BondsInAsia(TM) Appoints Albert Cobetto as CEO HONG KONG & SINGAPORE, Oct. 9 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ -- BondsInAsia, the joint venture company formed by BRIDGE eMarkets, Citigroup (NYSE: C), Deutsche and HSBC offering on-line trading for Asian domestic and international fixed income securities, announced today the appointment of Albert L Cobetto as Chief Executive Officer. Mr Cobetto said, "I am extremely excited about taking the helm at BondsInAsia and making it the leading fixed income platform in Asia. I have the greatest respect for the four founding partners, having had working relationships wit them over my many years in financial services, and I am confident that the unique approach adopted by BondsInAsia is exactly what the fixed income market needs. " "By offering open and inclusive access and by encouraging full local participation in the governance and operation of the platform in each market, we are looking to stimulate liquidity, enhance transparency and assist the development of the fixed income market across Asia," Mr Cobetto continued. Prior to joining BondsInAsia, Mr Cobetto was the Senior Managing Director of Prudential Asia, the investment arm of Prudential Insurance Company Of America, where he has developed an institutional asset management group currently investing in and managing several portfolios of Asian fixed income securities. Mr Cobetto has more than 20 years of international business experience, covering a broad range of investment activities, including fixed income, origination,syndication and liability management, structured finance, public equity products, financial advisory assignments, mergers, acquisition, divestitures and direct investment. He has worked with two leading investment banks, Salomon Brothers and Lehman Brothers. Mr Cobetto holds an undergraduate degree in Physics from Bradley University and an MBA in International Finance from the American Graduate School of International Business. In 1994, he was named an "Emerging Market Superstar" by Global Finance for his role in the development of capital markets in the Asia Pacific region. Mr Kenneth Yeadon, Head of E-commerce, Asia Pacific for HSBC's Treasury and Capital Markets division, one of the founding partners, said, "The appointment of such a high profile and respected figure as Albert illustrates the credibility BondsInAsia has gained within the industry, as well as the confidence the four founding partners have in the success of BondsInAsia." Mr Eddie Tan, Financial Markets Head for Citigroup in Singapore commented "Mr Cobetto's experience on both the sell side and the buy side in senior positions makes him ideally placed to represent the interests of all users of the platform. This will help ensure it fully addresses both customer experience needs and all the complex logistical and control issues faced by dealers." Mr David Rutter, President of Bridge eMarkets said "Albert's wide experience and contacts both with regulators and market participants across the region will prove invaluable in terms of communicating our proposition and establishing BondsInAsia as the best fixed income platform in the region" Mr Loh Boon Chye, Regional Head of Fixed Income at Deutsche Bank said "Albert has a history of being at the forefront of the development of Asia's fixed income markets, and he is widely recognized as being one of the most active proponents of the development of domestic capital markets." Since its inception in July, BondsInAsia has received an enthusiastic response across the region from both dealers and prospective clients. System development is on schedule and the first three franchises are on target to go live in the first quarter of 2001. Upon appointment, Mr Cobetto will finalise negotiations on office space to set up permanent offices in Hong Kong and Singapore. Premises have been identified, and BondsInAsia is in the final stages of concluding its tenancy agreements and fit out. He will also complete the exercise of recruiting additional professionals to build up teams in both locations. For company information, please visit: www.BondsInAsia.com Enquiries: Citigate Dewe Rogerson General line: 852-2521-0633 Donna Chan: 852-2533-4642 Charlotte Bilney: 852-2533-4620 SOURCE BondsInAsia