LEXIS-NEXIS Acquisition of RiskWise, International Dramatically Expands Risk Management Services.

Business Editors

DAYTON, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 7, 2000

Signifies Aggressive New Internet Strategy For Leading Global Provider

Of Business Information Solutions

With its recent acquisition of RiskWise, International, LEXIS-NEXIS is sending a strong message that it expects to dramatically expand its presence on the Internet.

The RiskWise acquisition allows the world's leading provider of Business Information Solutions to deliver significantly expanded fraud and risk solutions to clients worldwide. The risk management services will be offered through LEXIS-NEXIS Risk Solutions (LNRS), which will operate as a new, separate risk management division of LEXIS-NEXIS. The Risk Management Division will address business' and government's need to manage the growing threat of online risk and fraud.

"Most industries and governments are seeing dramatic growth in the need for fraud, business due diligence and identity risk management solutions," said Bill Pardue, president and chief executive officer of NEXIS, the business information part of LEXIS-NEXIS. "This acquisition guarantees that, as the market leader in Business Information Solutions, we will have significant impact in managing identity risk and fraud in our global society."

"By leveraging many of the world-class resources such as superior data content available from LEXIS-NEXIS, as well as the expert knowledge base and tailored risk management solutions of LEXIS-NEXIS Risk Solutions, we will quickly be able to meet the growing needs of both corporate and government markets," added Brad Oates, president of LEXIS-NEXIS Risk Solutions. "LEXIS-NEXIS Risk Solutions works with clients to solve their fraud, business due diligence and identity risk management challenges. We provide information decisioning solutions that help clients in a very broad range of industries evaluate their risks such as those associated with anonymous, trusted transactions. With our solutions, clients are able to either minimize the losses associated with their risks, or uncover value and revenue associated with those risks."

LNRS will immediately focus its efforts on markets with the greatest need, including: e-commerce, banking, insurance, securities, collections, legal, government, retail, utilities/telecommunications, pre-employment and gaming.

LEXIS-NEXIS Risk Solutions will offer its products and knowledge base from the following product divisions:

-- RiskWise -- automated identity verification, risk scoring and collection
solutions;

-- NEXIS Interactive Risk Solutions (NIRS) -- online, interactive due diligence
solutions utilizing public records;

-- NEXIS-RiskWise Batch Solutions -- automated batch and bulk licensing
solutions that utilize both LEXIS-NEXIS and RiskWise data;

-- National Fraud Center -- fraud management consulting, professional services
and customized global due diligence solutions;

-- PeopleWise -- legally compliant pre-employment screening solutions delivered
over the Internet.

"The new markets LEXIS-NEXIS Risk Solutions opens to us are huge," said Pardue. "The dramatic growth of e-commerce demands solutions that can be implemented quickly and easily to prevent fraud and increase confidence in anonymous trusted transactions."

Oates added, "We are very excited about our full complement of risk management solutions and look forward to announcing how these solutions solve our clients' and partners' fraud, business due diligence and risk management needs, especially in the area of identity theft."

About LEXIS-NEXIS

LEXIS-NEXIS is a member of global publisher and information provider, Reed Elsevier, plc. Reed Elsevier plc (www.reed-elsevier.com) is owned equally by Reed International P.L.C. (NYSE:RUK) and Elsevier NV (NYSE:ENL). Operating in the scientific, legal and business-to-business industry sectors, LEXIS-NEXIS provides high value and flexible information solutions to professional end users, with increasing emphasis on the Internet as a delivery method. Building on its strong position in key markets and its established brands and content, the company is investing aggressively in the migration of its portfolio to electronic delivery, with links to a wider range of content-related services and transactional capabilities. For more information about LEXIS-NEXIS, please visit: www.lexis-nexis.com.

About LEXIS-NEXIS Risk Solutions

LEXIS-NEXIS Risk Solutions, a division of LEXIS-NEXIS, provides fraud, business due diligence and identity risk management solutions delivered in a full complement of ways to meet the unique risk needs of businesses and governments worldwide.