@DingoBorat, I would agree in light of that, my original...

@DingoBorat, I would agree in light of that, my original statement is inaccurate. However, how many people would go through the process of acquiring the ADR certificate, turning it in at the office, and paying all the necessary taxes, fees, etc. to get those underlying shares?

It would be much easier to just pay the foreign exchange fee and acquire the number of shares they want upfront rather than going through the ADR to acquire them, which I believe may be more costly than going through the conversion process.

I still believe while one does hold those ADRs without converting them into actual shares, they will not have the same benefits as those who own common shares until they have gone through the exercise of acquiring them.