Legal statements and conditions
for using a website

1. Legal statements

You are presently connected to the site www.readyforfrance.com, edited by HSBC France, a limited company with a capital of 379,819,475 Euro as at 31 December 2007.

• HSBC France, a limited company member of the French Banking Federation (Fédération Bancaire Française), is registered as an institution empowered to deal with all banking transactions by the Credit Institutions Committee (CECEI) (31 rue Croix-des-Petits-Champs, 75001 Paris).
• It also acts as an insurance brokerage company, registered with the ORIAS (Organisme pour le Registre des Intermédiaires en Assurance) [Organization for the Registration of Insurance Intermediaries] - information available for consultation on the website www.orias.fr - under No. 07 005 894.
• For Stock Exchange transactions, HSBC France acts as a custodian and account holder. HSBC France is authorized to perform the following investment services:
  - receipt and transmission of orders for account of third parties;
  - execution of orders for account of third parties;
  - investment;
  - custody and management.

The execution of the Stock Exchange orders for France is performed by the agent, HSBC Securities France.

• Head Office: 103 avenue des Champs-Elysées - 75008 PARIS
• Contact : ready-for-france@hsbc.fr
• SIREN Number: 775 670 284 RCS Paris
• Individual Identification (VAT) Number: FR 70775670284
• Publication Director: Peter Boyles
• Editor: Stéphanie SONOLET

HSBC France hosts the www.readyforfrance.com website.

2. Conditions for using a website

Governing law

Surfing on this site is subject to French law and to these conditions for use. As the latter are regularly updated, you are invited to consult this page whenever logging on to this site. It is incumbent upon each person surfing on this site to make sure that he has the right, under the terms of his local legislation, to have access to and/or use this site, as HSBC France may under no circumstances be held responsible in case of breach of such a local regulation.

Intellectual property

All this site, especially the pictures, wordings, logotypes, tables, iconographic and photographic representations and the downloadable documents of the site, falls within the scope of the French and international legislation on copyright and intellectual property.
The reproduction or representation of all or part of this site, on any medium whatsoever, is therefore strictly forbidden unless previously agreed in writing by the Editor (ready-for-france@hsbc.fr).

Nature of the information contained in the site

The information appearing on this site is for information only. Therefore, HSBC France gives no guarantee, express or implied, as to the reliability of the information supplied and accepts no responsibility as regards the decisions that could be taken on the basis of this information.
This information is given for personal purposes only and is likely to be modified without notice.

Thematic files

The documents issued on this site in electronic version may have been updated between the time when you downloaded them and the time when you read them. Therefore, you must check the validity thereof.

Information supplied by the net surfers

Confidentiality and integrity

The confidentiality and integrity of the information is not ensured on the Internet. Therefore:

• The messages you will send us on the Internet may be intercepted and/or modified (both as regards their content and origin).
• As personal data are not protected on the network, we advise you to send them to us by post. Do not disclose unnecessary or sensitive personal data.

Personal data

With respect to this site, you will be led to provide us with personal data likely to be subject to automatic processings.
According to the Law No. 78-17 of 6 January 1978 relating to information technology, files and civil liberties, these processings are reported to the French Data Protection Authority (CNIL). When collecting your personal data, HSBC France will provide you with all information required by the law.
HSBC France already informs you that you have an access, rectification and deletion right under the law. To exercise it, you may send a letter on plain unheaded paper to HSBC France, Qualité Relations Clientèle, 103 avenue des Champs-Elysées - 75008 Paris.

Other information

Any non-personal data forwarded or issued on the site by e-mail may be used by HSBC France or the HSBC Group companies for any purposes, whether commercial or not, and in particular be reproduced, disclosed or forwarded on any known or future medium.

Hypertext links and viruses

It is expressly recalled that HSBC France has no control over, or responsibility as regards the creation, especially without its knowledge, of links towards sites being external to HSBC France and as regards the content of such sites. Accordingly, you agree to your choice to have access to another site, through a hypertext link, being made at your own risk.
Therefore, any direct or indirect damage resulting from your access to another site linked through a hypertext link may not involve HSBC France's responsibility.
Generally, it is for you to take all necessary precautions to make sure that the site you select is not infected by viruses or parasites of a destructive nature.
Under no circumstances may HSBC France be held responsible for direct or indirect damages resulting from the use of its website or other sites connected thereto.
The creation of a link towards this site in any form whatsoever, with respect to all or part of the information appearing on the site, must be previously authorized in writing by HSBC France.

Information relating to "cookies"
We wish to implement a "cookie" in your computer. A "cookie" does not allow us to identify you. Generally, it records the information relating to the surfing of your computer on our site (the pages you consulted, the date and time of consultation, etc.), which we may read on the occasion of your subsequent visits. Cookies are harmless. They are used for ensuring that your visit of the site is more efficient and consistent, and also allow to personalize the pages of the site you are using.
You may object to the recording of "cookies" or delete them at any time by configuring your browser as follows.

For example, if you are using Microsoft Windows Explorer:

• Open 'Windows Explorer'
• Click on the 'Search' button on the tool bar
• Type "cookie" into the search box for 'Folders and Files'
• Select 'My Computer' in the 'Look In' box
• Click 'Search Now'
• Double click on the folders that are found
• 'Select' any cookie file
• Hit the 'Delete' button on your keyboard

If you are not using Microsoft Windows Explorer, then you should select "cookies" in the "Help" function for information on where to find your cookie folder.

In order to develop this website in line with customer needs HSBC France is working with WebTrends to track usage on this website. WebTrends provide HSBC France with statistics to show which pages on this website are visited most frequently and how long visitors spend on this website.
WebTrends uses a cookie to track the number of unique users of this website. It basically tells HSBC France whether the website has a small number of regular visitors or a large number of infrequent visitors. None of the information can be traced to an individual –HSBC France do not know who you are as a unique user, merely that there are a certain number of people using this website. The cookie only relates to what goes on in this website and the information cannot be used for marketing on an individual basis.
For more information about how WebTrends collects data, please read their privacy policy at https://ondemand.webtrends.com/privacypolicy.asp#PSFV.

3. Links

It is expressly recalled that HSBC has no control over, and incurs no responsibility for, the creation of links to websites external to HSBC and the content of such sites. Therefore, you agree to your choice to have access to another site through a hypertext link being made at your own risk. Consequently, any direct or indirect damage resulting from your access to another site connected through a hypertext link may not involve HSBC's responsibility. Generally, it is for you to take the necessary precautions to make sure that the site you are selecting is not infested with viruses or any other destructive parasite.

Under no circumstances may HSBC be held responsible for direct or indirect damages resulting from the use of its website or other sites linked to it.