Citibank appointed depositary bank by Compania Anonima Nacional Telefonos de Venezuela -- CANTV.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 6, 1996--Citibank N.A. announced that it has established an American Depositary Receipt (ADR) program for Compania Anonima Nacional Telefonos de Venezuela (CANTV), Venezuela's major provider of telecommunications services.

The ADR program for which Citibank acts as Depositary, trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol VNT (Cusip No. 204421101). Each ADS issued under the program represents 7 class D shares.

CANTV is Venezuela's first public offering and one of Latin America's largest IPOs in recent history. It is part of the "Agenda Venezuela" which contemplates privatizations and structural macroeconomic reforms aimed to redirect the country into a promising economic future.

"CANTV's operational results and debt profile have improved substantially over the past two years. The positive market response to CANTV's IPO reflects the market's recognition of these achievements and our excellent position to take advantage of a recovery in the Venezuelan economy," said Andres Gluski, chief financial officer of CANTV.

According to the offering circular, CANTV is a full service telecommunications company providing local, domestic and international long distance services in Venezuela. The company also provides cellular services, paging services, public telephone networks, directory information and other value added services.

In 1991, VenWorld Telecom C.A. (VenWorld) acquired from the Venezuelan Government operating control, and 40 percent of the equity capital of CANTV. VenWorld is 51 percent owned by GTE Corp. Other participants included Telefonica Internacional, Electricidad de Caracas, CIMA (Consorcio Inversionista Mercantil) and AT&T.

Since VenWorld obtained operating control of CANTV, it has substantially increased the number of active lines from approximately 1.6 million in 1991 to approximately 2.6 million by mid-year 1996. In addition, new technology has allowed the percentage of digital lines in service to increase from 15.2 percent as of Dec. 31, 1991 to 57.7 percent as of June 30, 1996.

As of Dec. 31, 1995 the company had gross revenues of US$1.2 billion and a net income of US$55 million. As of June 30, 1996, CANTV's gross revenues and net income were US$544 million and US$67 million respectively.

CANTV's strategy is to capitalize on the growing opportunities of the Venezuelan market. The company will continue to expand and increase its market penetration by modernizing the network and launching new products and services. CANTV is expected to grow, committing itself to increasing productivity and lowering costs.

"We believe CANTV shares have tremendous potential in the US market," said James P. Donovan, managing director of Citibank's ADR group. "US investors have shown significant appetite for Latin American telecommunications services companies, and as Venezuala's first public offering, CANTV is well-positioned to capitalize upon that interest. We are proud to welcome them to the Citibank portfolio of ADR issuers."

Citibank is a leading depositary serving over 500 issuers worldwide. The bank began offering depositary receipt services in 1928 and has been the leading market innovator in recent years. With a local presence in 98 countries and unsurpassed strength in delivering on-line information, Citibank is uniquely qualified to support the funding needs of issuers around the world.

CONTACT: Citibank

Program information

Ricardo Szlezinger

212/657-7533

or: Press inquiries

Jarvis Cromwell, 203/975-6037

or

CANTV

Investor Relations

Astrid Angola 58-2/500-1831

Fax: [phone]