Tokyo, January 6, 2006 – BGC Shoken Kaisha Limited, a subsidiary of BGC, a leading interdealer brokerage firm providing integrated voice and electronic services to wholesale fixed income, interest rate, foreign exchange and derivatives markets worldwide, today announced that it has entered into a strategic alliance with Central Tanshi Securities (CTS) in Japan to combine their Japanese Government Bond (JGB) desks effective January 10,, 2006.
Under the terms of the agreement, BGC will combine its JGB operations in Japan with CTS, hich specialises in JGB brokerage services in the region, thus creating a single team of rokers with one expanded client base and one joint liquidity pool. This alliance will also reate the second-largest inter-dealer broker in the JGB market.
Following this, BGC will also connect its London JGB desks with CTS later in 2006, and lobal technology will be provided by BGC’s sister company eSpeed, Inc., a leader in eveloping electronic marketplaces and trading technology for the global capital markets.
The alliance with CTS marks yet another important step in BGC’s global development plans. ollowing its spin-off from Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P. a year ago, BGC has more than tripled its taff to 1,600 through a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions. In 2005, GC acquired Maxcor Financial and its subsidiary Euro Brokers, an international inter-dealer roker specialising in money market, derivative and other securities products, ETC Pollak, a eading inter-dealer broker in Europe, and has expanded rapidly in Singapore, Hong Kong nd Sydney, whilst also seeing significant growth at its London headquarters and New York ffice.
Walter Donahue, Senior Managing Director of BGC Capital Markets (Japan) LLC., ommented, “This new alliance will strengthen the market positions of both BGC and CTS, a ell established local franchise, creating a more powerful and compelling offering for JGB arket participants globally.”
Pat Simonetti, Managing Director of Central Tanshi Securities added, “We are very excited. GC is one of the world’s largest inter-dealer brokerage firms, with whom we have already stablished a close working relationship. We look forward to building on this and expanding our interests in the JGB Markets
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MEDIA CONTACTS:
Toyko
Yoko Kato/Deborah Hayden, Gavin Anderson
+81-3-5404-0640
Walter Donahue/Misao Aoyagi, BCG Capital Markets (Japan)
+81-3-3519-9189
Pat Simonetti, Central Tanshi Securities
+81-3-5202-7501
London
Timo Kindred, BGC
+44 (0) 20 7894 7292
NOTES TO EDITORS:
About BGC Capital Markets (Japan) LLC
BGC Capital Markets (Japan) LLC., is a subsidiary of BGC Partners, a leading inter-dealer broker, providing integrated voice and electronic services for wholesale market participants worldwide. BGC is active in the global fixed income, interest rate, foreign exchange and derivative markets, offering both telephone and screen-based price discovery, trade execution, straight-through processing and access to electronic trading services from eSpeed Inc. (Nasdaq: ESPD). The firm, named after fixed income trading innovator B. Gerald Cantor, has offices in London, New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney, Paris, Nyon and Milan. To learn more, please visit www.bgcpartners.com.
About Central Tanshi Securities
Central Tanshi Securities Co., Ltd., a 100 percent subsidiary of Central Tanshi Co., Ltd., is a leading broker in the Japanese market, specialising in the purchase and sale of public and corporate bonds, and over-the-counter securities derivative transactions. The Firm also acts as a mediator in JGB outright and switch transactions. Additionally, the Firm is active in securities lending and acts as an agent for other securities companies, as necessary. The Firm, which was established in 1997, is headquartered in Tokyo. For further information, please visit:www.central-sec.co.jp
About eSpeed, Inc.
eSpeed, Inc. (NASDAQ: ESPD) is the leader in developing and deploying electronic marketplaces and related trading technology that offers traders access to the most liquid, efficient and neutral financial markets in the world. eSpeed operates multiple buyer, multiple seller real-time electronic marketplaces for the global capital markets, including the world’s largest government bond markets and other fixed income and equities marketplaces. eSpeed’s suite of marketplace tools provides end-to-end transaction solutions for the purchase and sale of financial and non-financial products over eSpeed’s global private network or via the Internet. eSpeed’s neutral platform, reliable network, straight-though processing and superior products make it the trusted source for electronic trading at the world’s largest fixed income and foreign exchange trading firms and major exchanges. To learn more, please visitwww.espeed.com.
The information in this press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such statements are based upon current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Our actual results and the timing of certain events may differ significantly from the results discussed in the forwardlooking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such a discrepancy include, but are not limited to, the costs and expenses of developing, maintaining and protecting our intellectual property, including judgments or settlements paid or received and their related costs, the possibility of future losses and negative cash flow from operations, the effect of market conditions, including trading volume and volatility, our pricing strategy and that of our competitors, our ability to develop new products and services, to enter new markets, to secure and maintain market share, to enter into marketing and strategic alliances, to hire new personnel, to expand the use of our electronic system, to induce clients to use our marketplaces and services and to effectively manage any growth we achieve, the effects of the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, and other factors that are discussed under “Risk Factors” in eSpeed’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We believe that all forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions when made; however, we caution that it is impossible to predict actual results or outcomes or the effects of risks, uncertainties or other factors on anticipated results or outcomes and that, accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date when made, and we undertake no obligation to update these statements in light of subsequent events or developments. Actual results and outcomes may differ materially from anticipated results or outcomes discussed in forward-looking statements.