Russell expands FX trading capability with Hotspot FXi (Russell.com)

Russell expands FX trading capability with Hotspot FXi

TACOMA, Wash. — October 17, 2005 — Russell Investment Group plans to use Hotspot FXi, an institutional foreign exchange trading system, in order to enhance its ability to reduce trading costs, offer clients trading anonymity and provide access to additional liquidity.

"Hotspot FXi represents a significant development in our FX process," said Ian Battye, Russell's director of currency management. "Hotspot FXi will open up new and diverse sources of liquidity that will help us achieve best execution for our clients as well as complement our existing bank and request-for-quote liquidity sources."

With this agreement in place, Russell becomes one of the very first asset managers to recognize the benefits of electronically trading foreign currency exchange using an electronic communications network (ECN), a means of execution largely limited previously to hedge funds and commodity trading advisors. Through Hotspot FXi, for example, Russell aims to achieve a high level of anonymity and keep the trading intentions of their clients confidential.

"We believe the way asset managers trade FX is changing," said Battye. "Russell's early adoption of these types of platforms is a function of its scale and its ability to effectively manage the complex infrastructure issues surrounding their implementation. In time, the challenge for asset managers will not be if, but rather how best to access these new sources of liquidity."

The Hotspot FXi marketplace provides direct market access, live and historical market data to its clients, who trade instantaneously on live, competitive, neutral multibank and client pricing or who enter their own bids and offers to improve their trade execution performance. Hotspot FXi was recognized as the top multi-bank platform in STP (straight-through processing) in the 2005 Euromoney Foreign Exchange Survey.

"We are delighted to have Russell join our growing fold of institutional fund manager participants," said John H. Eley, President and CEO, Hotspot FX Inc. "Like Russell, we are committed to providing our clients with a transparent liquid direct access marketplace and robust, neutral market data that allows them to accurately and precisely measure their all-in FX trading costs, FX trade execution performance and its impact on portfolio returns."

About Russell
Russell Investment Group, a global leader in multi-manager investing, provides investment products and services in more than 39 countries. Russell manages more than $136 billion in assets and advises clients worldwide representing more than $2.3 trillion. Founded in 1936, Russell is a subsidiary of Northwestern Mutual and is headquartered in Tacoma, Wash., with additional offices in New York, Toronto, London, Paris, Sydney, Singapore, Auckland and Tokyo.

About Hotspot FX, Inc.
Hotspot FX, Inc., which marked its fifth anniversary in 2005, operates the two leading spot FX marketplaces for institutional and retail market participants respectively. Both marketplaces support client bidding and offering and anonymous, instantaneous, direct-access trading on live, executable, prices streamed by leading foreign exchange banks and financial institutions. Hotspot FX is headquartered in Watchung, New Jersey, a suburb of New York City, with offices in Boston, Chicago, Singapore, Beijing, and London.

Contact:
Steve Claiborne 253-594-1858
Matt Burkhard 718-875-2122

Russell Investment Group is a registered trade name of Frank Russell Company, a Washington, USA corporation, which operates through subsidiaries worldwide. Frank Russell Company is a subsidiary of The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company. Hotspot FX and Hotspot FXi are registered service marks of Hotspot FX, Inc.

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