Atento Announces Cooperation Agreement with Investors

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Jun 02, 2022, 16:35 ET

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NEW YORK, June 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Atento S.A. (NYSE: ATTO) ("Atento" or the "Company"), one of the largest providers worldwide and the leading company in customer relationship services and business process outsourcing (CRM / BPO) in Latin America, today announced the execution of a cooperation agreement (the "Agreement") with Kyma Capital, Charles Frischer and Asheef Lalani (the "Investors"), who beneficially own in the aggregate approximately 8.5% of the Company's outstanding ordinary shares. Pursuant to the Agreement, the Board of Directors of Atento (the "Board") will nominate Akshay Shah to stand for election as a new independent director at the Company's 2022 Annual Meeting of Shareholders scheduled to be held on 29 June, 2022.

"We look forward to welcoming Akshay to the Board," said Carlos López-Abadía, CEO of Atento. "His exceptional track record and vast experience will be an important asset to our Board as we look ahead. Today's agreement is another example of Atento's pursuit of having a strong independent board with the right mix of expertise and skills to develop our strategic objectives, while supporting the Board's goal of generating shareholder value."

Akshay Shah, Chief Investment Officer of Kyma Capital, commented, "We are encouraged by the steps the Company has been taking and I am delighted to have been nominated to Atento's Board. We have been net buyers of Atento stock and have built a meaningful position. We believe in Atento's growth potential, market penetration and the capability to deliver guidance during 2022. I am excited for this next chapter in Atento's future and am personally committed to working with the Board to explore all options in pursuit of driving maximum value for shareholders."

The Investors have agreed to customary standstill, voting and other provisions. The full Agreement will be filed on a Form 6-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Atento

Atento is the largest provider of customer relationship management and business process outsourcing ("CRM BPO") services in Latin America, and among the top providers globally. Atento is also a leading provider of nearshoring CRM BPO services to companies that carry out their activities in the United States. Since 1999, the company has developed its business model in 14 countries where it employs approximately 150,000 people. Atento has over 400 clients to whom it offers a wide range of CRM BPO services through multiple channels. Atento's clients are mostly leading multinational corporations in industries such as telecommunications, banking and financial services, health, retail and public administrations, among others. Atento's shares trade under the symbol ATTO on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). In 2019, Atento was named one of the World's 25 Best Multinational Workplaces and one of the Best Multinationals to Work for in Latin America by Great Place to Work®. Also, in 2021 Everest named Atento as a star performer. Gartner named the company as a leader for two years in a row, since 2021 in the Gartner Magic Quadrant. For more information visit www.atento.com

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Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "intends," "continue" or similar terminology. In particular, these forward-looking statements include those about the effects on Atento and its growth of changes in the composition of the Board. These statements reflect only Atento's current expectations and are not guarantees of future performance or results. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, competition in Atento's highly competitive industries; increases in the cost of voice and data services or significant interruptions in these services; Atento's ability to keep pace with its clients' needs for rapid technological change and systems availability; the continued deployment and adoption of emerging technologies; the loss, financial difficulties or bankruptcy of any key clients; the effects of global economic trends on the businesses of Atento's clients; the non-exclusive nature of Atento's client contracts and the absence of revenue commitments; security and privacy breaches of the systems Atento uses to protect personal data; the cost of pending and future litigation; the cost of defending Atento against intellectual property infringement claims; extensive regulation affecting many of Atento's businesses; Atento's ability to protect its proprietary information or technology; service interruptions to Atento's data and operation centers; Atento's ability to retain key personnel and attract a sufficient number of qualified employees; increases in labor costs and turnover rates; the political, economic and other conditions in the countries where Atento operates; changes in foreign exchange rates; Atento's ability to complete future acquisitions and integrate or achieve the objectives of its recent and future acquisitions; future impairments of our substantial goodwill, intangible assets, or other long-lived assets; Atento's ability to recover consumer receivables on behalf of its clients; and the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. Atento is also subject to other risk factors described in documents filed by the company with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which the statements were made. Atento undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE Atento S.A.