BeX Adds Prominent Leadership.

C. Thomas Richardson to Join as President

BOSTON -- The Boston Equities Exchange (BeX) is pleased to announce C. Thomas Richardson as its new president. BeX is a joint venture, electronic stock exchange owned by the Boston Stock Exchange (BSE) and five leading equity partners that include Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Fidelity Brokerage Company, Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch. Mr. Richardson will take his post effective November 6, 2006.

"Tom is an outstanding addition to the BeX marketplace. This appointment is a clear confirmation of the strength of our model, power of the team and confidence in delivering the next generation of stock trading in a post Reg NMS world," said Mike Curran, Chairman and CEO of the Boston Stock Exchange. "Tom is a respected member of the Wall Street community and his exceptional knowledge of market structure has played a key strategic role in a number of new ventures."

Mr. Richardson joins BeX from Citigroup's Corporate and Investment Banking division (CIB) where he spent over 12 years in institutional equity trading. Most recently, he was a Managing Director of Citigroup, incubating and running a variety of businesses, and responsible for building and managing the firm's strategic investment portfolio in US Equities. Mr. Richardson served as the Chairman of Citigroup's Best Execution Committee and as Chairman of the NASDAQ Quality of Markets Committee. He was also a member of the NYSE Market Performance Committee, and a member of the Securities Industry Association Trading Committee. Mr. Richardson is a cum laude graduate of The University of Richmond.

"As market structure and technological innovation continue to evolve, the BSE has a unique collection of assets that positions it to be a top tier competitor in the exchange space," said Mr. Richardson, new President of BeX. "The equity trading landscape is clearly the most exciting and dynamic space since the growth and innovation of the Internet, and I am excited to be leading a team that can deliver a model with innovative trading solutions, greater choice, lower costs and better competition which results in best execution."

The five major global securities firms have partnered with the BSE to create the BSX Group LLC that will own and operate the BeX market. BeX will use a unique suite of technology from Atos Euronext Market Solutions and Lava Trading to meet the mandates of today's marketplace for low cost, speed, and customizable solutions that can be adapted to work alone or in conjunction with client systems.

"Tom will bring extensive trading expertise, leadership skills and street savvy to BeX," said James A. Forese, Head of Global Equities at Citigroup. "He understands the needs of all market participants and what it takes to succeed in the evolving market structure."

The Boston Stock Exchange, in conjunction with the Securities and Exchange Commission, will be responsible for regulatory oversight of the BeX market. The BSE regulatory services will report to an independent board of directors completely separate from the BeX Board.

BeX will be deployed in a series of phases over the next 6 months with the first phase to be completed in November 2006.

About the Boston Equities Exchange (BeX):

The Boston Equities Exchange (BeX) is the first all-electronic stock exchange with a full offering that is completely Reg NMS compliant. It delivers speed of execution and an open market structure with strict auction principles of price, time priority. BeX offers competitive pricing and no barriers to entry with sophisticated technology and a client-centric model. BeX is a joint venture between the Boston Stock Exchange (BSE) and five industry leaders: Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Fidelity Brokerage Company, Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch. The partnership created the BSX Group LLC that will own and operate the BeX market. The five major global securities firms provide intellectual and financial capital. For more information: www.bostonexchange.com.