Desjardins and Cirque du Soleil®: 25 Years of Creativity!

Desjardins celebrates the 25th anniversary of Cirque du Soleil with the presentation of an all-new photo exhibit

Lévis (Québec), June 4, 2009 – Desjardins Group, which has partnered with Cirque du Soleil since the very beginning, is proud to present a travelling photo exhibit showcasing the 25th anniversary of Cirque du Soleil.

A special tribute to the 25 years of partnership ties between Cirque du Soleil and Desjardins, the exhibit will be presented in the Greater Montréal Area in June and July at Carrefour Laval (June 11 to 14), at Promenades St-Bruno (June 18 to 21) and at Complexe Desjardins (July 15 to 17). After that, it will go on tour with the Cirque du Soleil latest production, OVO™, putting the photos on display at the Galeries de la Capitale in Québec City (August 6 to 9) and at Toronto's Eaton Centre (September 10 to 13).

A contest will be held in tandem with the exhibit, offering the public a chance to win tickets to see a performance of OVO.

The partnership between Cirque du Soleil and Desjardins began in 1984 when, with dreams of creating a totally new form of entertainment, a band of street performers approached the staff of Caisse des travailleuses et travailleurs du Québec (now Caisse d'économie solidaire Desjardins) to apply for their very first loan. Twenty-five years later, Desjardins remains one of Cirque du Soleil main financial partners.

The cooperative financial group is also the Presenting Sponsor of the Cirque du Soleil Canadian tour for 2009 to 2011.

About Desjardins Group

Desjardins Group is the largest cooperative financial group in Canada, with overall assets of close to $160 billion, as at March 31, 2009. It comprises a network of caisses, credit unions and business centres in Québec and Ontario, and some twenty subsidiary companies in life and general insurance, securities brokerage, venture capital and asset management, many of which are active across the country. Drawing on the expertise of its 42,000 employees and the commitment of its 6,300 elected officers, Desjardins offers its 5.8 million individual and corporate members and clients a full range of financial products and services. Its physical distribution network is complemented by leading-edge virtual access methods. To find out more, consult www.desjardins.com.

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Source (for journalists only) :
Nathalie Genest
Advisor, Information and Media Relations
514-281-7275 or 1-866-866-7000, ext. 7275