Bill Wilby Selected to Manage the Oyster World Opportunities Fund.

Business Editors

GENEVA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 1, 2003

OYSTER, the family of funds of Swiss banking group SYZ & CO, has selected Bill Wilby, Senior Investment Officer, Global Equities at Oppenheimer Funds to manage its global equities fund, the OYSTER World Opportunities sub-fund. In this way, OYSTER continues to pursue its policy of selecting the world's best managers, allowing it to be one of the most best performing European funds.

Armed with an impressive track record, Mr. Wilby has been a member for five consecutive years of the select circle of the 100 best funds managers in the US. Mr. Wilby is still relatively unknown in Europe, where his fund management expertise is still only available via the Oyster World Opportunities Fund. Mr. Wilby's original investment philosophy and independent approach have allowed him to significantly outperform both the market and his peers for 15 years.

In the last five years, (as of 31 August 2003), Bill Wilby has produced a return of +60.5% in USD, compared to a -3.4% fall for the MSCI World Index and a -7.1% fall recorded by his peer group average (Source:Lipper). What is most remarkable is that this superior performance was maintained during the bull market of the end of the 90s as well as during the downturn of the last three years and even during the rebound experienced in the first months of 2003.

Key elements of the investment process of the Global Equities team at Oppenheimer Funds include the identification of long-term growth themes (such as mass affluence, new technology, restructuring and aging), the research of well managed companies with solid margins within these sectors and investing in a contrarian fashion.

The Luxembourg-domiciled OYSTER SICAV comprises 15 sub-funds and is registered in Germany, Italy, France, Switzerland, Spain and Austria. Clearly focused on absolute returns, OYSTER accesses the world's best specialists when internal resources are not totally competitive. This concept has allowed it to be highly ranked by many independent ranking and to gain 3rd place in the Standard & Poor's Micropal awards for "European Best Larger Group Awards 2003".

Notes to Editors

On SYZ & CO (www.syzbank.ch)

Established in Geneva in 1995, SYZ & CO has become one of the fastest growing and dynamic banking groups in Switzerland. Today, with a staff of 165, the SYZ & CO Group has offices in Geneva, Locarno, Lugano, Zurich, Nassau, Luxembourg, London, Salzburg and Milan. The SYZ & CO group has over EUR 4.2 bn in assets under management.

The Group's activity is based around three complimentary pillars:

-- High-level private banking

-- A comprehensive range of investment funds (OYSTER funds)

-- Alternative investments, through 3A - Alternative Asset

Advisors, one of Europe's leading alternative investment

companies