Altamira Files Preliminary Prospectus

On November 7, 2000, Altamira Investment Services Inc. (Altamira), a leading Canadian investment management company that distributes and manages 46 mutual funds in addition to other products, filed a preliminary prospectus for an initial public offering of its common shares. The joint lead underwriters and joint bookrunners of the offering will be BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc. and RBC Dominion Securities Inc. Most of the proceeds of the offering, which are assumed to gross approximately C$250 million, will be used by Altamira to reduce long-term debt and to redeem preferred shares.

McCarthy Tétrault is acting as counsel to Altamira with a team comprised of Rene Sorell and David Armstrong (corporate and securities), James Archer (banking), Michael Nicholas (regulatory) and Jerald Wortsman (tax), as well as assistance from Shea Small, Philip Kurtz, William Ford and Vito Ciraco.

Torys is acting for the underwriters with a team that includes Philip Brown, Randall MacEwen, Samantha Sheen, Matthew Cockburn and Andrew Bernstein.

Lawyer(s)

James H. Archer Vito V. Ciraco Jerald M. Wortsman Matthew Cockburn Philip S. Kurtz Andrew E. Bernstein René R. Sorell William G. Ford Michael C. Nicholas Shea T. Small