NASD Extends Board Member Election Process By 15 Days - Extension Made To Ensure Equal Use Of E-mail Addresses By Candidates

The National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. (NASD®) will extend the period by 15 days to May 30 for NASD members to vote on seven new board member vacancies. "We determined to make this extension when we learned that some of the candidates or their agents had access to an e-mail list of NASD members that was not accessible to other candidates," Edward S. Knight, NASD general counsel said.

"The NASD will adjourn the upcoming meeting originally slated for May 15, 2000 until May 30, 2000. This 15 days corresponds to the amount of time that e-mail addresses had been used by some of the candidates. All candidates, if they so choose, will be provided immediate access to a list of NASD members' e-mail addresses for their use during the election process only.

"We learned about this late Wednesday. Early this morning we informed all the candidates and the SEC of the matter and proposed the extension as a remedy. Our role in the election process is to administer it fairly. When we learned that some candidates had obtained the email list, we moved quickly to inform all of the candidates and level the playing field for all. We believe that this accommodation makes sense and ensures a fair election process," Knight concluded.

The National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc., is the largest securities-industry, self-regulatory organization in the United States. It is the parent organization of The Nasdaq Stock Market®, The American Stock Exchange®, and NASD Regulation, Inc. For more information about the NASD and its subsidiaries, please visit the following Web sites: www.nasd.com; www.nasdaq.com; www.amex.com; www.nasdr.com; or the Nasdaq NewsroomSM at www.nasdaqnews.com.