U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray Initiates Coverage of NIKU with a Strong Buy Rating and CLRS with a Buy Rating; Ekoniak Expands Research Coverage of the Platforms and Solutions Space.

Business Editors

NOTE TO EDITORS: The following is an investment opinion issued

by U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray 

MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 25, 2000

U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray Vice President and Senior Business-to-Business (B2B) e-Commerce Analyst Jon M. Ekoniak today initiated coverage of Niku Corp. [NASDAQ: NIKU - $29.50 a, c] and Clarus Corp. [NASDAQ: CLRS - $42, a, c] at a Strong Buy and Buy rating, respectively. Niku provides Internet-software products tailored to the needs of the professional services industries, and also operates a marketplace for the sourcing, management and delivery of professional services. Clarus develops and operates a software-based platform that enables direct Internet-based e-Commerce transactions, automating the workflow and management for the complete spectrum of the procurement process.

"We are initiating coverage of Niku with a Strong Buy rating," said Ekoniak. "The company occupies an early-stage market leadership position, is expanding its addressable market segment by pursuing multiple verticals within the services industry and is using its valuable stock currency to build out the breadth of its offerings."

IDC estimates that the services industries supply-chain automation packaged-application market will grow at a compounded rate of 108 percent over the next four years, from $600 million in 1999 to approximately $12 billion by 2003.

"We believe the significant macroeconomic trends, along with increased globalization and collaboration with external partners, will all drive increased demand for the types of products provided by Niku," said Ekoniak. "Niku is growing at an impressive rate, having ramped its revenues 160 percent and 65 percent, sequentially, during the past two quarters. We believe that Niku will continue to successfully expand and sell its product to multiple service verticals, building upon its success to date within the IT services and consulting verticals, as well as successfully penetrating additional international markets."

"We are initiating coverage of Clarus with a Buy rating and believe the company represents a compelling investment opportunity for both its near-term revenue expansion and long-term value proposition," said Ekoniak. "In our view, Clarus is a direct play on the explosive growth of the B2B e-Commerce space, providing the software infrastructure for companies to engage in e-Commerce. In addition, we believe Clarus offers a distinct and differentiated value proposition that will enable the company to successfully emerge from the shadows of the current powerhouses in the space, Commerce One (a,c) and Ariba. Moreover, Clarus is trading at a substantial discount of 68 percent to its group of comparable companies."

For more information, visit our Web site at www.piperjaffray.com. To receive a free copy of The B2B Analyst, a weekly newsletter published by the B2B team, go to www.gotoanalysts.com/b2bsubscribe.

Jon Ekoniak joined the Equity Research department at U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray in 1999 as a vice president and senior research analyst, targeting the B2B e-Commerce. Previously, Ekoniak spent two years as an analyst at Robertson Stephens, most recently helping launch its B2B e-Commerce coverage area. Ekoniak brings aboard valuable technology industry expertise, having spent four years at Andersen Consulting designing and building application systems for the government and Fortune 500 companies. Ekoniak graduated magna cum laude from Loyola Marymount University and received his MBA from Stanford University.

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