STATE STREET RESEARCH OFFERS MULTI-FUND RETIREMENT PLATFORM
BOSTON, MA, February 6, 2001-State Street Research is now offering externalmutual funds on its retirement platforms to complement proprietary fundofferings and to provide investment professionals and plan sponsors with agreater range of investment choices.Twenty-two mutual funds from other investment companies including Janus,Fidelity Investments, American Century and OppenheimerFunds, Inc (seeattached list) are now available in addition to State Street Research's ownfamily of 21 funds. Financial professionals now have the convenience ofdiversifying their clients' portfolios across a wide range of mutual fundchoices and investment objectives including key niche areas such as emergingmarkets and specific sectors. These outside funds will be available to401(k) Plans with $1.5 million or more in assets.
"The addition of these fund families to our retirement platform enhances ourexisting fund offerings and enables us to be a more competitive player inthe retirement product marketplace," said Kevin Wilkins, Executive VicePresident, Head of Retail Marketing and Client Services Group. "We believethat supplementing our diverse line of mutual funds with outside fundofferings makes us more attractive to plan sponsors and financialprofessionals looking for a more diverse range of investment providers."
State Street Research & Management Company, with a money management historydating back to 1924, is one of the nation's first investment managementorganizations. The Boston-based company is a subsidiary of MetLife, one ofthe world's largest financial services companies. As of December 31, 2000,State Street Research managed $53 billion in assets, of which $34 billionrepresented institutional clients and $19 billion represented mutual fundand variable annuity portfolios. The firm manages money for 11 of the 15largest U.S. corporate pension plans, public employee pension plans, unionprograms, individually managed accounts for affluent investors, and mutualfunds for over 530,000 shareholder accounts. The firm's Web site address iswww.ssrfunds.com.
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Note to editors: We are required to include the following information withour news release: A prospectus for any of the State Street Research Funds is available throughyour financial professional or by calling 1-87-SSR-FUNDS (1-877-8637). Theprospectus(es) contain(s) more complete information, including sales chargesand expenses. Please read the prospectus(es) carefully before investing.
