Pursuant to Section 15a of the German Securities Trading Act, members of management or supervisory boards of issuers are obliged to inform the issuer and the federal financial services supervisory office about acquisitions and disposals of, among other things, shares or other securities of the issuer. With the entry into force of the law for the improvement of investor protection on October 30, 2004, the group of persons covered by this rule has been extended and now also includes persons who have regular access to insider information and are authorized to make significant business decisions.