Forbes Magazine Selects snl.com for Best of the Web Award

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA — Forbes Magazine has named snl.com, SNL Financial' Web site, one of its "Best of the Web" in the magazine's annual review of online resources ( www.forbesbest.com).

"Don't be a slave to your stock broker," wrote Forbes' Rob Wherry in his introduction to the Alternative Investing category. "The wise investor diversifies her portfolio." The brief review of the SNL Web site noted that "Since 1987, SNL Financial has been a reliable source for investors in thrifts and banks; more recently it has gotten into REITs and insurance." The reviewers also stated that snl.com provides "lots of solid info not found elsewhere" and that "the story archive contains insightful articles." Forbes was especially impressed with snl.com's extensive coverage of REITs and REOCs, with information ranging from descriptions of individual REITs, to recent market and financial performance, to current news and a story archive. The reviewers urged readers to subscribe to the SNL Real Estate Securities Weekly, a newsletter delivering a complete synopsis of the week's events via e-mail or fax.

"We are very pleased to have been singled out by Forbes as one of the Best of the Web, especially given the sheer number of financial information web sites," said SNL president Michael Chinn. "As a company, we have always sought to carve out and dominate the market for investment information in our niche sectors — financial institutions, real estate, and now energy — and I think the reviewers recognized that we have achieved that goal. Forbes highlighting us as an online leader not only underscores the innovative work of our entire team, but also helps investors become aware of the unique and powerful information available to them on snl.com."

In addition to the information on snl.com, SNL's suite of online services (www.snl.com/Interactivex) provides up-to-the-minute market information, archived SEC and regulatory findings, comprehensive news coverage, and more. SNL Interactive combines the vast resources of SNL's industry-leading databases, article and document archives, expert analyses, and in-depth research with the immediacy and interactivity of Internet technology.

About SNL Financial

SNL collects, standardizes and disseminates all relevant corporate, financial, market, and M&A data — plus news and analysis — for the Banking, Financial Services, Insurance, Real Estate, Energy and Media & Communications industries. For more information, visit www.SNL.com.