BNP Paribas Appoints Alex Corley Smith to Its New York Debt Capital Markets Team.

NEW YORK -- BNP Paribas is pleased to announce that Alex Corley Smith has moved from its London office to its New York office as a Managing Director in Debt Capital Markets (DCM) covering Sovereign, Supranational and Agency issuers based in North America. She reports locally to Jim Turner, Head of DCM North America, and functionally to Christopher Marks, Global Head of Sovereign, Agency and Supranationals.

Alex has worked at BNP Paribas' London office since 2001 where she was responsible for the coverage of Sovereigns and Agencies. Prior to that, she worked at Merrill Lynch on the Frequent Borrower Coverage desk for six years and before that she spent four years at UBS Limited on the Fixed Income Syndicate Desk.

David Brunner, CEO of BNP Paribas Securities Corp. said "Especially given the global nature of our Fixed Income business and the importance of the Sovereign, Supranational and Agency client base, Alex's strong and balanced capabilities in both U.S. Dollar and European markets will greatly complement our existing team and further enhance our U.S platform."

In recent months, BNP Paribas Fixed Income has appointed over 26 Fixed Income professionals to its U.S. Fixed Income business, including the establishment of the San Francisco desk and the expansion of the Chicago sales effort.

About BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas (www.bnpparibas.com) is a European leader in banking and financial services, with a significant and growing presence in the United Sates and leading positions in Asia. The most profitable bank in the Euro zone, it has a presence in 85 countries with 89,400 employees. The group enjoys key positions in Corporate and Investment Banking, Private Banking & Asset Management, Insurance, Securities Services and Retail Banking.

Headquartered in New York, BNP Paribas in North America offers a broad range of corporate, investment banking and securities brokerage activities. With locations in all the major corporate and financial centers across the United States and Canada, BNP Paribas in North America serves a world-class client base of multinational corporate and mid-cap companies, major issuers and institutional buyers. As a registered NASD broker-dealer and member of SIPC, BNP Paribas Securities Corp. trades and markets a vast array of global and domestic fixed income and equity products. In the U.S., BNP Paribas offers retail banking and financial services through BancWest Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary.