JERSEY CITY, N.J., April 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Knight/Trimark Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: NITE) announced today the appointment of David Shpilberg as chief operating officer, chief technology officer and executive vice president. The newly created position at Knight reflects the firm's recognition of technology's critical role in the financial market structure and the need for the company's operations and technology to work in lock step. Over the next twelve to eighteen months, Knight plans to commit up to $100 million in new technology for electronic trading, information management and global systems integration.

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Mr. Shpilberg, an internationally recognized thought leader on e-commerce and systems integration, joins Knight from Ernst & Young where he was the chief technology officer and vice chairman for consulting services worldwide. In this post, he was responsible for the company's technology services strategy which focused on e-commerce and the next generation of the Internet, a billion-dollar revenue source for Ernst & Young. From 1991 to 2000, Mr. Shpilberg served in a variety of positions at Ernst & Young including national director of financial services consulting. Prior to Ernst & Young, from 1989 to 1991 Mr. Shpilberg served as vice president of information technology at Goldman, Sachs and Company where he oversaw the firm's global information systems for the equities and asset management divisions.

"Knight is not a trading company with excellent technology -- we are a technology company with excellent traders," said Kenneth D. Pasternak, president and chief executive officer of Knight/Trimark Group, Inc. "Our ability to process massive amounts of information and an enormous volume of trades at an unprecedented speed is key to our industry leadership and serving the self-directed investor. We are committed to making Knight the liquidity provider for the global trading village, a feat that will require significant capital investments and top-notch minds to lead the charge."

"With the appointment of David Shpilberg we have added a rare blend of experience and intellect," continued Pasternak. "David is both a technology innovator and an internationally recognized expert on e-business and systems management. He will be a key player in Knight's bid to shape the 24/7 trading era."

"Knight is a leader in the new economy's financial market," said John G. Hewitt, president of Knight Securities. "The firm applies a unique blend of technology and human capital to the trade execution process -- a strategy that benefits both institutional and individual investors. Our goal going forward is to bring Knight's model from a leadership position in the U.S. equity securities market to a global financial powerhouse. I look forward to working again with David to create the next generation electronic trading platform, to seamlessly integrate its operations in new geographic markets and financial instruments, and to make Knight the most successful trading firm in the world."

Mr. Shpilberg holds a B.S. in Aeronautics and Astronautics, a M.S. in Operations Research and a Ph.D. in Management Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has written and spoken on a number of topics including information technology, e-commerce and artificial intelligence. His views on information technology have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Business Week and Fortune among other publications. Mr. Shpilberg has served on the faculty of several universities including IESA in Caracas and The Wharton School of Business.

Management Shifts Underscore Expansion into New Financial Instruments,

Geographic Markets

Knight's move into new financial instruments and geographic markets has compelled the firm to make a series of management shifts which will free Knight founders Kenneth D. Pasternak and Walter F. Raquet to focus on Knight's broader strategic initiatives. Mr. Raquet, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Knight Securities, moves to the chairmanship of Knight International where he will concentrate on the company's development in overseas markets. In particular, Mr. Raquet will explore opportunities to apply Knight's successful roundtable structure in European and Asian markets. Mr. Pasternak will remain president and chief executive officer of Knight/Trimark Group and Knight Securities, but will relinquish his position as head of Nasdaq trading to a co-directorship consisting of Randall Taylor and Scott Littman, formerly deputy trading room managers of Knight Securities. Mr. Taylor and Mr. Littman will report directly to Mr. Pasternak.

Knight/Trimark, headquartered in Jersey City, NJ, is the parent company of Knight Securities, Knight Capital Markets (formerly Trimark Securities) and Knight Financial Products (formerly Arbitrade, LLC). Knight/Trimark's subsidiaries make markets in equity securities listed on Nasdaq, the OTCBB of the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and American Stock Exchange (AMEX), and in options on individual equities, equity indices, fixed income instruments and certain commodities in the U.S. and Europe. The firm also maintains an asset management business for institutional investors and high net worth individuals through Knight Financial Products' Deephaven subsidiary.

As the number one destination for online trade executions, Knight/Trimark is the processing power behind the explosive growth in securities trading via the Internet. The firm was recently selected to Fortune's "e-50 Stock Index," an elite collection of companies that are shaping the new Internet-based economy. Currently, the four-year-old company employs more than 900 people worldwide with offices in Jersey City, NJ; Jericho, White Plains, Purchase and New York, NY; Chicago, IL; Boston, MA; Minnetonka, MN; Santa Clara, CA; and London, England. SOURCE Knight/Trimark Group, Inc.

CONTACT: Margaret Wyrwas, Vice President, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations of Knight-Trimark Group, 201-557-6954, or mwyrwas@knight-sec.com; or Creighton Abrams of Edelman Worldwide, 212-704-8295/