Österreichische Volksbanken-Aktiengesellschaft ... - Volksbank AG

Place of Jurisdiction: Non-exclusive place of jurisdiction for any legal proceedings
arising under the Notes is Vienna, Austria to the extent permissible
under mandatory laws.
Binding Language: To be specified in the relevant Final Terms, as either:
English language, and, if specified in the relevant Final
Terms, with the German language version constituting a convenience
translation only; or
German language, and, if specified in the relevant Final
Terms, with the English language version constituting a convenience
translation only.
Ratings: Tranches of Notes may be rated or unrated. Where a Tranche
of Notes is rated, such rating will be specified in the relevant
Final Terms.
1.2 Summary regarding the risk factors
A rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities
and may be subject to suspension, reduction or withdrawal
at any time by the assigning rating agency.
Prospective investors should consider carefully the risks of investing in any type of Note
before they make their investment decision. The occurrence of any of the events or circumstances
stated in the risk factors may impair the ability of the Issuer to fulfil its obligations
to the investors with respect to the Notes and/or may adversely affect the market value and
trading price of the Notes or the rights of investors under the Notes and, as a result, investors
could lose some or all of their investments. Prospective investors should therefore consider
two main categories of risk: (i) risks relating to the Issuer, and (ii) risks relating to the
Notes.
Prior to deciding whether to invest in any Notes issued under the Programme, a prospective
investor should conduct its own thorough analysis (including its own accounting, legal and
tax analysis).
Risks relating to the Issuer
Credit risk
The credit risk is the risk of partial or complete loss of interest and/or redemption payment
due to a default of the counterparty. It comprises in particular the non-payment risks, country
risks and default risks. Any deterioration in the creditworthiness of a counterparty may
lead to an increase in the credit risk.
Rating deterioration
There is a risk that a rating agency may suspend, downgrade or withdraw a rating of the
Issuer and that such action might negatively affect the market value and trading price of the
Notes.
Market risk
The market risk is the risk of loss arising from a change of market prices in particular due to
changes of interest rates, share prices, commodity prices and foreign currency as well as
price fluctuations of goods and derivatives.
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