Mats Lönnqvist has been appointed Senior Investment Manager of Ratos

MATS LÖNNQVIST HAS BEEN APPOINTED SENIOR INVESTMENT MANAGER OF RATOS With his experience, Mats Lönnqvist in his new position in Ratos will be able to contribute to identifying as well as carrying out new investments and play an active role the development of Ratos' holdings. Mats Lönnqvist joined Esselte as Executive Vice President and CFO in August 1997 and over his years with the company he has contributed to concentrating the operations into the streamlined office product company that Esselte now is. Mats Lönnqvist previously worked, among other things, as CFO of Securum and then as Executive Vice President and CFO of Biacore. Already during spring 1999, Mats Lönnqvist announced that he did not wish to move with Esselte to Great Britain. However, as Esselte has previously announced, he has chosen to remain in his position until the 2000 Annual General Meeting, partly to support Esselte's newly-appointed President and CEO, Anders Igel, over six months. Since a year ago, Ratos has a new strategic orientation. The Company's business concept is based on creating values by acquiring and developing companies. During the 1990s, Ratos invested mainly in listed companies. The assesment now is that the opportunities for creating growth in value are greater outside the stockmarket. Ratos' assets will therefore gradually be invested in a limited number of mainly unlisted companies. "It is with great satisfaction that I am able to welcome Mats Lönnqvist to be included in Ratos' investor organisation from 1 May. Mats has an outstanding background with both financial and industrial experience of running operations as well as sound business knowledge and a broad contact network," says Arne Karlsson, President of Ratos. For further comments, please contact: Arne Karlsson tel +46 8-700 17 00 Mats Lönnqvisttel +46 70-591 55 63 Ratos is a listed private equity company whose business concept, over a period of time, is to create the highest possible yield through professional, active and responsible exercising of the ownership role in a number of selected companies and investment situations in which Ratos creates a unique investment opportunity for the operators on the stockmarket. Added values are created in connection with acquisition, development and sale of companies. The net asset value amounts to more than SEK 9 billion. Ratos' Active holdings are Scandic Hotels, Telelogic, Dahl, Superfos, Capona, Esselte, DataVis, Telia Overseas and ACE. ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/01/19/20000119BIT00160/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2000/01/19/20000119BIT00160/bit0002.pdf