Commerzbank Securities Announces Four Additions To Its New York Team.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 22, 2003

Commerzbank Securities today announced four new additions to its New York team:

-- Jesse Shefferman takes the position of senior salesperson on

the New York team for Pan European Equity Sales. He will

report to Nick Hiley, head of brokerage and will be

responsible for sales to institutional clients, especially in

the Boston area. He joins from Salomon Smith Barney, Boston

where he was vice president, European Equity Sales. Other

prior positions include Schroder Salomon Smith Barney, London

and Credit Suisse First Boston, Houston & London. He holds a

B.S. in Accounting from Gordon College.

-- John Geron joins as a trader in New York for Pan European

Equity Trading. He will report to David Hegarty, trader, Pan

European Equity Trading. He was previously with Bear Stearns &

Company in New York as vice president, International Equities

Trading. He holds a B.A. in Economics from Hobart & William

Smith Colleges.

-- Puru Sareen becomes a salesperson in Equity Derivatives Sales,

New York. He will report to Kumar Doraiswami, head of

Institutional Sales. He comes from Merrill Lynch, New York

where he was an institutional investment strategist. He held

other previous positions with Credit Suisse First Boston, New

York, Deutsche Bank, New York, Bankers Trust Company, New York

and Johnson Matthey Bankers, New York. He holds an MBA in

finance from New York University, M.S. & B.S. degrees in

chemistry and chemical engineering respectively from Birla

Institute of Technology & Science, India.

-- Erik Palmetto joins as a trader on the Securities Finance

team, New York. He will report to John Kolb, head of

Securities Finance. He transfers from Commerz Securities

(Japan) Company Limited where he was an equity repo trader in

International Securities Finance. He was previously with Bear

Stearns & Company in New York, London, & Japan and Saratoga

Economic Development Corporation, New York. He holds a B.S. in

Marketing & Management from Siena College.

Omar Bayoumi, head of the Americas states: "We are very pleased to have these new individuals as part of our New York team. They will add a dynamic dimension to our expanding capabilities in New York."

Commerzbank Securities is the investment banking division of Commerzbank AG, integrating debt, equities, interest rates and foreign exchange, with specific expertise in corporate risk and capital structuring. As a division of one of Europe's leading financial institutions it has the backing of a EUR398bn(US$433bn) balance sheet (as of 3/1/2003) and is able to provide investment solutions for corporate, institutional, hedge fund and retail clients around the world.

In the United States, Commerzbank Securities transacts business through Commerzbank Capital Markets Corporation, a wholly owned registered broker-dealer of Commerzbank AG. Commerzbank Capital Markets Corporation is a member of NYSE, NASD and SIPC.