No Award is intended to confer any rights on the relevant Participant except as set forth in the applicable Award Agreement. In particular, no Award should be construed as giving any Participant the right to remain employed by or to continue to provide services for the Company or any Subsidiary.
3Awards can be granted for no consideration or for such minimal cash consideration as may be required by applicable law.
4Awards may be granted alone or in addition or in tandem with any other Award and/or any award under any other plan of the Company or any Subsidiary. Awards granted in addition or in tandem with any other Award and/or any award under any other plan of the Company or any Subsidiary may be granted simultaneously or at different times.
5Each Award shall be evidenced by an Award Agreement entered into between the Company and the Participant concerned. Until an Award Agreement has been entered into between the Company and the relevant Participant, no rights can be derived from the Awards concerned by such Participant.
6Plan Shares, including Awards in the form of SGAs or Shares of Restricted Stock, shall be delivered in book-entry form to the relevant Participant's account with the Company's U.S. transfer agent in such form(s) as may be determined by the Committee and shall be subject to such stop transfer orders and other restrictions as the Committee may deem required or advisable. Furthermore, the Committee may determine that certificates for such Shares shall bear an appropriate legend referring to the terms, conditions and restrictions applicable thereto. Plan Shares shall be delivered as promptly as reasonably practicable following the exercise or settlement of the relevant Award, but in no event later than 30 days following such exercise of settlement. Plan Shares shall be delivered through the records of the Company's transfer agent.
7The terms and conditions applicable to Awards, including the time(s) when Awards vest in whole or in part and any applicable Performance Criteria, shall be set by the Committee and may vary

between Awards and between Participants, as the Committee deems appropriate. Without prejudice to the settlement of SGAs upon vesting, the Committee may also determine whether and under which circumstances other Awards shall be settled automatically upon vesting, without being exercised by the Participant.
8The term of an Award shall be determined by the Committee, but shall not exceed ten years from the applicable Grant Date. Unless determined otherwise by the Committee, if the exercise or settlement of an Award is prohibited by applicable law or the Company's insider trading policy on the last business day of the term of such Award, such term shall be extended for a period of one month following the end of such prohibition.
9Unless determined otherwise by the Committee, Awards cannot be transferred, pledged or otherwise encumbered, except by testament or hereditary law as a result of death of the Participant concerned. For the avoidance of doubt, Plan Shares delivered upon the exercise or settlement of an Award can be freely transferred, subject to restrictions under applicable law and the Company's insider trading policy.
10If, as a result of changes in applicable law, accounting principles or tax rules and regulations, or due to a variation of the composition of the Company's issued share capital (including a share split, reverse share split, redenomination of the nominal value, or as a result of a dividend or other distribution, reorganization, acquisition, merger, demerger, business combination or other transaction involving the Company or a Subsidiary), an adjustment to this Plan, any Award Agreement and/or outstanding Awards is necessary to prevent dilution or enlargement of the benefits or potential benefits intended to be made available under this Plan, the Committee may adjust equitably any or all of:
1the number of Plan Shares available under this Plan;
2the number of Plan Shares underlying outstanding Awards; and/or
3the Exercise Price or other terms applicable to outstanding Awards.
11Any rights, payments and benefits under any Award shall be subject to repayment and/or recoupment by the Company in accordance with applicable law, stock exchange rules and such policies and procedures as the Company may adopt from time to time.
12The Company shall report the additional income due to any grant of Awards and delivery of Plan Shares to a Participant in accordance with the prevailing income tax reporting requirements in the respective period. The taxable event in connection with any delivery of Plan Shares shall be considered to occur, to the extent permitted under applicable law, on the date of such delivery through the records of the Company's transfer agent and shall be reported by the Company in U.S. dollars, converted to the local currency applicable in the jurisdiction where the relevant Participant has his or her tax residency (if applicable).

TYPES OF AWARDS

Article 4

4.1The Committee may grant Awards in the form of Options, SGAs, SARs, Shares of Restricted Stock, RSUs, PSUs, Other Awards or a combination of the foregoing.
4.2Upon the exercise or settlement of vested Options, the Company shall be obliged to deliver to the Participant concerned (or the beneficiary of such Options, as applicable), the Plan Shares underlying such Options (unless otherwise set forth in the Award Agreement).
4.3An SGA shall be settled in the form of the Plan Shares on the date that the SGA vests in accordance with its terms, with such Plan Shares to be delivered as soon as reasonably practicable after such vesting date, but in no event later than 30 days following such vesting date. Such settlement shall occur automatically and without the Participant exercising any discretion as to when the underlying Plan Shares are delivered.
4.4Upon the exercise or settlement of vested SARs, the Company shall be obliged to pay to the Participant concerned (or the beneficiary of such SARs, as applicable) an amount equal to the number of Plan Shares underlying such SARs multiplied by the excess, if any, of the FMV of one Share on the applicable Exercise Date over the applicable Exercise Price. The Company shall satisfy such payment obligation in the form of Shares valued at FMV.
4.5The exercise by a Participant of his rights attached to Shares of Restricted Stock shall be subject to such restrictions as the Committee may impose, including with respect to voting rights and the right to receive dividends or other distributions made by the Company. Upon the vesting of Shares of Restricted Stock, any such restrictions and conditions shall lapse with respect to those Shares. If an Award in the form of Shares of Restricted Stock is cancelled or otherwise terminated, the Participant shall be obliged to transfer all of his unvested Shares of Restricted Stock to the Company promptly and for no consideration.
4.6Upon the exercise or settlement of vested RSUs or PSUs, the Company shall be obliged to pay to the Participant concerned (or the beneficiary of such RSUs or PSUs, as applicable) an amount equal to the number of Plan Shares underlying such RSUs or PSUs multiplied by the FMV of one Share on the applicable Exercise Date. The Company shall satisfy such payment obligation in the form of Shares valued at FMV.
4.7The Committee may determine that a Participant holding one or more RSUs or PSUs is entitled to receive dividends and other distributions made by the Company on the Shares, as if such Participant held the Plan Shares underlying such RSUs or PSUs. The Committee may impose restrictions with respect to such entitlement.

PERFORMANCE CRITERIA

5
1The Committee may condition the right of a Participant to exercise one or more of his Awards, and the timing thereof, upon the achievement or satisfaction of such Performance Criteria as may be determined by the Committee, within periods specified by the Committee.
2If an Award is subject to Performance Criteria which must be achieved or satisfied within a period

specified by the Committee for that purpose, such Award can only be exercised or settled at or after the end of that period.
3Performance Criteria may be measured on an absolute or relative basis and may be established on a Company-wide basis or with respect to one or more business units, divisions, Subsidiaries and/or business segments. Relative performance may be measured against a group of peer companies determined by the Committee, financial market indices and/or other objective and quantifiable indices. Performance Criteria may relate to performance by the Company and/or by the Participant concerned.
4If the Committee determines that a change in the business, operations, group structure or capital structure of the Company, or other events or circumstances, render certain Performance Criteria applicable to outstanding Awards unsuitable or inappropriate, the Committee may amend or waive such Performance Criteria, in whole or in part, as the Committee deems appropriate.

PLAN SHARES AVAILABLE FOR AWARDS

Article 6
1Subject to Articles 4.10 and 7.2, the maximum number of Plan Shares underlying Awards which are not Replacement Awards shall not exceed 13% of the Company's issued share capital immediately following the completion of the initial public offering of Shares, provided that, on January 1, 2020 and on January 1 of each calendar year thereafter, such maximum number shall be increased with an additional number of Shares equal to 3% of the Company's issued share capital on such date (or any lower number of Shares as determined by the Committee).
2Plan Shares underlying Awards, except for Replacement Awards, which expire, which are cancelled or otherwise terminated, shall again be available under this Plan and shall not be counted towards the limit imposed by Article 7.1.

VESTING, EXERCISE AND SETTLEMENT

7
1Each Award Agreement shall contain the vesting schedule, where relevant, delivery schedule (which may include deferred delivery later than the vesting dates) for the relevant Awards. Except with respect to Awards granted to Supervisory Directors, a one-year cliff vesting schedule shall apply to all Awards (i.e., the entire Award time-vests on the first anniversary of the Grant Date (or such other date as determined by the Committee instead of the Grant Date), subject to any Performance Criteria or other vesting conditions imposed by the Committee), provided that the Committee may decide to deviate from such one-year vesting schedule for specific Awards.
2Only vested Awards may be exercised or settled in accordance with their terms. An Award can only be exercised (to the extent it is not settled automatically) by or on behalf of the Participant holding such Award.
3An Award can only be exercised through the use of an electronic system or platform to be

designated by the Committee (if and when such system or platform has been set up by the Company), or otherwise by delivering written notice to the Company in a form approved by the Committee.
4Subject to Article 9.1, the Committee shall determine the Exercise Price, provided that the Exercise Price for an Award which can be exercised or settled in the form of Plan Shares shall not be less than the aggregate nominal value of such Plan Shares.
5Upon the exercise of an Award, the applicable Exercise Price must immediately be paid in cash, wire transfer of immediately available funds or by check payable to the order of the Company, provided that the Committee, subject to applicable law, may allow that such Exercise Price is satisfied on a cashless basis as follows:
1by means of an immediate sale of Plan Shares underlying the Award concerned, with sale proceeds equal to the Exercise Price being paid to the Company on behalf of the relevant Participant and any remaining sale proceeds (less applicable costs and taxes, if any) being paid to such Participant;
2as a result of the relevant Participant forfeiting his entitlement to receive part of the Plan Shares underlying the Award concerned at FMV on the Exercise Date and charging the aggregate nominal value of the remaining Plan Shares underlying such Award against the Company's reserves; and/or
3as a result of the relevant Participant surrendering and transferring Shares to the Company (which may include Plan Shares underlying the Award concerned) at FMV on the Exercise Date.
6The Company is authorized to withhold from any Award granted or any payment due or transfer made under any Award or under the Plan or from any compensation or other amount owing to a Participant the amount (in cash, Shares, other Awards, other property, net settlement or any combination thereof) of applicable taxes and fees incurred or due in respect of an Award, its exercise or settlement or any payment or transfer under such Award or under the Plan and to take such other action as may be necessary in the option of the Company to satisfy all obligations for the payment of such taxes
7When an Award is exercised or settled in the form of Plan Shares, the Company may, at the discretion of the Committee, subject to applicable law and the Company's insider trading policy:
1issue new Plan Shares to the relevant Participant; or
2transfer existing Plan Shares held by the Company to the relevant Participant,

provided, in each case, that Plan Shares may be delivered in the form of book-entry securities representing those Plan Shares (or beneficial ownership of those Plan Shares entitling the holder to exercise or direct the exercise of voting rights attached thereto) credited to the securities account designated by the relevant Participant.

8If an Award is exercised or settled in the form of Plan Shares and such Award does not relate to a whole number of Plan Shares, the number of Plan Shares underlying such Award shall be rounded

down to the nearest integer.

PRICING RESTRICTIONS FOR OPTIONS AND SARS

Article 8
1Except for Replacement Awards, the Exercise Price for an Option or SAR shall not be less than the higher of:
1the FMV of a Plan Share on the applicable Grant Date and, in case of a SAR being granted in connection with an Option, on the Grant Date of such Option; or
2the nominal value of a Plan Share (i.e., EUR 0.12).
2Except as provided in Article 4.10, the Committee may not, without prior approval of the General Meeting, seek to effect any re-pricing of any outstanding "underwater" Option or SAR by:
1amending or modifying the terms of such Award to lower the Exercise Price;
2cancelling such Award and granting in exchange either (i) replacement Options and/or SARs having a lower Exercise Price, or (ii) Restricted Stock, RSUs, PSUs or Other Awards; or
3cancelling or repurchasing such Award for cash, assets or other securities.
3Options and SARs will be considered to be "underwater" within the meaning of Article 9.1 at any time when the FMV of the Plan Shares underlying such Awards is less than the applicable Exercise Price.

U.S. PARTICIPANTS

Article 9
1With respect to any Award subject to Section 409A IRC, this Plan and the applicable Award Agreement are intended to comply with the requirements of Section 409A IRC, the provisions of this Plan and such Award Agreement shall be interpreted in a manner that satisfies the requirements of Section 409A IRC, and this Plan shall be operated accordingly. If any provision of this Plan or any term or condition of any Award subject to Section 409A IRC would otherwise frustrate or conflict with this intent, the provision, term or condition will be interpreted and deemed amended so as to avoid this conflict.
2If all or part of any payments made, or other benefits conferred, under any Award subject to Section 409A IRC constitutes deferred compensation for purposes of Section 409A IRC as a result of a "separation from service" of the relevant Participant (other than due to his death) within the meaning of Section 409A IRC while such Participant is a "specified employee" under Section 409A IRC, then such payment or benefit shall not be made or conferred until six months and one business day have elapsed after the date of such "separation from service", except as permitted under Section 409A IRC.

3If an Award subject to Section 409A IRC includes a "series of installment payments" within the meaning of Section 1.409A-2(b)(2)(iii) of the United States Treasury Regulations, the right of the relevant Participant to such series of installment payments shall be treated as a right to a series of separate payments and not as a right to a single payment, and if such an Award includes "dividend equivalents" within the meaning of Section 1.409A-3(e) of the United States Treasury Regulations, the right of the relevant Participant to such dividend equivalents shall be treated separately from the right to other amounts or other benefits under such Award.
4For any Award subject to Section 409A IRC that provides for accelerated distribution on a Change of Control of amounts that constitute "deferred compensation" as defined in Section 409A IRC, if the event that constitutes such Change of Control does not also constitute a change in the ownership or effective control of the Company, or in the ownership of a substantial portion of the Company's assets (in either case, as defined in Section 409A IRC), such amount shall not be distributed on such Change in Control but instead shall vest as of the date of such Change of Control and shall be paid on the scheduled payment date specified in the applicable Award Agreement, except to the extent that earlier distribution would not result in the relevant Participant incurring any additional tax, penalty, interest or other expense under Section 409A IRC.
5Notwithstanding the foregoing in this Article 10, the tax treatment of the benefits provided under this Plan or any Award Agreement is not warranted or guaranteed, and in no event shall the Company be liable for all or any portion of any taxes, penalties, interest or other expenses that may be incurred by a U.S. Participant on account of non-compliance with Section 409A IRC.
6A U.S. Participant is not eligible to receive Awards in the form of RSUs or PSUs.

LEAVER

Article 10
10.1If a Participant becomes a Good Leaver, unless otherwise determined by the Committee or set forth in an Award Agreement:
1.all vested Awards that have not yet been exercised or settled must be exercised or settled in accordance with their terms within a 6-month period and, if such Awards are not exercised or (through no fault of the Participant concerned) not settled within such period, they shall be cancelled automatically without compensation for the loss of such Awards; and
2.all unvested Awards of such Participant shall be cancelled automatically without compensation for the loss of such Awards, unless the Committee decides otherwise.
10.2If a Participant becomes a Bad Leaver, all vested Awards of such Participant which have not been exercised or settled, as well as all unvested Awards of such Participant, shall be cancelled automatically without compensation for the loss of such Awards.


CHANGE OF CONTROL

Article 11
11.1If long-term incentive awards are granted in assumption of, or in substitution or exchange for, outstanding Awards in connection with a Change of Control and the Committee has determined that such awards are sufficiently equivalent to the outstanding Awards concerned, then such outstanding Awards shall be cancelled and terminated upon the replacement awards being granted to the Participants concerned.
11.2If, in connection with a Change of Control, outstanding Awards are not replaced by long-term incentive awards as described in Article 12.1, or are replaced by long-term incentive awards which the Committee does not consider to be sufficiently equivalent to such outstanding Awards, then such Awards shall immediately vest and, where relevant, settle in full, unless the Committee decides otherwise.

LOCK-UP

Article 12

In connection with any registration of the Company's securities, to the extent requested by the Company or the underwriters managing any public offering of the Company's securities, and except (a) as otherwise approved by the Committee, or (b) pursuant to any exceptions approved by the underwriters, Shares acquired by a Participant pursuant to the issuance, vesting, exercise, or settlement of any Award granted hereunder may not be sold, transferred, or otherwise disposed of prior to such period following the effective date of such registration as designated by the underwriters, not to exceed 180 days following such registration (the "Lock-Up Period"). The Company may impose stop-transfer instructions with respect to the Shares subject to the foregoing restriction until the end of such Lock-Up Period.

DATA PROTECTION

Article 13
13.1The Company may process personal data relating to the Participants in connection with the administration and operation of this Plan. The personal data of the Participants which may be processed in this respect may include a copy of an identification document, contact details and bank and securities account numbers. Each Participant's personal data shall be stored by the Company for such time period as is necessary to administer such Participant's participation in the Plan or as otherwise permitted under applicable law.
13.2Each Participant's personal data shall be handled by the Company in a proper and careful manner in accordance with applicable law, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the rules and regulations promulgated pursuant thereto. Participants have the right to lodge complaints with an applicable supervisory authority regarding the Company's processing of personal data pursuant to this Plan.
13.3The Company shall implement technical and organisational measures designed to protect

personal data processed pursuant to Article 14.1. Personnel or third parties that have access to such personal data shall be bound by confidentiality obligations.
13.4The Company shall abide by any statutory rights the Participants may have regarding their respective personal data processed pursuant to Article 14.1, which includes the right to access, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing, objection to processing and portability of such personal data.
13.5In connection with the administration and operation of this Plan, the Company may transfer personal data processed pursuant to Article 14.1 to one or more third parties, provided that there is a legitimate interest in doing so. Where such third parties are located outside the European Economic Area in countries that are not considered to provide for an adequate level of data protection, the Company shall ensure that sufficient data protection safeguards are put in place, failing which explicit consent for such transfer shall be obtained from the Participant(s) concerned.
13.6The Company may establish one or more privacy policies providing further information on data protection and applying to the processing of personal data of the Participants by the Company in connection with the administration and operation of this Plan.

INSIDER TRADING

Article 14

All transactions in connection with the operation of this Plan are subject to the stipulations set forth in the Company's Insider Trading Policy as well as applicable laws, regulations and stock exchange rules.

AMENDMENT AND TERMINATION

Article 15

Pursuant to a resolution to that effect, the Supervisory Board may amend, supplement or terminate this Plan, provided that no such amendment, supplement or termination shall take effect without:

1.approval of the General Meeting, if such approval is required by applicable law or stock exchange rules; and/or
2.the consent of the affected Participant(s), if such action would materially and adversely affect the rights of such Participant(s) under any outstanding Award, except to the extent that any such amendment, supplement or termination is made to cause this Plan to comply with applicable law, stock exchange rules, accounting principles or tax rules and regulations.

GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION

Article 16

This Plan shall be governed by and shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the Netherlands.


Subject to Article 3.1 paragraph g., any dispute arising in connection with these rules shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent court in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.