Barra to Be Acquired and Combined with MSCI.Business Editors NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 6, 2004 Morgan Stanley Capital International Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) This firm publishes a number of well known benchmarks, such as the MSCI World Index. Inc. ("MSCI") and Barra, Inc. (Nasdaq: BARZ) announced today the signing of a definitive merger agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, MSCI's majority shareholder, Morgan Stanley  To comply with Wikipedia's , the introduction of this article needs a complete rewrite. , will acquire Barra for $41.00 per share in
cash, or an aggregate consideration of approximately $816.4 million.
Barra's operations will be combined with MSCI following the closing
of the transaction, which has been approved by the Boards of Directors
of both Morgan Stanley and Barra. The transaction is currently expected
to close in 60 to 120 days, subject to regulatory and Barra shareholder
approval, and customary closing conditions.
The combination of MSCI and Barra will create a leading global provider of benchmark indices and risk management analytics. MSCI and Barra will together have the capability to meet increasingly complex client needs, creating groundbreaking new research and product standards in all asset classes, combined with unrivalled global distribution and client support. "Both companies are leaders in their respective fields, distinguished by a strong research focus and a drive to bring to market innovative products that are instrumental in managing investment portfolios, as well as enterprise-wide investments," said Henry Fernandez, President and Chief Executive Officer of MSCI. "The combination of MSCI's deep understanding of indices across asset classes and Barra's industry leading risk management analytics will provide a powerful platform for enhancing our clients' investment processes within and across asset classes." "The combination of the two firms will create a global market leader that can deliver innovative solutions to a wide range of investment issues faced by our clients," said Kamal Duggirala, Chief Executive Officer of Barra. "Together, Barra and MSCI can accelerate research and development across asset classes to create products that respond to the evolution of financial markets worldwide. Barra's Board of Directors is pleased with the terms of this transaction and believes it is in the best interests of Barra's stockholders." About Barra Barra is a global leader in delivering risk management systems and services to managers of portfolio and firm-wide investment risk. Since its inception in 1975, Barra's single vision -- to empower empower verb To encourage or provide a person with the means or information to become involved in solving his/her own problems its clients to make strategic investment decisions -- has made Barra the industry standard in investment risk management. Headquartered in Berkeley, California Berkeley is a city on the east shore of San Francisco Bay in Northern California, in the United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington. , Barra has offices in all major financial centers around the world. About MSCI MSCI is a leading provider of equity, fixed income and hedge fund hedge fund, in finance, a highly speculative, largely unregulated investment device. Originating in the 1950s, the funds "hedge" by offsetting "short" positions (borrowing a security and then selling it at a higher price before repaying the lender) against "long" indices and related products and services. Close to 2,000 organizations worldwide currently use MSCI indices. MSCI estimates that over USD USD In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the U.S. Dollar. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. 3 trillion is benchmarked to its indices on a worldwide basis. MSCI is headquartered in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , with research and commercial offices around the world. Morgan Stanley is the majority shareholder of MSCI, and The Capital Group Companies, Inc., a global investment management group, is the minority shareholder. Morgan Stanley is a global financial services The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. firm and a market leader in securities, investment management and credit services. With more than 600 offices in 27 countries, Morgan Stanley connects people, ideas, and capital to help clients achieve their financial aspirations aspirations npl → aspiraciones fpl (= ambition); ambición f aspirations npl (= hopes, ambition) → aspirations fpl . This release contains forward-looking statements forward-looking statement A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections. that reflect management's current expectations regarding future events and financial performance. The statements made above that address expectations or projections about the future are forward-looking statements, including all statements containing the words "will," "expected," the second statement made by Henry Fernandez and the first two statements by Kamal Duggirala. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include: whether or not the conditions to the completion of the transaction are satisfied, the possibility that the transaction will not close; variability of revenue streams; disruption disruption /dis·rup·tion/ (dis-rup´shun) a morphologic defect resulting from the extrinsic breakdown of, or interference with, a developmental process. of operations or increases in expenses caused by civil or political unrest or other catastrophic events; risks associated with product development and technological changes, general economic conditions as well as conditions in the asset management and financial services industries; the continued employment of key personnel, the retention of key data vendors and risks associated with business combinations, government regulation and competition. These and other important factors are detailed in various Securities and Exchange Commission filings made periodically by Barra, particularly its latest report on Form 10-K Form 10-K A report required by the SEC from exchange-listed companies that provides for annual disclosure of certain financial information. Form 10-K See 10-K. and subsequent reports on Form 10-Q Form 10-Q See 10-Q. , copies of which are available from the company without charge or online at http://www.barra.com. Please review such filings and do not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Additional Information and Where to Find It Barra intends to file with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") a proxy statement Proxy Statement A document containing the information that a company is required by the SEC to provide to shareholders so they can make informed decisions about matters that will be brought up at an annual stockholder meeting. and other relevant documents in connection with the proposed acquisition of Barra by Morgan Stanley. Investors and security holders of Barra are urged to read the proxy statement and other relevant documents when they become available because they will contain important information about Barra, Morgan Stanley and the proposed acquisition. Investors and security holders of Barra may obtain free copies of the proxy statement and other relevant documents filed with the SEC (when they become available) at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov, at Barra's website at www.barra.com, and may also obtain free copies of the proxy statement (when it becomes available) by writing to Barra, Inc., 2100 Milvia Street, Berkeley, California 94704, Attention: Investor Relations Investor relations The process by which the corporation communicates with its investors. . Barra and its directors, executive officers, certain other members of management and employees may be deemed to be participants in soliciting proxies from Barra's stockholders in favor of the proposed acquisition. Information regarding the persons who may, under the rules of the SEC, be considered to be participants in the solicitation solicitation In criminal law, the act of asking, inducing, or directing someone to commit a crime. The person soliciting another becomes an accomplice to the crime. The term also refers to the act of obtaining bribes, as well as to the crime of a prostitute who offers sexual of proxies from Barra's stockholders in connection with the proposed transaction, as well as any interest that any of these persons may have in the proposed acquisition, will be set forth in Barra's proxy statement (when it becomes available). |
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