Merrill Lynch Names Thomas W. Davis Vice Chairman and Head of Private Equity and Research.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 4, 2001

Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER)--

Paul Roy, Arshad Zakaria to Co-head the Firm's

Corporate and Institutional Client Group

Jerome P. Kenney to Assume

Added Client Relationship Duties

Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) today announced several top management changes.

Thomas W. Davis will become a vice chairman of Merrill Lynch & Co. and will lead an expanded private equity business. He also will assume executive responsibility for the company's Global Securities Research & Economics Group. Mr. Davis, who continues as an executive vice president and member of the company's executive management committee, most recently was president of the Corporate and Institutional Client Group (CICG).

Paul Roy and Arshad R. Zakaria succeed Mr. Davis as co-presidents of CICG, with executive responsibility for the global investment banking, debt, equity and securities services divisions. Both will become executive vice presidents of Merrill Lynch & Co. and serve on the executive management committee.

Jerome P. Kenney, who has had executive responsibility for the research group, will assume additional responsibilities for senior client relationships around the world, and will continue to lead the corporate strategy function as an executive vice president of Merrill Lynch. He continues as a member of the executive management committee.

The appointments were announced by David H. Komansky, chairman and chief executive officer, and Stan O'Neal, president and chief operating officer, and are effective immediately.

"Tom Davis has been outstanding as head of our corporate and institutional business," Messrs. Komansky and O'Neal said. "He was instrumental in creating what is truly a top-tier global franchise. Under his direction, the business achieved significant gains in market share and the highest profitability by far in its history. The knowledge and client skills he brings to the private equity business will enable us to rapidly expand our presence in this important area. Given current market valuations, we see significant opportunities in private equity, and this appointment signals our determination to pursue those opportunities aggressively. Tom will also be a strong leader for our global research activities.

"As co-heads of CICG, Paul Roy and Arshad Zakaria bring well-honed and complementary leadership skills to this important business," Messrs. Komansky and O'Neal added. "Paul, who will be based in London, has 27 years of experience in the global equity markets, with a deep knowledge of trading strategy and client relationships. Arshad brings a remarkable intellect to this position, along with a keen understanding of investment banking and the company's risk and credit profile around the world."

Mr. Roy served most recently as head of Merrill Lynch's global equity markets business. Mr. Zakaria headed corporate risk management, and before that headed the global corporate finance group within investment banking. Successors will be announced shortly.

"Jerry Kenney has provided exemplary leadership to one of the finest research groups in the world," Messrs. Komansky and O'Neal said. "He has an exceptional understanding of the global economic and competitive forces that continue to reshape financial services as well as other industries. We are delighted that he will now take on broader client relationship responsibilities at the most senior levels, with a particular focus on the financial services and pharmaceutical industries, where Merrill Lynch has a leading position as a banker and advisor worldwide.

In addition to these changes, new leadership has been announced over the past two weeks in the company's private client and asset management businesses. Describing these changes, Messrs. Komansky and O'Neal said: "This is a team of highly talented, experienced and energetic leaders who will help chart our success for years to come. With these appointments, we are fine-tuning our organizational structure to adapt to a global business environment, which, while faced with near-term uncertainty, presents tremendous growth and leadership opportunities for Merrill Lynch."

Merrill Lynch is one of the world's leading financial management and advisory companies with offices in 43 countries and total client assets of more than $1.6 trillion. As an investment bank, it is the top global underwriter of debt and equity securities and a leading strategic advisor to corporations, governments, institutions and individuals worldwide. Through Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, the company is one of the world's largest managers of financial assets. For more information, please visit www.ml.com.

Note: Biographies of Messrs. Davis, Roy, Zakaria and Kenney are attached.

BIOGRAPHIES

Thomas W. Davis, 47, vice chairman and executive vice president, is responsible for the Private Equity business and the Global Securities Research & Economics Group Since 1997, he served as president of the Corporate and Institutional Client Group. Mr. Davis joined Merrill Lynch in 1977 as an associate in Investment Banking and served in a variety of roles in Relationship Management, Merchant Banking, High Yield Finance and Restructuring, and Equities. From 1991 to 1993, he was head of Global Equity Capital Markets. He served as co-head of the Equity Division from 1993 to 1995, and then as co-head of the Investment Banking Group until April 1997. Mr. Davis is a member of the Executive Management Committee.

Paul Roy, 54, co-president of the Corporate and Institutional Client Group, is responsible for Investment Banking, Debt and Equity markets and Securities Services on a global basis. He is executive vice president and a member of the executive management committee. He joined Merrill Lynch in 1995 following the company's merger with Smith New Court Plc, where he was chief executive officer. Since 1998, he served as senior vice president and head of global equity markets. He was head of European equities for Merrill Lynch from 1995 to 1998. A member of the London Stock Exchange since 1974, Mr. Roy held executive positions with Morton Brothers, Kemp Gee & Co., Citicorp Scrimgeour Vickers before joining Smith New Court in 1988.

Arshad R. Zakaria, 39, co-president of the Corporate and Institutional Client Group, is responsible for Investment Banking, Debt and Equity markets and Securities Services on a global basis. He is executive vice president and a member of the executive management committee. He served since May 2000 as head of Corporate Risk Management. Mr. Zakaria joined Merrill Lynch in 1987 in Investment Banking, and was named managing director in 1991. He served as chief operating officer and, later, head of the Global Corporate Finance Group. Mr. Zakaria received a B.A. degree, summa cum laude, in applied mathematics from Harvard University, and received his MBA with high distinction from Harvard Business School, where he was a Baker Scholar and recipient of the Loeb-Rhoades Fellowship in Finance.

Jerome P. Kenney, 60, executive vice president, Corporate Strategy, is responsible for corporate strategy and has senior client relationship responsibilities with key clients worldwide. He is a member of the Executive Management Committee. Mr. Kenney came to Merrill Lynch in 1978 with the White, Weld & Co. merger. He has served as director of Securities Research, director of Institutional Sales and Marketing, and head of Investment Banking. He has also served as president and chief executive officer of Merrill Lynch Capital Markets and as a member of the Board of Directors. Mr. Kenney received a B.A. from Yale University and an MBA from Northwestern University (Kellogg) Graduate School. He is a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts.