Bear Stearns Hires Jeffrey B. Lane as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Asset Management Division.

NEW YORK -- The Bear Stearns Companies Inc. (NYSE: BSC) announced today that, effective immediately, Jeffrey B. Lane has been named chairman and chief executive officer of Bear Stearns Asset Management (BSAM). Richard Marin, former BSAM chairman and chief executive officer, will remain with BSAM as a senior advisor to Mr. Lane.

Commenting on the appointment, James E. Cayne, chairman and chief executive officer of The Bear Stearns Companies Inc., said, "Our focus is on restoring investor confidence in BSAM, serving our clients with excellence and assuring them of our commitment to provide them with the highest quality asset management products and services. Jeff's experience and leadership combined with his successful track record make him an outstanding candidate to lead our asset management business at this time. We are extremely pleased to welcome him to Bear Stearns."

Mr. Lane added, "I am proud to be joining Bear Stearns and I look forward to working with the entire BSAM team. I believe in the integrity of the franchise and I am excited about the prospect of continuing to build the BSAM organization."

Before joining BSAM, Jeffrey B. Lane held a number of roles at both Lehman Brothers and Neuberger Berman Inc. including serving as a vice chairman of Lehman Brothers, a member of the office of the chairman, chairman of the investment management division and co-head of asset management, and chairman of Neuberger Berman Inc. He joined Neuberger Berman, LLC in 1998 as a Principal and chief administrative officer and rose through the organization to become its chief executive officer.

Mr. Lane was previously with Travelers Group as vice chairman where he worked closely with the chairman and chief executive officer in the management of the company's various administrative functions and operating units. He had also been vice chairman of the company's Smith Barney subsidiary, responsible for asset management, mutual funds, international, futures and commodities division.

About Bear Stearns:

Founded in 1923, The Bear Stearns Companies Inc. (NYSE: BSC) is the parent company of Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc., a leading investment banking, securities trading and brokerage firm. Through Bear, Stearns Securities Corp., it offers financing, securities lending, clearing and technology solutions to hedge funds, broker-dealers and investment advisors. Headquartered in New York City, the company has approximately 15,000 employees worldwide. For additional information about Bear Stearns, please visit the firm's web site at www.bearstearns.com.

About Bear Stearns Asset Management Inc.

Bear Stearns Asset Management Inc. (BSAM) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Bear Stearns Companies Inc. Building on two core capabilities, investment analytics and investment products, BSAM delivers sophisticated and comprehensive solutions which include traditional long-only equity and fixed income asset classes, hedge funds and funds of hedge funds, private equity solutions, advisory services and capital raising. As of May 31, 2007, BSAM had $60 billion in assets under management. Bear Measurisk, LLC, a majority owned subsidiary of BSAM, is a leading provider of risk transparency and risk monitoring solutions. For more information about Bear Stearns Asset Management, please go to www.BSAMonline.com.