Milberg Weiss Files Class Action Suit Against BankAmerica Corp. and Its Senior Officers Alleging Misrepresentations.

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 19, 1998--Milberg Weiss today announced that a class action has been commenced in California on behalf of all persons who purchased or otherwise acquired the shares of BankAmerica Corp. ("BankAmerica") (NYSE:BAC) and/or NationsBank ("NationsBank") (NYSE:NB) between Aug. 4, 1998 and Oct. 13, 1998 (the "Class Period"), including persons who acquired BankAmerica stock pursuant to the Oct. 1, 1998 merger between BankAmerica and NationsBank.

If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff's counsel, William Lerach, Alan Schulman or Darren Robbins of Milberg Weiss at 800/449-4900 or via e-mail at [e-mail].

The complaint charges BankAmerica and the chief executive officer of both BankAmerica and NationsBank with violations of the securities laws arising out of defendants' dissemination of false and misleading statements concerning the company's international loan losses as well as loss exposure to an investment firm called D.E. Shaw & Co. ("D.E. Shaw").

Plantiff alledges that Defendants'continued to disseminate false statements as late as Oct. 1, 1998 (the date that the merger became effective), as BankAmerica's Chairman, defendant Hugh McColl ("McColl"), continued to reassure investors about the strength of BankAmerica's operations, stating that BankAmerica had extended less than $300 million in credit to hedge funds, and all such extensions of credit were secured. While McColl mentioned BankAmerica's investment in D.E. Shaw, he did not disclose the astronomical losses that BankAmerica had already suffered as a result of its international loan losses and its loans to D.E. Shaw. Defendants' misrepresentations allowed defendants to complete the $40+ billion merger between NationsBank and BankAmerica.

On Oct. 14, 1998, investors were shocked when BankAmerica announced that: (i) losses on loans to D.E. Shaw had forced BankAmerica to write off $372 million; (ii) BankAmerica would be adding $500 million to its loan loss allowance to guard against global "uncertainties"; and (iii) BankAmerica was reporting operating EPS of $0.50 compared to defendants' Class Period representations of 3Q98 operating EPS of $0.90. Moreover, the company admitted that it in fact had extended $1.3 billion in unsecured loans to D.E. Shaw. The reaction to this announcement was swift and sudden, but not surprising. New BankAmerica's stock price plunged from $53-15/16 per share to $48-1/16 per share, on huge volume of more than 20 million shares.

Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of BankAmerica securities during the Class Period (the "Class"). The plaintiff is represented by two law firms, including Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach LLP, who have expertise in prosecuting investor class actions and extensive experience in actions involving financial fraud.

Milberg Weiss has been actively engaged in commercial litigation, emphasizing securities and antitrust class actions, for more than 30 years. The firm has offices in New York, San Diego, San Francisco and Los Angeles and is active in major litigation pending in federal and state courts throughout the United States.

The firm's reputation for excellence has been recognized on repeated occasions by courts which have appointed the firm to major positions in complex multi-district or consolidated litigations. Milberg Weiss has taken a lead role in numerous important actions on behalf of defrauded investors, and has been responsible for a number of outstanding recoveries which, in the aggregate, total approximately $2 billion. Visit the firm's Web site at http://www.milberg.com.