CheMatch.com Taps CertCo Risk Management Exchange to Provide Credit Risk Services for Buyers and Sellers; Leading Chemical Exchange To Incorporate New CertCo RMX Offering.

Business Editors & High Tech Writers

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 6, 2000

CertCo Inc., the leading provider of risk management and security solutions for B2B e-commerce, today announced that CheMatch.com, a leading marketplace for bulk commodity chemicals, plastics and fuel products will soon integrate the CertCo Risk Management Exchange(TM) (CertCo RMX(TM)) into CheMatch.com's Global Trading Network(SM). The CertCo RMX effectively enhances B2B e-commerce by reducing the credit risk of doing business with a new or previously unknown trading partner. The service is delivered to online exchanges via an application service provider (ASP) model.

Through CertCo RMX, CheMatch.com will offer its members access to financial, business and credit information for member companies of its exchange, enabling them to seamlessly conduct high-value transactions in real-time with the click of a mouse. CheMatch.com members will be able to request needed information and services from CertCo RMX through the CheMatch.com site, giving them the tools to effectively manage credit risk.

CertCo RMX provides the first risk management infrastructure that allows businesses to authenticate buyers' and sellers' identities and credit worthiness, verify purchasing authority, and insure transactions, all within an online exchange. These services are provided through CertCo's strategic alliances with initial backend service providers including Deutsche Bank and Media General Financial Services, along with CertCo's own patented digital signature solutions. Users of CertCo RMX also will have access to the SEC's EDGAR Database and services from additional risk service providers will be incorporated on an ongoing basis.

"As CheMatch.com continues to aggressively expand our membership, we have seen a dramatic increase in the volume of bulk commodity chemicals, plastics and fuel products being traded through our system," said Carl McCutcheon, CheMatch.com's chairman, president and chief executive officer. "Over 500 member companies have joined our Global Trading Network(SM). By offering them an integrated risk management solution with CertCo RMX, they can become more comfortable with the credit worthiness of prospective trading partners."

Upon initial integration, CheMatch.com members will have access to CertCo RMX's suite of risk management services, including:

-- In-depth reports, credit analysis and credit scoring for public and private
companies worldwide from a leading provider of business information;

-- Financial and business information offered by Media General Financial
Services for all public companies in the United States and Canada; and

-- Access to the SEC's EDGAR Database.

CertCo will offer additional services in the future, including:

-- Transaction insurance;

-- Trade finance advisory services; and

-- CertCo's patented public key infrastructure (PKI) services,

including digital signing, real-time certificate validation

and transactional insurance.

"CertCo RMX helps online exchanges enable their members to manage the credit risks associated with conducting high-value trade via the Internet," said June Felix, chairman, president and chief executive officer of CertCo Inc. "As companies increasingly turn to exchanges such as CheMatch.com to conduct critical business transactions, they are seeing a pressing need for solutions that ensure the transaction's viability and security. We are working with CheMatch.com to provide its members with a host of information and services that will further increase confidence in the online trading process."

By employing CertCo RMX, which reduces the uncertainty and risks involved with online transactions, online exchanges such as CheMatch.com can expand the range of acceptable trading partners for their members and potentially increase the frequency of transactions. The CertCo RMX service's single XML interface makes it easy for exchanges to integrate risk management capabilities into their existing infrastructures, freeing them to focus on their core business objectives and helping them achieve an edge in serving their members' needs.

About CheMatch.com

CheMatch.com (www.chematch.com) is a global Internet exchange and information resource for buying and selling bulk commodity chemicals, plastics and fuel products. CheMatch.com creates a seamless, global marketplace where users can trade 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Strategic and financial investors include Battery Ventures, Bayer AG (NYSE:BAYZY), (FSE:BAYG.F), Computer Sciences Corporation (NYSE:CSC), Dewitt & Company, DuPont (NYSE:DD), Millennium Chemicals (NYSE:MCH), H. Muehlstein & Co. Inc., Reed Elsevier, Sprout Group, Stolt-Nielsen S.A. (Nasdaq:STLTF), (Nasdaq:STLBY), (Oslo Stock Exchange:SNIB) and TownsendTarnell Inc. Headquartered in Houston, CheMatch.com has international offices in the United Kingdom, Singapore and Tokyo.

About CertCo(R) Inc.

Founded in 1996, CertCo Inc. is a leading provider of risk management and security infrastructure solutions for B2B e-commerce. CertCo provides corporations, financial institutions, online exchanges and governments with business solutions that enable them to safely conduct global, high-value transactions over open networks -- effectively removing the "last hurdle" in end-to-end B2B e-commerce. The company offers a full suite of risk management and security services that leverages its thorough understanding and experience with business process, legal, technology and cryptography issues, as well as its deep and long-standing relationships with insurance and financial services providers. Based in New York and privately held, CertCo also operates a research and development office in Cambridge, Mass. More information is available at www.certco.com.