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CDS IndexCo and Markit Announce Roll of the CMBX Indices

Unique Roll Construction of the CMBX Indices will Provide Investors with Vintage Exposure to U.S. Commercial Mortgages

In response to investor demand for exposure to riskier, higher-yielding parts of the capital structure, Markit and CDS IndexCo introduce a new index tranche which will have a 'BB' rating

New York, 25 October 2006 - CDS IndexCo LLC ("CDS IndexCo"), a consortium of 16 investment banks, and Markit Group Limited ("Markit"), the leading provider of independent data, portfolio valuations and OTC derivatives trade processing, announced today the roll of its CMBX Indices, a synthetic family of indices based on U.S. commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), into their second series and the introduction of a new index tranche in CMBX Series 2. The new index tranche has a 'BB' rating and has been introduced in response to investor demand for exposure to riskier, higher-yielding parts of the capital structure.

The five traded index tranches that will roll today from CMBX Series 1 include: CMBX.NA.AAA.2; CMBX.NA.AA.2; CMBX.NA.A.2; CMBX.NA.BBB.2; CMBX.NA.BBB-.2. The new index tranche is CMBX.NA.BB.2.

In an effort to ensure the continued liquidity of the CMBX Indices, CDS IndexCo and Markit have introduced two new provisions that allow for the exclusion of underlying bonds that are property-specific or have characteristics significantly dissimilar from other bonds selected for the index. The purpose of the amendments is to help craft indices in which the underlying reference obligations share consistent payment and collateral characteristics. Additional index requirements are listed below.

Unlike the CDX and iTraxx indices where the roll concept is designed as a way for investors to retain exposure to the most liquid series of corporates, and where liquidity tends to be concentrated in the most recent "on-the-run" series, the indices within CMBX are designed so that each series provides a unique vintage profile.

Whereas rolling from one series of CDX or iTraxx indices to the next has historically changed one's exposure by only 3-5%, when rolling into the new CMBX Indices, each series will consist of a set of CMBS deals that provide participants with vintage exposure to a specific six month period. Additional details and considerations concerning the roll of the CMBX Indices, as well as a complete list of reference obligations, coupons and Index RED codes can be viewed at:www.markit.com.

The following institutions are market-makers in the index: Bank of America; Bear Stearns; Citigroup; Credit Suisse; Deutsche Bank; Goldman Sachs; JPMorgan; Lehman Brothers; Merrill Lynch; Morgan Stanley; Nomura International; RBS Greenwich Capital; UBS; and Wachovia.

Markit is the administration, calculation, and marketing agent for CMBX, and will serve as the central source of information about the index. Responsible for the index's rules, operations and analytics, Markit will publish daily prices on its website, provide monthly fixed and floating payment amounts, and supply a calculator for the settlement of trades.

Valuation analytics will be made freely available on www.markit.com and will utilize cashflows from Trepp, the leading provider of CMBS and commercial mortgage information, analytics and technology to the securities and investment management community. Markit will negotiate dealer and data licenses, produce marketing materials and communicate information to the wider market.

The six indices reference 25 of the most recently issued CMBS. Each of these deals meet the rules requirements described below and contain bonds rated AAA, AA, A, BBB, BBB- and BB; each of these bonds are represented respectively in the aforementioned tranches of CMBX. Ratings are required from at least two of the following rating agencies: Moody's, Fitch and Standard & Poor's.

Each index consists of a standardized basket of CMBS reference obligations which are selected through an algorithm that identifies the most recently issued deals over a minimum size of $700 million, and which satisfy additional diversity requirements. In order to qualify for index selection, the following rules apply: Deals must be secured by at least 50 separate mortgages that are obligations of at least 10 unaffiliated borrowers; no more than 40% of the underlying mortgages can be secured by properties in the same state; and no more than 60% of the properties can be of the same property type.

As with ABX, a new series of CMBX indices will be issued every six months. CMBX is based on the standard ISDA Pay-As-You-Go template.

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For further information on CMBX: see www.markit.com or contact Ben Logan, Director, Product Development at Markit on +212 931 4925, or any of the participating CMBX dealers listed below:

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About CDS IndexCo

CDS IndexCo is a consortium of 16 investment banks which are licensed as market makers in the ABX, CMBX and Dow Jones CDX Indexes. The market makers include: ABN AMRO, Bank of America, Barclays Capital, Bear Stearns, BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, JPMorgan, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, UBS, and Wachovia.

About Markit

Markit Group Limited is the leading provider of independent data, portfolio valuations and OTC derivatives trade processing to the global financial and commodities markets. The company receives daily data contributions from over 70 dealing firms, and its services are used by over 600 institutions to enhance trading operations, reduce risk and manage compliance.

Markit's position in the derivatives markets has been acknowledged by the industry with numerous awards. In 2006, the company won Operations Management's Vendor of the Year award (Trade Processing); Financial News' Best Derivatives Data Solution and Best New Vendor Solution (Portfolio Valuations); Credit's Best Operational Support Services Provider; Inside Market Data's Reference Data Provider of the Year, and Company to Watch; Risk's Trading Initiative of the Year (Credit Event Fixings); and Structured Finance International's Editor's Award for Advancing Structured Finance. In 2005, Markit received International Securitisation Report's Editor's Award for Innovation; International Financing Review's Innovation of the Year (Credit Event Fixings); Financial News' Best Derivatives Data Provider; and Operations Management's Vendor of the Year award.

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