Citi Completes Its First Securities Lending Transaction in Israeli Securities

London – Citi Markets & Banking today announced that it is the first major international lending agent to complete a securities lending transaction in Israeli securities. Citi worked with Israeli legal and tax specialists as part of the due diligence to create an efficient and easy access to this market for foreign borrowers and lenders of securities. The transaction will help open Israel to new sources of liquidity and support the development of the local capital market.

“We are thrilled to offer off-shore lending of Israeli securities to benefit our clients and the local Israeli market,” said Brian Staunton, Managing Director, Securities Finance, Global Transaction Services at Citi. “The transaction underscores Citi’s leadership in securities lending in emerging markets and our commitment to leveraging our global presence and local expertise to benefit our clients around the world.”

Ralph Shaaya, Citi’s Country Officer for Israel, said: “In line with our efforts to expose the Israeli market to international investors, Citi is looking to improve the access of foreign investors to the local market, enable additional liquidity resources and continue supporting the development of the local economy.”

Securities lending, also called securities financing, is the temporary transfer of securities on a collateralized basis, allowing portfolio managers who lend securities to earn a fee while allowing the borrower to execute their trading strategies. Citi already carries out securities lending in 37 countries around the world and has a history of opening up new markets, most recently as the first lending agent to complete a securities lending transaction in Taiwan in February 2006. Citi also recently completed its first lending transactions in South Africa, Turkey, Hungary and the Czech Republic.

Citi has offered securities clearing and settlement services in Israel since last year when Citi announced it would provide direct custody and clearing (DCC) services to clients through the TASE Clearing House, making Citi the first foreign bank in Israel to offer DCC services to a large international client base. Citi is a member of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) and the TASE Clearing House.