Procedures of the Executive Board, Supervisory Board, Board of Partners and its Committees

Members of the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany

Information on memberships in statutory supervisory boards and comparable German and foreign control bodies (section 285 no. 10 HGB in conjunction with section 125 (1) sentence 5 AktG).

The general partners with no equity interest (Executive Board) manage the business activities in accordance with the laws, the Articles of Association of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and their rules of procedure. They are appointed by E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany, with the approval of a simple majority of the other general partners. The members of the Executive Board are jointly responsible for the entire management of the company. Certain tasks are assigned to individual Executive Board members based on a responsibility distribution plan. Each Executive Board member promptly informs the other members of any important actions or operations in their respective business area. Among other things, the Executive Board is responsible for preparing the Annual Financial Statements of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and of the Group as well as for approving the quarterly and half-yearly financial statements of the Group. In addition, the Executive Board ensures that all legal provisions, official regulations and the company’s internal policies are observed, and works to achieve compliance with them by all the companies of the Group. A Group-wide guideline defines in detail which transactions require prior approval by the Executive Board.

The Executive Board provides the Supervisory Board and its Audit Committee with regular, up-to-date and comprehensive reports about all company-relevant issues concerning strategy, planning, business development, the risk situation, risk management, and compliance. The rules of procedure of the Executive Board and of the Supervisory Board govern the further details and ensure that the Supervisory Board is kept adequately informed by the Executive Board.

The Executive Board informs the Board of Partners of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany, and the Supervisory Board at least quarterly of the progress of business and the situation of the company. In addition, the Executive Board informs the aforementioned boards at least annually of the company’s annual plans and strategic considerations.

The Executive Board passes its resolutions in meetings that are normally held once a month.

Supervisory Board

The Supervisory Board has 16 members. In fiscal 2025, the Supervisory Board was composed as follows:

The Supervisory Board performs a monitoring function. It supervises the Executive Board’s management of the company. In comparison with the supervisory board of a German stock corporation, the role of the supervisory board of a corporation with general partners (KGaA) is limited. This is due to the fact that the members of the Executive Board are personally liable partners and therefore are responsible for the management of the company. In particular, the Supervisory Board is not responsible for appointing and dismissing general partners or for regulating the terms and conditions of their contracts. This is the responsibility of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany. Similarly, the Supervisory Board does not have the authority to issue rules of procedure for the Executive Board or a catalog of business transactions requiring approval. This is also the responsibility of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany (Article 13 (3) sentence 1 and (4) sentence 1 of the Articles of Association of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany).

However, the fact that the Supervisory Board has no possibility of directly influencing the Executive Board restricts neither its information rights nor its audit duties. The Supervisory Board must monitor the legality, regularity, usefulness, and economic efficiency of the Executive Board. In particular, the Supervisory Board has the duty to examine the reports provided by the Executive Board. This includes regular reports on the intended business policy, as well as other fundamental issues pertaining to corporate planning, especially financial, investment and HR planning, the profitability of the Group, and the course of business. In particular, this also includes IT security and sustainability issues, which fall within the responsibility of the Audit Committee. The regular reports pertaining to Group Internal Auditing, risk management, the internal control system, and compliance are received by the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board. In addition, by means of consultation with the Executive Board, it creates the basis for supervision of the management of the company by the Supervisory Board in accordance with section 111 (1) AktG. The Supervisory Board and the Audit Committee examine the Annual Financial Statements as well as the Consolidated Financial Statements and the Combined Management Report including the (Group) Sustainability Statement, taking into account the auditor’s reports in each case. Moreover, the Audit Committee discusses the quarterly statements and the half-yearly financial report, taking into account in the latter case the report of the auditor on the audit review of the abridged financial statements and the interim management report of the Group, and reports to the Supervisory Board. The adoption of the Annual Financial Statements is not the responsibility of the Supervisory Board but of the Annual General Meeting. The Supervisory Board and the Audit Committee normally meet four times per year. Further meetings may be convened if requested by a member of either the Supervisory Board or the Executive Board. As a rule, resolutions of the Supervisory Board are passed at meetings. At the instruction of the Chair, a resolution may be passed by other means in exceptional cases, details thereof can be found in the rules of procedure of the Supervisory Board.

The members of the Board of Partners of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany, and of the Supervisory Board may be convened to a joint meeting if so agreed by the Chairs of the two boards.

The Supervisory Board has adopted rules of procedure for its activities. The rules of procedure are published on the company website.

The rules of procedure prescribe that the Supervisory Board may form committees. The Supervisory Board has formed a Nomination Committee and an Audit Committee.

Nomination Committee

The Nomination Committee comprises three shareholder representatives. Its members are Michael Kleinemeier (Chair), Susanne Schaffert and Simon Thelen. The Nomination Committee is responsible for proposing to the Supervisory Board suitable candidates for its proposal to the Annual General Meeting. In addition to the legal requirements and the recommendations of the German Corporate Governance Code on topics such as independence and overboarding, the objectives of the Supervisory Board with respect to its composition, the qualification matrix and the Diversity Policy must be taken into consideration.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee comprises three shareholder representatives and three employee representatives. Its members are Barbara Lambert (Chair), Katja Garcia Vila, Michael Kleinemeier, Christian Raabe, Michael Reinhart and Sven Vollrath (since July 1, 2025, as successor of Sascha Held).

The AktG and the German Corporate Governance Code in the versions currently applicable to the company state that at least one member of the Audit Committee shall have professional expertise in accounting and at least one additional member of the Audit Committee shall have professional expertise in auditing. Accounting and auditing also include sustainability reporting and the auditing thereof. The Chair of the Audit Committee should have professional expertise in at least one of the two areas. As a financial expert, Barbara Lambert has particular knowledge and experience in the application of accounting principles and internal control and risk management systems. She is also familiar with auditing and, in this context, with sustainability reporting. Barbara Lambert’s aforementioned knowledge is based, among other things, on her education and many years of professional experience as an auditor and as a member of the Board of Directors of Banque Pictet & Cie SA until 2022. She is also a member of the Supervisory Board and Chair of the Audit Committee of Deutsche Börse AG and a member of the Board of Directors of UBS Switzerland AG. In these roles, she regularly participates in the training offered by the respective companies. Barbara Lambert thus qualifies as a financial expert within the meaning of section 100 (5) AktG and Recommendation D.3 of the German Corporate Governance Code. Furthermore, Katja Garcia Vila qualifies as a financial expert within the meaning of section 100 (5) AktG and recommendation D.3 of the German Corporate Governance Code. In particular, due to her degree in Business Studies from a university of applied sciences and her many years of experience in management positions in the financial sector, including as CFO of MTU Aero Engines AG since April 1, 2025, she has particular knowledge and experience in the application of reporting principles (including sustainability reporting), internal control and risk management systems. Finally, Michael Kleinemeier also has expertise in the area of accounting. In addition to his degree in business administration, his expertise results from his role as Managing Director of e‑mobiligence GmbH as well as his many years of experience in management positions at SAP SE and other companies and his membership in other control bodies. Michael Kleinemeier thus also qualifies as a financial expert within the meaning of section 100 (5) AktG and Recommendation D.3 of the German Corporate Governance Code.

Defining the required knowledge in more detail, a further provision of the AktG states that the members of the Supervisory Board must be collectively familiar with the sector in which their company operates. This requirement is addressed in the Supervisory Board’s qualification matrix, which stipulates that the Supervisory Board should have at least four members who possess such knowledge of the sector. We currently meet this requirement (see also Objectives of the Supervisory Board with Respect to Its Composition, Profile of Skills and Expertise, and Qualification Matrix). Information on the independence of the shareholder representatives can be found under Objectives of the Supervisory Board with Respect to Its Composition, Profile of Skills and Expertise, and Qualification Matrix.

The Supervisory Board and the Audit Committee conduct regular self-assessments every two years. These take the form of internal efficiency reviews based on an extensive questionnaire. The self-assessment resulted in a positive opinion on all topics. The topics covered by the questionnaire included the organization and meetings of the bodies and their composition, cooperation within the bodies and with the Executive Board, dialogue with the other bodies, corporate governance, accounting, and risk management. Potential improvements to further optimize the work of the bodies in individual areas were identified and discussed based on the feedback provided, and corresponding measures were initiated.

Board of Partners of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany

Some of the responsibilities that lie with the supervisory board of a German stock corporation are fulfilled at the company by E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany. This applies primarily to the Board of Partners of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany. Accordingly, the Board of Partners, as well as the composition and procedures of its committees, are described below.

The Board of Partners has nine members. In fiscal 2025, the Board of Partners was composed as follows:

The Board of Partners supervises the Executive Board in its management of the company. It informs itself about the business matters of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and may inspect and examine the company’s accounts, other business documents and assets for this purpose. According to Article 13 (4) of the Articles of Association of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, the Executive Board requires the approval of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany, for transactions that are beyond the scope of the Group’s ordinary business activities. For such transactions, approval must first be obtained from the Board of Partners of E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany. The Board of Partners convenes as and when necessary; however, it normally meets four times per year. The members of the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, are invited to all meetings of the Board of Partners, unless the Board of Partners decides otherwise in individual cases. The members of the Board of Partners may convene a joint meeting with the Supervisory Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, if so agreed by the Chairs of the two boards.

The Board of Partners may delegate the performance of individual duties to committees. Currently, the Board of Partners has three committees in place: the Personnel Committee, the Finance Committee and the Research and Development Committee.

Personnel Committee

The Personnel Committee has four members. These are Johannes Baillou (Chair), Wolfgang Büchele, Michael Kleinemeier, and Simon Thelen. The Personnel Committee meets at least twice a year. Further meetings are convened as and when necessary. Meetings of the Personnel Committee are attended by the Chair of the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, unless the committee decides otherwise. Among other things, the Personnel Committee is responsible for the following decisions concerning members and former members of the Executive Board: contents and conclusion of employment contracts and pension contracts; granting of loans and salary advances; changes to the compensation structure and adaptation of compensation; approval for taking on honorary offices, board positions and other sideline activities; and division of responsibilities within the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. The Personnel Committee passes its resolutions by simple majority; in matters concerning the Chair of the Executive Board, unanimity is required. The Chair of the Committee regularly informs the Board of Partners of its activities.

Finance Committee

The Finance Committee has four members. These are André Wyss (Chair), Carl Christoph Schweickert, Daniel Thelen, and Simon Thelen. The Finance Committee holds at least four meetings per year, some of which are joint meetings with the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board. At least one meeting is a joint meeting with the auditor of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. Further meetings are convened as and when necessary. Meetings of the Finance Committee are attended by the Chief Financial Officer of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. Other members of the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, may attend the meetings upon request of the Finance Committee. These meetings regularly include the Chair of the Executive Board. Among other things, the Finance Committee is responsible for analyzing and discussing the Annual Financial Statements, the Consolidated Financial Statements, and the respective reports of the auditor for E. Merck KG, Darmstadt, Germany, and Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, as well as the half-yearly financial report and the quarterly statements for Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. In addition, the Finance Committee addresses the Group’s net assets, financial position, results of operations and liquidity, as well as accounting issues. Upon request of the Board of Partners, the Finance Committee examines investment projects that must be approved by the Board of Partners and provides recommendations pertaining thereto. It passes its resolutions with simple majority. The Chair of the Committee regularly informs the Board of Partners of the activities of the Finance Committee.

Research and Development Committee

The Research and Development Committee has three members. These are Susanne Schaffert (Chair), Katharina Kraft and Simon Thelen. The Research and Development Committee is convened as and when necessary but holds at least two meetings per year. Meetings of the Research and Development Committee are attended by members of the Executive Board of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, upon request of the committee. These meetings regularly include the Chair of the Executive Board as well as the CEO Life Science, the CEO Healthcare and the CEO Electronics. Among other things, the Research and Development Committee is responsible for reviewing and discussing the research activities of the Healthcare, Life Science and Electronics business sectors. It passes its resolutions with simple majority. The Chair of the Committee reports to the Board of Partners on the insights gained from the meetings.