HONG KONG AND LONDON: The Board of Directors of Global Alliance Partners (GAP) today formally announced that Seymour Pierce Ltd has joined GAP’s International Network.

Seymour Pierce www.seymourpierce.com, based in London, is one of the UK’s leading and award winning independent investment banks advising companies operating in virtually every industry and ranging in size from AIM small cap to FTSE 250. Since January 2006 the firm has raised over £1.6 billion through primary and secondary placings for UK and internationally domiciled growing businesses. Seymour Pierce has a solid foundation in research and has developed strong relationships with its UK and European institutional investor clients.

Global Alliance Partners www.globalalliancepartners.com is an international network of likeminded stock brokers and investment banks that aim to leverage existing execution platforms to expand cross-border capabilities, covering private equity, pre-IPO placements, share trading, research, funds management and equity placement opportunities. It is composed of 10 alliance partners whose scope and reach, including their respective affiliate companies, span strategic markets in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa and North America, providing a truly global reach. GAP has offices in 25 countries and over 20,000 staff.

"Seymour Pierce recognizes both the appetite amongst its institutional client base for international investments and the desire for overseas businesses to access the U.K. capital and see its membership of the Global Alliance Partners as instrumental in fulfilling these requirements”, said Mr Phillip Wale, CEO of Seymour Pierce.

Robert W. McMillen, Chairman of GAP added, “Joining the GAP team gives Seymour Pierce access to the World-wide network of investment bankers, asset managers, private wealth advisors and securities traders, which compose this fast growing global network. GAP provides international equity and economic research and equity trading capabilities in a number of jurisdictions. Accumulative funds under management or advised exceed USD 500 billion and our members have completed over USD 22 billion of cross border M&A transactions and capital raisings in many of the
developing markets as well as the more traditional markets such as Japan, the USA, South Africa, Europe, and Hong Kong. Last year, GAP’s members completed transactions and substantial capital raisings for clients in Laos (the first IPO in that country), Kazakhstan, Egypt, China, Oman, Sweden, Thailand, South Africa, Colombia and Hong Kong as well as the more traditional markets.”

GAP intends to announce further new members in the near future.

NOTES TO THE EDITOR:

ABOUT GLOBAL ALLIANCE PARTNERS (GAP)
Website: www.globalalliancepartners.com

Global Alliance Partners (GAP) is a Hong Kong registered network organization of international, midmarket financial services companies that employs over 20,000 professionals dedicated to delivering innovative solutions for our clients across private equity, corporate fund raising, stock broking and fund management. Partner firms have completed over 800 corporate transactions worth a total of over US$22 billion in 80 countries over the last 20 years; and manage or advise in excess of US$500 billion in individual and institutional funds. Global Alliance Partners bridges the gap between investment opportunities in leading, emerging, and frontier markets, and key sources of investment risk capital. It is composed of 10 alliance partners whose scope and reach, including their respective affiliate companies, span 24 countries in strategic markets in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and Sub-Saharan Africa, providing a truly global reach.

GAP’s partners include: