In the News: 2006

Lombard Realizes $40 Million on Placement of Its Shares in Central Pattana

PR Newswire
November 1, 2006


Lombard Investments, Inc. has completed the placement of 71.9 million of its shares in Central Pattana Public Company Limited (ticker: CPN.BK), the leading shopping mall developer and operator in Thailand for consideration of approximately $40 million, or 4.2 times Lombard's original cost. The transaction was completed through an overnight book-building process marketed to institutional investors globally, with Phatra Securities, Merrill Lynch (Singapore) and UBS AG acting as underwriters. This private placement represents Lombard's first divestment of Central Pattana shares since its investment in 2003. Lombard is still a significant shareholder of CPN and remains on the Company's Board of Directors.

Mr. Thomas Smith, Managing Director of Lombard, noted, "Recently, Central Pattana has gained increased recognition among local and international investors, evident by the inclusion of Central Pattana in the SET50 Index in January 2006 and MSCI Index in May 2006. We believe that increasing the free-float proportion of Central Pattana shares would help improve stock liquidity and allow more investors to benefit from the Company's strong operations and ongoing business expansion."

Lombard invested in Central Pattana in June 2003 and has worked closely with the management of Central Pattana on various corporate finance and governance initiatives.

Inside Central World Plaza		Central World Complex

About Central Pattana:

Central Pattana is the pioneer and market leader of modern shopping mall development in Thailand, with a portfolio of ten major regional malls under management. In recent years, Central Pattana has grown dramatically and achieved several corporate milestones, including the August 2006 soft opening of Central World Plaza, the largest shopping complex in Southeast Asia. In addition to Central World Plaza, Central Pattana plans to launch four new malls and two expansion projects between 2006 and 2010.

About Lombard Investments:

Lombard Investments, headquartered in San Francisco and with offices in Bangkok, Hong Kong and Vietnam, is a highly experienced private equity manager and one of the earliest successful private equity firms active in Asia. The firm has had a continuous presence in Asia since 1997, with experience investing directly or indirectly in more than 50 Asian companies. Lombard's investors include the California Public Employees' Retirement System ("CalPERS"), IFC, Asian Development Bank, DEG (a member of Germany's KfW Group), and other leading institutions.