Fitch Risk & BvD Announce Alliance to Develop Integrated Credit Risk Analysis & Management Tool.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 24, 2004

Fitch Risk, a leading global provider of risk management solutions and Bureau van Dijk Electronic Publishing (BvD), Europe's leading electronic publisher of business information, have today announced their newly formed alliance to develop and market an integrated tool to analyse and manage credit risk.

The collaboration will produce a solution that will leverage the value and flexibility of the financial data on BvD's products and its FACT software, with the power of Fitch Risk CreditVantage's CRS credit models to automate the financial analysis, credit approval and portfolio management process for corporate clients and financial institutions.

"We are thrilled to be collaborating with BvD and are confident that our combined efforts and best of breed approach will produce an end-product that will be valued by the credit risk community," said David Kelson, Managing Director, CreditVantage. "This venture offers a robust solution to meet the market's growing appetite for sophisticated automated credit risk tools."

"BvD is delighted by this partnership," said Claude-Vincent Gillard, head of BvD's customised solutions, adding, "The integration of Fitch Risk's models into FACT provides expertise for customers that don't have their own analytical resources, and gives those that do, the option to verify their models against the experts."

A series of road shows has been scheduled to demonstrate the new solution. Experts from both Fitch Risk and BvD will be available for discussion and advice.

About CreditVantage:

CreditVantage, A division of Fitch Risk, leads the field as a provider of best-of-breed, technology-driven credit risk management solutions. CreditVantage provides proven approaches that combine practical financial knowledge with robust theoretical methodologies. Recognized as industry innovators, the professionals at CreditVantage bring thought leadership, sophisticated risk management techniques and a practical implementation approach to the global credit markets. For more information regarding CreditVantage, visit the Fitch Risk web site at 'www.fitchrisk.com'.

About Fitch Risk:

Fitch Risk delivers the best in risk technologies and enterprise risk advisory services in the realm of market, credit and operational risk. Fitch Risk is an affiliate of Fitch Ratings and a subsidiary of Fimalac, S.A., an international business support services group headquartered in Paris, France. Fitch Risk has offices in New York, London and Greenwich, CT. For further information, visit 'www.fitchrisk.com'.

About CRS:

CreditVantage's CRS is a suite of statistical credit models that produce probabilities of default or agency like credit ratings for public and private companies, utilities, and banks globally. CRS clients include the commercial lending and credit departments of some of the world's most sophisticated financial institutions as well as institutions active in the collateralised debt obligation (CDO) market.

About BvD:

Bureau van Dijk Electronic Publishing (BvD) is one of Europe's leading publishers of electronic business information. The company has 17 offices worldwide. BvD is best known for its range of international company information products that combines multiple high quality data sources with flexible software to allow users to manipulate data for research, marketing intelligence and analysis. Products include OSIRIS, ISIS, ORBIS, AMADEUS and BANKSCOPE. For more information, visit 'www.bvdep.com'.

About FACT:

BvD's FACT is a web credit solution that allows customers to perform financial analyses, peer comparison and complex internal rating calculations. It supports the workflow surrounding the rating and limit setting business process and integrates financial information plus ownership and news data from BvD's databases. FACT can be integrated with customers' internal risk management data and be tailored to any institutions' credit revision process.

Dates for road shows:

-- Frankfurt, March 11;

-- Dusseldorf, March 12;

-- Milan, March 24;

-- Rome, March 25;

-- New York, April 22;

-- Lisbon, April 27;

-- Madrid, April 28;

-- Brussels, May 6;

-- Dubai, May 13;

-- Amsterdam, May 20;

-- Vienna, May 26;

-- Singapore, TBC;

-- Zurich, TBC;

-- Copenhagen, TBC;

-- Madrid, TBC;

-- Paris, TBC;

-- London, TBC;

-- Tokyo, TBC.

For more information on the road shows, contact '[e-mail]'.