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Online

Gemfields Group Limited Virtual Annual General Meeting

As a consequence of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions placed on physical public gatherings, the Annual General Meeting of shareholders of the Company will now be held electronically via a live interactive webcast, or Virtual Annual General Meeting (“VAGM”), as is permitted by the Company’s Articles of Incorporation.

Disclosure of beneficial interests in securities

In compliance with paragraph 3.83(b) of the JSE Listings Requirements, shareholders are advised that Gemfields has received formal notification from Rational Expectations (Pty) Ltd (“Rational”) on 10 June 2020, that Rational and related parties acquired a beneficial interest in the ordinary shares of the Company, such that the total beneficial interest in ordinary shares of the Company held by Rational is now 6.22% of the total issued shares of the Company. Following the acquisition, Rational held a total of 72,754,759 ordinary shares in the Company.

No Change Statement, posting of the Notice of AGM & Annual Results and B-BBEE Annual Compliance Report

Shareholders are informed that Gemfields’ Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2019 (the “Annual Report”) is now available on the Gemfields website. The Financial Statements contained within the Annual Report contain no modifications to Gemfields’ Audited Annual Results for the year ended 31 December 2019 which were published on both SENS and RNS on 6 April 2020. The Financial Statements have been audited by the Company’s auditors, BDO LLP. Their audit opinion was not qualified but included a material uncertainty regarding the going concern assumption and a reference to the Directors’ disclosures on going concern.

COVID-19 Update: MRM & Corporate

The Company hereby provides a further update on mitigating actions taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact of COVID-19 continues to evolve rapidly and it is not yet possible to predict the full extent of the impact on the Company’s operations and revenues. The wellbeing of Gemfields’ employees and host communities continues to remain the Company’s overriding priority and to guide actions undertaken by the Company to navigate the months ahead.

COVID-19 Update

The turmoil stemming from COVID-19 patently represents one of the most serious challenges faced by many companies globally. Gemfields is no exception and a significant detrimental impact on its operations, revenues and business is inevitable during 2020 and possibly beyond.

Delay in the publication of Gemfields’ Audited Financial Statements

Gemfields shareholders are advised that there will be a delay in the publication of the Company’s audited financial results for the year ended 31 December 2019 (“2019 Results”). The Company has been advised by its auditors BDO LLP (“BDO”) that, given the developments and prevailing circumstances surrounding COVID-19, the audit process in relation to the Board’s going concern assessment and associated disclosures requires more time in order for a conclusion to be reached.

Trading Statement and COVID-19 Update

In accordance with paragraph 3.4(b) of the JSE Limited Listings Requirements, Gemfields is reasonably certain that its net profit after tax will be USD 39.1 million for the year ended 31 December 2019 compared to a net loss after tax of USD 60.4 million for the year ended 31 December 2018. In ZAR terms, the net profit after tax is expected to be ZAR 565 million (ZAR 801 million net loss after tax for the comparative year).