Minister Plasterk and ‘Hulp voor Hulpverleners’ Foundation sound gong

On December 30th, one day before the end of the year, minister Plasterk sounds the gong to show his appreciation for the work and the commitment of emergency workers. But more importantly, he calls attention to aggression and violence during New Year’s Eve. Plasterk: "Aggression and violence against emergency workers are unacceptable. I am committed to reduce the number of incidents.”

For years already the ‘Hulp voor Hulpverleners’ (Assistance for Emergency Workers) Foundation has been campaigning to reduce aggression and violence against emergency workers. The foundation calls on the Dutch population to ensure that emergency workers can do their work in a normal way this year.

For more information: www.hulpvoorhulpverleners.nl

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Witte Bedjes Het Parool foundation highlights Happy2Move project

Witte Bedjes Het Parool foundation sounds the gong to highlight the Happy2Move project.

The foundation raises money for children who are sick, handicapped, or in need of some other form of help. The money is made available to non-profit organisations working with sick or handicapped children in and around Amsterdam. The fund is primarily intended for relatively small, tangible projects that do not receive any other form of subsidy. This year the foundation is supporting the Happy2Move project.

The Happy2Move project provides after-school care to mentally or physically handicapped children between the ages of 4 and 20. The activities it organises after school and during teacher workshops and vacations are based on healthy lifestyles, emphasizing sports, healthy eating and enjoying recreation. To promote healthy eating, the children are given a hot meal after these activities, just before they go home. Happy2Move provides the children with transportation from school to the activities venue, and from there to their home.

For more information: www.happy2move.nl

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Speelgoedbank Amsterdam celebrates successful year

Speelgoedbank Amsterdam sounds the gong for a very successful first year.

Many children in Amsterdam grow up in poverty. For these children, it is not part of their normal lives to visit a toy store. Growing up in poverty has clear implications, not only materially but also emotionally and socially. Speelgoedbank Amsterdam collects toys, both new and used. Children growing up in poverty can visit Speelgoedbank Amsterdam four times a year. At each visit, they can choose two toys and a book from the store. This way Speelgoedbank Amsterdam builds a bridge between surplus and deficit, recycles toys and lets children shine.

For more information: www.SpeelgoedbankAmsterdam.nl

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Barbara Barend sounds gong for Sterrenfonds December month

Sterrenfonds ambassador Barbara Barend sounds gong for all the children in the Netherlands, who are in a disadvantaged position. Whether it is because of living in poverty, being seriously ill or having been placed out of home. With great attention we have to take responsibility for them, who are our future.

Over the past month, Sterrenfonds enabled 12,000 children to fully experience their childhood with a unique cinema event, a Santa Claus show and Children's Christmas Boxes. In 2012, Sterrenfonds ambassador Frans Bauer sounded the gong, concluding the Children's Christmas Boxes for over 600 seriously ill children and children in poverty. This year ambassador Barbara Barend visits Euronext for the ending the December activities for 12,000 children.

For more information: sterrenfonds.nl

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Winner Deloitte Kordes Awards sounds gong

Deputy mayor of Uden municipality, René Peerenboom, sounds the gong as the winner of the Deloitte Kordes Award 2013.

The Deloitte Kordes Award is awarded since 1995 for the public organization with the best annual report. The objective of the award is to continuously improve reporting on performance and accountability of (semi) public organizations. According to the jury Uden municipality is this year's convincing winner: "The annual report meets all jury criteria and excels in risk reporting and in style and communication. Additionally, the municipality has made the annual report available digitally and is herewith setting an example for other organizations." Last year, Uden Municipality participated for the first time and immediately became the winner in the category of Local Government."

For more information: www.deloitte.com

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Gong marks launch ‘Follow the money’ app

Director of the Amsterdam Museum, Paul Spies, launches the new app ‘Follow the money’ by sounding the gong. With this app users can take a stroll through the centre of Amsterdam and learn more about the financial history of the city. The tour spans a period of 400 years, from the Golden Age to the present.

With the app users can get acquainted with the visible financial history in the city in an accessible way. The app has been realized by the Amsterdam Museum with the help of Platform Capital Amsterdam, Capital Amsterdam Foundation, Nachenius Tjeenk Foundation, the Dutch Central Bank and M2Mobi. The app is available for free in both Dutch and English in the Google store or can be downloaded from Itunes, search term "money tour.

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Winner Shell LiveWIRE Award sounds gong

Brechtje Riphagen, founder of Innofuse and the winner of the prestigious Shell LiveWIRE Award 2013 visits Euronext Amsterdam and sounds the gong in the presence of president director Shell Netherlands B.V., Dick Benschop and director Syntens Innovation Center, Piet van Staalduinen.

The winner is chosen on December 17^th and received the award from Bertholt Leeftink, director-general Enterprise and Innovation at the Ministry of Economic Affairs at the award ceremony hosted at Shell Headquarters in The Hague. Shell LiveWIRE is an international social investment programme that aims to help young innovative entrepreneurs develop their business. Every year over 600 entrepreneurs receive free professional coaching and training through master classes as well as access to an expert network. Syntens Innovation implements Shell LiveWIRE programme in the Netherlands. The programme is active in 17 countries.

For more information: www.LiveWIRE.nl

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Aon celebrates 325th anniversary at Euronext Amsterdam

Today (Re)insurance brokers are common among organizations and individuals, but that was not always the case. Exactly 325 years ago the oldest existing insurance broker in the world was founded, a company that is now known as Aon (ticker symbol: AON). CEO Aon Benfield Netherlands,Bob Reichenfeld, sounds the gong to celebrate the anniversary.

The founding father of Aon risk consultants and (re)insurance brokers is Evert van Heijningen. Back in 1688 he founded his company, Van Heijningen, which is now part of one of the largest financial services companies in the world. What began with a single policy, is now a $ 11.5 billion global company with over 500 offices in 120 countries and a working population of more than 65,000.

(Re)insurance brokers and insurers continue to ensure that risks are manageable and pose limited threat to the continuity of a company. "Over the years a lot has changed in the insurance business, but the goal has remained the same. We make sure that entrepreneurs can and dare to take responsible risks by helping them to protect and manage their business continuity," says Lex Geerdes , Country Manager Aon Netherlands, CEO Aon Risk Solutions Benelux and CEE.

For more information: www.aon.com

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Winner of the FD Gazellen Awards visits Euronext

Arends Techniek is the winner of the 10th edition of the FD Gazellen Award and visits Euronext to celebrate.

The FD Gazelle Award, presented annually by the Dutch financial daily Het Financieele Dagblad, is aimed at promoting entrepreneurship and drawing attention to the country’s fastest-growing companies. This year, for the 10th consecutive year, awards were presented to the fastest-growing companies in each category. In all 12 provinces, regional prizes were awarded in three categories, based on sales levels (small, medium, large). At the same time, Het Financieele Dagblad delved into the state of entrepreneurship in each province.

Arends Techniek emerged as the national winner of the award for the Fastest-Growing Company of 2013. The company, which installs solar panels, received the award in The Hague during the finals of the FD Gazellen Awards, where a ranking of the 100 fastest growing companies in the Netherlands was unveiled.In three years’ time the company became the fastest growing company in the Netherlands with a growth percentage of 1185%.CEO, Marjan Arends Smid, sounds the gong.

For more information: www.fd.nl

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Euronext introduces equity options on OCI N.V.

Euronext N.V., a wholly owned subsidiary of IntercontinentalExchange Group, Inc. (NYSE: ICE), introduces options on the shares of OCI N.V. (“OCI”). The options will be available as of Friday 13 December on the derivatives market of Euronext Amsterdam.

OCI N.V. is a global producer of natural gas-based chemicals and an engineering & construction contractor, with projects and investments in Europe, the United States, Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia. The company employs more than 75,000 people in 35 countries around the globe.

The chemicals segment produces nitrogen fertilizers, methanol and other natural gas based products and ranks among the world’s top fertilizer producers with a fertilizer production capacity of nearly 7 million metrictons in The Netherlands, the United States, Egypt and Algeria. The company is currently constructing a world-scale fertilizer plant in Iowa, USA and recently announced it will start the construction of a world-scale methanol plant in Texas, USA, once finished the largest one in North America.

The construction segment provides international engineering and construction services primarily on infrastructure, industrial and high-end commercial projects and ranks among the world’s top global contractors. Notable construction projects include Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the world’s tallest building, Ferrari Experience theme park in Abu Dhabi, the new Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo, roof over the A2 motorway in Utrecht, the Netherlands and Maastoren, the tallest building in the Netherlands.

The newly listed options follow the successful listing of OCI on Euronext Amsterdam on 25 January 2013. Since September 2013, OCI N.V. has been a constituent of the AMX-Index®, the index for mid-sized companies listed on Euronext Amsterdam. By adding these new options Euronext is expanding the number of equity option classes on AMX® companies to 22. In addition, all constituents of the AEX-Index® have an equity option listing.

Frank Ammerlaan, Head of Sales & Client Coverage Benelux for Euronext, said:  “We are pleased to announce the introduction of the OCI options, providing investors with new investment opportunities. The Amsterdam derivatives market of Euronext is a highly liquid and competitive market, with a large number of direct market participants trading in a wide and successful range of equity option classes. The OCI options are a great addition to our option series and increase the range of options on large internationally oriented companies.”

These new American-style options (option trading symbol: OCI) will expire on the third Friday of the contract month and will have initial maturities of 1, 2, 3 and 6 months. Each option will represent 100 shares in OCI and will be cleared via LCH.Clearnet SA.

Euronext lists over 200 equity options (also known as individual stock options) on leading European companies via the Amsterdam, Brussels, London and Paris central order books.

For more information: www.oci.nl

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SnowWorld celebrates listing

As of December 12, SnowWorld N.V., proprietor and owner of the world's largest indoor ski resort, is listed on Euronext Amsterdam.

SnowWorld (ticker symbol: SNOW) is a company based in Zoetermeer in the Netherlands. With its two indoor ski facilities, SnowWorld is one of the world’s leading companies in this industry.

To celebrate the listing CEO Koos Hendriks sounds the gong. He is accompanied by Wim Moerman (CFO), SnowWorld’s management team and advisors along with the teams from EnterNext and Euronext.

For more information: www.snowworld.com

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Mint Tower Capital Management celebrates 3th anniversary Mint Tower Arbitrage Fund

Mint Tower Capital Management celebrates the third anniversary of the Mint Tower Arbitrage Fund by sounding the gong.

The Mint Tower Arbitrage Fund was set up three years ago, aimed at achieving stable returns in rising and falling financial markets, the so-called "absolute return" investing. This goal is achieved in the first three years with a positive result, even in highly turbulent markets with very low scores in the performance of the fund.

Mint Tower Capital distinguishes itself with an experienced Dutch team and proven arbitrage strategies in particular stock options and convertible bonds. These are strategies with a very low correlation to stock markets and are therefore well suited as part of a diversified investment portfolio.

For more information: www.minttowercapital.com

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Royal Vopak visits Euronext Amsterdam for Capital Markets Day

Royal Vopak hosts the 2013 Capital Markets Day at Euronext Amsterdam in the Netherlands this year.

Members of the Executive Board and other Senior Executives give an update to the financial community on selected topics regarding strategic and financial developments and the relevant dynamics of the international energy and chemical markets in which Vopak operates.Investor Relations Officer, Maurits Thijssen, sounds the gong.

For more information: www.vopak.com

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