Press Release: July 23, 2002

World Technology Network Votes Bill Hambrecht the Individual Winner of the 2002 World Technology Award for Finance

New York, London, July 23, 2002—The World Technology Network has voted William R. Hambrecht as winner of the 2002 the Individual World Technology Award for Finance.

Announced at a gala event at New York’s historic Hudson Theater on Broadway on 22nd July 2002, the decision was the result of a six-month long selection and voting process in which 100 eminent authorities from across twenty technology related fields drew up their list of potential nominees for consideration by the World Technology Network’s current membership of 430 leading technologists eligible to cast their votes.

“To win a World Technology Award reflects the esteem in which peers hold your work – esteem not only for the technical brilliance of your efforts but for the broader impact those efforts will likely have on shaping the world in which we live,” said James Clark, Chairman and Founder of the World Technology Network. “Through winning this World Technology Award, I am delighted to welcome Bill Hambrecht into the World Technology Network family.”

The specific area of work for which Bill Hambrecht received the acclaim of the World Technology Network membership was for Technology in Finance reflecting the work that WR Hambrecht + Co has done bringing transparency and fairness to the capital markets.

“We are proud that our OpenIPO auction process for initial public offerings as well as our other auction products have been recognized by the World Technology Network,” said William R. Hambrecht, Founder and CEO of WR Hambrecht + Co.

Now in its fourth year, the role of the World Technology Network is to bring together the leading individuals and corporations from 20 technology related disciplines so that thoughts and knowledge can be openly shared, new avenues explored, and new relationships developed.

Specific technology related disciplines linked together under the World Technology Network umbrella are: arts, biotech, communication technology, design, education, energy, environment, entertainment, ethics, finance, health, IT hardware, IT software, law, marketing communications, materials, media & journalism, policy, social entrepreneurship, and space.

Nominators for this year’s World Technology Awards programme in various categories included Dan Goldin, former longest-serving Administrator of NASA, USA; Robert Ayres, Director, Centre for the Management of Environmental Resources, INSEAD France; Masanobu Katoh, General Manager/Director Fujitsu Ltd., USA; Abdul Waheed Khan, Assistant Director-General for Communication & Information United Nations Educational Scientific & Cultural Organization (UNESCO), India and Professor Young Kuk, Chairman, National R & D Planning Committee for Nanotechnology, Seoul National University, Korea.

In addition to being admitted into the World Technology Network and having access to the World Technology Network of resources, Bill Hambrecht was also presented a unique trophy, created by the renowned designer, Stefano Marzano, CEO and Chief Creative Director of Philips Design, and winner of the 2001 World Technology Award for Design.

The 2002 World Technology Awards were held in association with Nasdaq, Intel, Cisco Systems, Novartis, Time, Red Herring, Science and International Herald Tribune and marked the final event at this year’s two-day World Technology Summit which took place at the Millennium Conference Center (Millennium Broadway Hotel) and United Nations headquarters.

For further information about the World Technology Network, the World Technology Summit, and World Technology Awards, please visit the World Technology Network’s website, www.wtn.net.