Pink Sheets Electronic OTC Markets Announces Record Trading

Jan 17, 2008 / Pink Sheets News Service

Pink Sheets Electronic OTC Markets Announces Record Trading Volume in 2007

New York, NY - January 17, 2008 - Pink Sheets LLC today announced that trading in Pink Sheets securities was over $162 billion of dollar volume and 769 billion of share volume in 2007 - making Pink Sheets the leading U.S. share trading venue after NASDAQ and NYSE.

Trading dollar volume in Pink Sheets securities was distributed in the following market tiers and categories during the month of December:

Dollar Volume Distribution - December 2007 Tier or Category

Securities

Percentage of Total
Dollar Volume
Average Monthly Dollar
Volume per Security

OTCQX
24
5.2%
$26,019,827

Current Information
1,111
65.4%
$7,070,563

Limited Information
521
27.5%
$6,342,193

No Information
3,466
1.9%
$64,248

Total:

5,122
$2,344,170

Caveat Emptor
208
0.1%
$61,195


OTCQX is a new OTC market tier that offers a community based listing process designed for strong, trusted companies.

Advantages of an OTCQX branded listing include:
A listing on the premier OTC trading venue in the U.S.

Increased quality, quantity and availability of information in the OTC market to U.S. investors.


Distinction as a company committed to making accurate and credible disclosure available.

Enhanced reputation and visibility in the marketplace.

Pink Sheets disclosure categories were introduced in August, 2007 to separate out by their level of public disclosure the companies that are not eligible for the elite OTCQX market tier. More information is available at:http://www.pinksheets.com/pink/otcguide/categories.jsp

Increased transparency and trading efficiency have led to a tenfold expansion in OTC trading volumes since 2001:

Pink Sheets Annual Trading Volumes

Dollar Volume
Share Volume

2007
$162,905,110,913
769,440,803,790

2006
$113,384,270,295
1,058,536,315,977

2005
$56,701,143,455
597,022,266,202

2004
$50,664,705,773
819,497,955,348

2003
$26,519,749,632
187,539,605,819

2002
$20,147,942,092
84,119,337,664

2001
$16,111,768,880
72,102,169,207


Pink Sheets trading offers the largest worldwide pool of liquidity among alternative or entry level markets for the shares of public companies:

December Average Daily Trading Statistics for Alternative Markets*

Securities
Dollar Volume
Share Volume

Pink Sheets
5,122
$631,613,030
2,040,074,479

American Stock Exchange
753
$622,197,191
85,743,745

LSE AIM
1,694
$519,166,825
513,305,000

NASDAQ Capital Market
531
$393,229,394
60,626,325

FINRA OTC Bulletin Board
3,613
$136,829,59
1,244,697,336

TSX Venture
2,338
$128,300,000
200,700,000

NYSE ARCA
12
$27,370,770
2,392,195


*-Data for U.S. markets is based on Pink Sheets estimates and does not include Exchange Traded Funds, Closed End Funds or Real Estate Investment Trusts.
-Pink Sheets data does not include the 3,489 securities that are dually quoted on the Pink Sheets and FINRA OTC Bulletin Board (OTCBB).
-75 companies upgraded to NASDAQ from the Pink Sheets or the OTCBB in 2007.


Pink Link Electronic Messaging Service continues its leading position in the OTC market:

December 2007 Pink Link Volumes

Trades
Dollar Volume
Share Volume

Pink Sheets
271,886
$3,883,398,724
14,144,447,031

OTCBB
269,188
$742,036,678
8,315,109,990

Total
541,074
$4,625,435,402
22,459,557,021


33% of all OTCBB share trading volume takes place across Pink Link. In comparison there were 255,265,059 shares traded on the NYSE ArcaEdge electronic platform for OTCBB securities in December 2007.


Pink Sheets community of competing Market Makers continues to grow in size and sophistication:

Top 25 Pink Link Broker Dealers for December 2007

MMID
Firm Name
Dollar Volume
Share Volume

NITE
Knight Equity Markets, LP
$836,144,124
10,180,424,335

JANE
Jane Street Markets, LLC
$821,568,590
31,870,593

AUTO
Automated Trading Desk
$818,246,732
2,276,204,320

UBSS
UBS Securities LLC
$682,897,677
5,001,006,653

MLCO
Merrill Lynch, Pierce, FS, Inc.
$436,260,188
21,618,617

NIII
Noble International Inc.
$415,841,590
37,103,285

SBSH
Citigroup Global Markets Inc.
$404,414,023
8,248,817,132

INTL
Intl Trading, Inc.
$359,447,195
20,934,869

HILL
Hill Thompson Magid & Co.
$345,747,268
675,844,990

ETRD
E*Trade Capital Markets LLC
$315,691,522
5,493,554,240

DOMS
Domestic Securities, Inc.
$312,929,319
2,236,369,143

HDSN
Hudson Securities Inc
$295,020,185
2,988,688,787

GSCO
Goldman Sachs & Co.
$294,240,115
28,677,565

ABLE
Natixis Bleichroeder Inc.
$279,499,611
611,023,018

JEFF
Jefferies & Co., Inc.
$278,559,755
41,362,992

LEHM
Lehman Brothers, Inc.
$185,557,608
9,649,399

PERT
Pershing Trading Company
$157,285,665
589,265,374

MAXM
Maxim Group LLC
$156,692,733
279,967,734

CANT
Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., Inc.
$151,437,091
13,911,146

STEW
Collins Stewart Inc
$119,484,589
18,140,077

BEST
Bear Stearns & Co Inc
$118,576,654
68,868,538

MSCO
Morgan Stanley & Co., Inc.
$108,478,644
13,546,855

VNDM
Vandham Securities Corp.
$103,577,303
259,583,223

DBAB
Deutsche Bank Securities Inc.
$96,654,185
6,339,258

SGAS
SG Americas Securities, LLC
$92,342,184
3,629,295


All broker-dealers using Pink Sheets quotation and trading services are regulated by FINRA for their quotations, trade reporting and best execution of customer orders.

E*Trade, Fidelity, Scottrade, TD Ameritrade and other broker dealers provide real-time Pink Sheets quotes to their customers for point and click trading and real-time market data is available on Bloomberg, Reuters, Thompson ILX, etc.

About Pink Sheets:

Pink Sheets LLC is the leading electronic quotation and trading system in the over-the-counter (OTC) securities market. We create innovative technology and data solutions to efficiently connect market participants, improve price transparency, increase issuer disclosure and better inform investors. Pink Sheets is the largest U.S. equity trading venue after NYSE and NASDAQ and operates the elite OTCQX market tier for strong OTC-traded companies that can satisfy stringent financial and disclosure listing standards.

Over 230 financial services firms, including the ten largest U.S. investment banks, actively make markets in OTCQX and Pink Sheets securities. In 2007 these firms traded over $160 billion of Pink Sheets securities. Pink Sheets offers widespread access to all U.S. broker-dealers, enabling investors to seamlessly trade these securities through their institutional, online or full service brokers.

Pink Sheets is headquartered in New York City.

To learn more about how Pink Sheets products and services make OTC markets more transparent, informed and efficient, please visit www.pinksheets.com.