HONG KONG, Sep--19 --PRNewswire/Asia-AsiaNet Global First Lets Investors Trade in 10 Countries and 12 Exchanges Across Asia Pacific, Via One Internet Account Asia's first Internet stockbroker and leading financial technology firm, BOOM, has reached another milestone with the launch of a pan-Asian online trading platform. Its convenient online access to all major exchanges in Asia through a single account signals the dawn of a new era in the financial history of the region. BOOM now offers investors throughout the world the ability to trade equities in 10 countries and 12 exchanges across Asia as well as three in the United States. It is expected that this development will double the size of BOOM's business in less than a year. "International cross-border trading is the fastest growing development in the financial services industry," said BOOM managing director and chief executive officer Mark B Duff. "We estimate that our pan-Asian service currently addresses the needs of about 15 million investors worldwide. Unlike before, when international trade execution and custody were too expensive for the average individual, everyone can now trade both local and foreign stocks inexpensively, thanks to the 'net'." BOOM's online reach now extends to Australia's ASX, Shenzhen and Shanghai in China, Hong Kong's HKEx, the JSX in Indonesia, all exchanges in Japan including the TSE and OSE, Korea's KSE, the PSE of the Philippines, Singapore's SGX, Taiwan's TSE, Thailand's SET and the NASDAQ, NYSE and AMEX exchanges in the US. BOOM has plans to add the London Stock Exchange to the network soon, paving the way for customers to add European securities to their portfolio. (Note: Please click http://boom.com/about/ann.asp?name=ann2001-09-19.html to view some of the top listed companies available through BOOM.) "No single exchange has a monopoly on value. The competitive edge is offering your clients choice and in the prevailing bearish investment climate, investors are looking to expand their horizons and diversify their portfolios. Where competitors have focussed on cutting commissions, BOOM has always concentrated on leveraging technology to provide higher quality services -- delivering more value at no extra cost." Duff adds that there is far more to BOOM's offering than a broad inventory of stocks. "Today, our customers enjoy a comprehensive range of services in the market. In addition to a 24 hour customer service centre, we offer real-time market data, margin financing, interest-bearing cash accounts, warrant and index fund centres, regional custody and safekeeping with deposit protection insurance." Available to all residents of Asia (and qualified investors in the US and Europe) through BOOM's Hong Kong headquarters, the new regional trading platform provides comprehensive execution throughout Asia Pacific through a network of 37 correspondent brokers/custodians. With two or more clearing firms per country, the BOOM trading platform has full redundancy. As Duff points out, online trading is no longer a novelty -- it's a reality and there are nearly a hundred brokers offering Internet trading in Hong Kong alone. "Hong Kong is the most competitive retail brokerage marketplace in the world. We are confident that our unique international focus, constant innovation and quality assurance programs will win with both professional and retail investors alike," said Duff. BOOM is an acronym for Beyond Other Ordinary Markets. About BOOM BOOM is a technology-driven financial services firm, headquartered in Hong Kong, focused on borderless investing. BOOM provides order execution, compliant omnibus accounting, and custodial (safekeeping) services for the equities markets in Asia/Pacific and the United States, to both retail and professional investors. Its single-account offering is the largest online inventory of exchange-listed securities in the world. BOOM's shareholders include Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ), the Overseas Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC), the Hong Kong Eu Family, and two established Silicon Valley investors. BOOM is a fully licensed Broker / Dealer regulated by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong. Boom is an acronym meaning beyond other ordinary markets. SOURCE: BOOM CONTACT: Jenny Ng of BOOM, +852-2255-8850, or [email protected]; or Brian Paterson of Firebrand Communications Ltd, +852-2122-9762, or [email protected], for BOOM