OREANDA-NEWS.  January 10, 2012.
Do I have to submit a claim?
If you believe that you are owed money by Snoras, you should submit a claim.

What are the consequences of not submitting a claim?
If you do not submit a claim, you will be unable to qualify for any dividends in bankruptcy.

When do I have to submit my claim?
All claims must be submitted in writing by 20 January 2012

Where do I submit my claims?
All claims should be sent to Snoras Headquarters:
Attention: Creditor Claim Team

AB Bankas Snoras (In bankruptcy)
A. Vivulskio g. 7,
LT-03221
Vilnius
Lithuania
or handed in to Snoras Headquarters or any branch open for claims assistance.

How do I submit a claim?
The law does not prescribe a particular form for creditors to submit their claims.  However, as this is a very large bankruptcy with thousands of claims, we would recommend that creditors use the claim form to assist the claims agreement process.

Creditors are able to submit their claims in their own format. This will be accepted and treated in the same way as creditors which use the recommended form.

In any case, all claims must be in writing and be signed by an authorised person. If the form is signed by the representative of a creditor, a power of attorney or other authority must be attached to the form.

I am concerned that my claim may not be 100% accurate as I don‘t know my account balance and am unable to calculate the interest I am due.  Will this affect my claim?
After a creditor‘s claim is received, it will be recorded on the claims system.  The Bankruptcy Administrator’s (“BA”) team will check the claim against the Bank‘s records and where there is a difference between a creditor‘s claim and the Bank‘s records, the BA will endeavour to reconcile the balances to ensure that the correct balance is admitted as the creditor‘s claim amount. The correct amount of interest will be added where necessary.

SPECIFIC QUESTIONS
1. Where can I find out the exact amount of my claim as of 7 December 2011?
Most claims will be based on the underlying (contractual) documentation between the Bank and the creditor. While it is the creditor‘s responsibility to provide evidence of its claim, in the majority of cases this will be a simple matter where the account is in the name of the creditor.

Useful sources to find out the amount of your claim may be:

Statements of account and deposit statements

Internet banking

Telebanking

Branches – these will be opening so that creditors can be provided with a statement balance and be given assistance with completing the form. Details of locations and opening times will be notified on www.snoras.com

2. If the amounts submitted in the creditors’ claim form is incorrect, will the claim be rejected? Will the Bank check the information which is submitted?
The BA has a month from 20 January 2012 to agree creditors‘claims. The BA will check the claims against the Bank‘s records and where there is a difference between a creditor‘s claim and the Bank‘s records, the BA will contact the creditor to reconcile the balances to ensure that the correct balance is admitted as the creditor‘s claim.

3. In Section 3, should the amount of the creditor claim be completed in words or numbers?
The "Amount" should be completed in numbers.

4. What fields must correspondent banks complete if they had funds in any SNORAS account?  Should Section 3.1 be filled in this case?
Correspondent banks should complete Section 3.3 for "Other claims" and any comments made in Section 5 as appropriate.

5. If I have not yet received any compensation under the Law on Insurance of Deposits and Liabilities to Investors (including any deposit in relation to unissued shares or bonds or trust accounts or for other reasons) or I am disputing the amount received (or not received) with the Deposit Insurance Fund, should I submit a creditor claim form and might it affect my claim against the Deposit Insurance Fund?
If you believe that you are entitled to compensation under the Law on Insurance of Deposits and Liabilities to Investors and have not received the full compensation to which you believe that you are entitled, you should submit a creditor claim form.

If you believe you have a claim for compensation, submitting a creditor claim form will not prejudice any claim for compensation under the Law on Insurance of Deposits and Liabilities to Investors.  The Bank may also use the details provided to and by the Deposit Insurance Fund in assessing the claims of creditors.  Creditors cannot claim in respect of insured amounts for which they have received compensation.

6. What if I have already sent a request form to the Deposit Insurance Fund requesting compensation.  Should I still complete a creditor claim form?
If you have already submitted a compensation request form to the Deposit Insurance Fund, the Bank is working to deal with your request.  However, if you have not been paid compensation, we recommend that you also lodge a separate creditor claim form to the bankruptcy administrator so that the bankruptcy administrator has the complete information available to determine your claim.  The Bank may also use the details provided to the Deposit Insurance Fund in assessing the claims of creditors.

7. If money was paid for the Bank‘s share issue which was not registered, should the form be completed? If yes, which Section should be completed?
Yes, Section 3.3 for "Other claims" should be completed and any comments made in Section 5 as appropriate.

8. If money was paid for the Bank bonds, should the form be completed? If yes, which Section should be completed?
Registered bonds
The box in Section 3.1 marked "Bonds" should be completed if the creditor was registered as a bond holder and the bonds had been issued to the creditors.

Unregistered bonds
If the creditor paid for the bonds but did not receive the bonds, the creditor should state this in Section 5, in addition to completing Section 3.3.

9. If several deposits / bonds / certificates of deposit / current accounts are held in different currencies, how do I fill in Section 3.1?
If several deposits / bonds / certificates of deposit / current accounts have been held in the same or different currencies, creditors should:

Use the claim form as a summary document and append schedules detailing each deposit account etc.

Alternatively, download the form in word format from www.snoras.com and increase the number of relevant fields.

10. Should copies of the contracts of deposits / bonds / certificates of deposit be submitted with the creditor claim? What should be submitted if the creditor claims on the current account balance? What will happen to a creditor‘s claim if no documents are submitted?

The creditor has to provide sufficient documents to establish his claim. Copies of documents supporting the claim will assist in claims agreement. However, the BA will check the creditors’ claims against the Bank‘s records and this should be a simple matter where the account is held in the creditor’s name.  If more evidence is required, the BA will write to the creditor requesting this.

11. How do I calculate my claim for interest?
If you do not have information or are unable to calculate your claim for interest, the Bank will calculate your interest at the existing contractual rate.

If you are able to calculate interest, it should be calculated separately for each product.
The start date for interest is the first date on which you have not received interest from the Bank and the end date is 7 December 2011 (the date bankruptcy proceedings commenced).

12. What if I have a claim jointly with someone else?
The claim can be submitted on a single form signed by either party or by both parties.

13. Can I claim for interest which accrues after 7 December 2011?
No - Please note that pursuant to Article 85.3(3) of the Law on Banks of the Republic of Lithuania, calculation of interest on all obligations of the bank shall be terminated on 7 December, 2011.

14. How should a creditor complete all the requirements of Section 3.2, if the number of goods / services provided exceeds number of fields?
The form may be downloaded in word format from the website www.snoras.com and the number of relevant fields may be increased or the creditor should append information to the form.

The top of Section 3.2 requests that creditors in this category provide the copies of documents evidencing their claim.  We would expect creditors in this category to provide a statement of account which shows all outstanding invoices along with copies of those outstanding invoices.

15. If services / goods (e.g. rent, electricity, and security) have been provided to the Bank after 7 December 2011, should the creditors’ claim form be completed?
Claim amounts for goods and services provided prior to 7 December 2011 should be submitted as at 7 December 2011.  These amounts will rank as a creditor claim against the Bank. Claims in respect of amounts incurred after 7 December 2011 may rank as administration expenses and suppliers should write to the BA.

16. If a third party carried out services for the Bank, but the letter of acceptance / contract was not signed and money was not paid to the third party, should the third party complete a creditors’ claim form?
Yes, the creditor should complete the form and attach copies of the letter of acceptance or contract. You should describe in brief the nature of the claim in Section 5. The BA will review the information and assess whether the creditor‘s claim is valid.

17. In Section 3.5 the total amount of the creditor's claim should be completed. How do we convert claims in different currencies into Litas?
Creditors should submit their claims in the currency of the contract. There is no requirement to convert currency into Litas as this stage but claims will be converted in due course using the Bank of Lithuania daily rate as at 7 December 2011, which is available on the Bank of Lithuania website at www.lbank.lt.

18. In which cases should Section 3.3 (Other) and Section 5 (Nature of the claim) be completed?
Section 3.3 should be completed if your claim is not one of the types of claim set out in Section 3.1 or 3.2. 

All creditors should complete Section 5 to provide a brief description of their claim for example "landlord of 2 kiosks and 3 ATM machines" or "provision of office stationery products."
Please also include any other comments or notes in Section 5 which you believe may be relevant. If the space provided on the form is not large enough, please append the further information to the form.

19. Under what circumstances should Section 4 be completed?
Section 4 relating to ‘Secured claims’ should be completed by creditors which hold security (e.g. pledge, mortgage, or financial collateral) over assets of the Bank. This means that the Bank has, for example, pledged/mortgaged its own assets for the benefit of the creditor.
The creditor should specify the security instrument and briefly describe it. Secured creditors must provide a copy of the security instrument (e.g. mortgage contract).

20. Where can I find out the exact amount received from the state "Deposit and Investment Insurance Company?"
You should check the bank account into which the deposit insurance payment was made.

21.  What if I am a former shareholder, should I submit a claim form?
Yes.