RICHARD DAVIS NAMED PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF STATE STREET RESEARCH

Mr. Davis, 54, brings a wealth of financial experience to this position. He joins State Street Research from MetLife, where he was Senior Vice President, Fixed Income Investments since 1999, responsible for the firm's $110 billion fixed income portfolio. Prior to this, Mr. Davis spent eight years at J.P. Morgan Securities and J.P. Morgan Investment Management, where his responsibilities spanned from global fixed income sales management for the securities dealer, to client business, risk management and product development for the firm's money management division. He held successive management positions for 19 years at First Boston Corporation, where he was ultimately responsible for leading sales, trading and research for all fixed income products as a member of the firm's management committee. Mr. Davis holds a B.A. from Georgetown University and a M.B.A. from Columbia University.

Mr. Davis replaces Jeffrey J. Hodgman, MetLife Executive Vice President, who has served as interim Chief Executive Officer for State Street Research since May 2000. Mr. Davis will report to Gary A. Beller, MetLife Senior Executive Vice President and General Counsel, who is responsible for the investment management business at MetLife. Mr. Beller said, "We are grateful for the excellent leadership that Jeff Hodgman provided during this interim period and are delighted Jeff will maintain an active position on the board as well as work closely with Dick in his transition to these new responsibilities."

In addition, Mr. Beller said, "Dick's extensive experience in managing investment organizations makes him a perfect choice to lead State Street Research. MetLife is strongly committed to growing its asset management business and Dick's demonstrated expertise will be instrumental in achieving this goal."

Jerry Maus, State Street Research Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer added, "We are pleased to welcome someone of Dick's caliber and experience to this important position. He brings to us a proven track record of success in the industry and we're confident that he will provide the leadership needed for us to do the best possible job for our clients, customers and employees."

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, a subsidiary of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), is a leading provider of insurance and other financial services to individual and group customers. The MetLife companies serve approximately nine million individual households in the U.S. and companies and institutions with 33 million employees and members. MetLife also has international insurance operations in 11 countries. For more information about MetLife, please visit the company's Web site at www.metlife.com. State Street Research & Management Company, with a money management history dating back to 1924, is one of the nation's first investment management organizations. The Boston-based firm is a subsidiary of MetLife. As of August 31, 2000, State Street Research managed $56 billion in assets, of which $35 billion represented institutional client assets and $21 billion represented mutual funds and variable annuity portfolios. The firm manages: money for 10 of the 12 largest U.S. corporate pension plans, union programs, public employee pension plans; mutual funds for over 530,000 shareholder accounts; and individually managed accounts for affluent investors. The firm's Web site address is www.ssrfunds.com.