To: Patherzen who wrote (5444 ) 11/1/1999 8:48:00 PM From: Patherzen Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 10027
EASDAQ + NITE among others..Wooooo baby! Nasdaq) News Release - Monday, November 01, 1999 ASDAQ Raises Additional EUR 3.2 Million and Announces Major New Shareholders EASDAQ the pan-European stock market for international growth and technology companies today announced an extension to its recent private placement round, raising an additional EUR 3.2 million from a combination of existing and new shareholders including E*TRADE Group Inc. (Nasdaq: EGRP) and Susquehanna Partners of the United States. On 29 July 1999, EASDAQ announced a capital increase of EUR 22.8 million against a target of EUR 12 million, bringing the commitment of major new shareholders such as Knight/Trimark, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Crea Invest, Tradepoint and Goldman Sachs. Due to the success of this financing round and the strength of EASDAQ?s strategic positioning, three existing shareholders wished to increase their investment, and two significant new shareholders expressed a desire to participate. As a result of this latest capital increase, EASDAQ?s shareholding structure has changed as follows: Shareholder or Shareholder Country Percentage Group Shareholding (post- increase) Knight/Trimark Group USA 19.49% Equitable Life Assurance UK 7.56% Society ING Group Netherlands 7.34% KBC Securities Belgium 6.47% Aros Securities (Unibank) Denmark 4.63% Apax Partners UK 4.60% Groupe Banques Populaires France 4.35% Standard Life Assurance Company UK 3.51% BancBoston Robertson Stephens USA 3.48% Deutsche Bank Germany 2.39% Morgan Stanley Dean Witter USA 2.26% E*TRADE Group USA 2.26% Crea Invest Denmark 2.26% Tradepoint UK 2.26% Herzog Heine Geduld USA 1.19% Goldman Sachs USA 1.13% Susquehanna Partners USA 1.13% Sub Total 76.31% Other Shareholders 23.69% Total 100.00% new shareholders increased commitment (existing shareholders) SHAREHOLDING CHANGES The two new shareholders participating in EASDAQ?s capital for the first time are: E*TRADE Group (2.26%) E*TRADE Group Inc., a global leader in online personal financial services, is the world?s most visited online investing site, offering value-added investing and research features. In addition to its strategic investment in EASDAQ, E*TRADE has previously made investments in E*OFFERING, a full- service online investment bank, and Archipelago, a leading Electronic Communications Network (ECN). E*TRADE plans to expand its global presence by launching branded web sites in the top 20 financial markets worldwide, and presently has operational web sites in the US, UK, France, Sweden, Japan, Australia and Canada. Susquehanna Partners (1.13%) Susquehanna Partners, GP, is one of the largest independent proprietary trading firms in the world with expertise in trading derivative products and other securities. The firm participates in approximately 2% of the NYSE volume annually, accounts for approximately 5% of the Options Clearing Corporation annual trading volume, ranks among the global market leaders in index arbitrage on a proprietary basis, is an acknowledged leader in trading listed and OTC currency derivatives, manages over 30 NYSE equity specialist books, and trades in the financial markets of approximately 20 countries. In addition, Knight/Trimark Group of the US consolidated its position as EASDAQ?s largest shareholder, increasing its stake from 18.92% to 19.49%. Equitable Life Assurance Society of the UK moved to become EASDAQ?s second largest shareholder at 7.56% (previously third largest at 7.23%). Herzog Heine Geduld of the US, a long-time shareholder and one of EASDAQ?s most active market makers, increased its stake substantially to 1.19%. Commenting on this announcement, Stanislas Yassukovich, EASDAQ Chairman, said: This represents a further major endorsement for EASDAQ as we move forwards with the implementation of our strategy to become the leading trading platform in Europe for international growth and technology stocks. The involvement of such significant new shareholders is extremely valuable, and will undoubtedly be instrumental in encouraging other major international financial institutions to join us. We are increasingly well-positioned to capitalise on EASDAQ?s unique strengths and are confident of the growth prospects which lie ahead for us at a time of accelerating change in the restructuring of European stock markets. For further information, please contact: EASDAQ Lauren Ptito Vice President, Corporate Communications Tel: +44 20 7786 6400 / +44 7979 751642 E-mail: lauren.ptito@easdaq.com "Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities