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Paul Needels joins Informa Research Services

Veteran banking executive to head-up lending research operations

CALABASAS, CALIFORNIA (November 3, 2010) – Informa Research Services, Inc., a subsidiary of Informa PLC (LSE: INF), announced today that Paul Needels, a veteran banking executive most recently with Bank of America, has joined the company as senior vice president, Lending Products Division.

“We have hit the ball out of the park with Paul Needels joining our team,” said Michael E. Adler, president and managing director of Informa Research Services.  “His 30 years of senior management experience in the banking industry and strong leadership skills make him a solid choice to lead this important division.”

Mr. Needels, a former Bank of America executive, began his banking career in 1980 with United Banks of Colorado as part of their commercial lending team. In 1985, Paul joined Coldwell Banker Commercial Realty working with commercial properties.  He then moved on to Home Savings of America where he ran their consumer lending group.  From Home Savings, Paul went to Washington Mutual Bank as an SVP in their lending production division.  In 2005, he joined Countrywide as EVP of their lending production division and remained with Bank of America since their acquisition of Countrywide.

“Paul’s vast experience on the client side and his educational background from the University of Colorado and the Executive MBA Program at the University of Southern California make Paul a great resource for our clients to use as the lending business gains momentum,” continued Adler.  “I fully expect Paul’s influence to greatly strengthen our indirect, mortgage, consumer, and business lending research lines.”

Informa Research Services is the premier provider of competitive intelligence, market research, and mystery shopping services to the financial services industry.  Paul Needels joins Informa Research Services in their Calabasas, California headquarters where he will directly oversee the Lending Products Division.

“As a former user of Informa’s data, I have been familiar with their products for over 20 years,” said Needels.  “I am very excited about working with this great team. This is a fantastic opportunity for our clients, Informa, and me.  I look forward to delivering the service and accuracy that sets Informa apart from their competition.”

About Informa Research Services, Inc. (www.informars.com)

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Calabasas, California, Informa Research Services, Inc., provides the financial industry's most extensive array of market research and decision-support information.

Conducting daily surveys of the retail, lending, and business products offered by more than 10,000 financial organizations nationwide, Informa currently supports the product pricing decisions of more than 6,500 clients, representing all 50 states, including all of the top 100 financial institutions.  Informa conducts the finest mystery shopping and market research studies available, delivering accurate and relevant measurements in the areas of employee sales and service, customer satisfaction, closed account research and retention, competitive performance, fair treatment, and compliance testing.

Contact: James Royal
Phone   818-880-8877
Fax  818-880-2069 
26565 Agoura Road, Suite 300
Calabasas, California 91302-1942