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All regulatory training and certification to be managed by TopClass

Dublin, Ireland - February 17th, 2004 - WBT Systems, a global leader in Enterprise e-Learning solutions, in conjunction with its local partner Iocore, today announced that Alexander Forbes Financial Services, has selected the award-winning TopClass e-Learning Suite to deliver training to its employees. In addition to the core e-Learning Suite, Alexander Forbes is the first customer to adopt WBT Systems' TopClass Compliance Module, released as part of TopClass Version 7. TopClass Compliance builds on the existing TopClass functionality to provide the first robust, defensible, audit-ready compliance training management system for Financial Services and other regulated industries.

The South African Financial Services market is highly regulated and this imposes a significant training burden on financial institutions. New regulations such as the Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA) and the Financial Advisory Intermediary Services Act (FAIS) are forcing institutions to evaluate how best to ensure that employees are continuously trained in order to avoid a regulatory breach. After a detailed analysis of internal resources, Alexander Forbes realized that it needed a new approach to training delivery. The company looked at a number of alternatives before deciding that a comprehensive e-Learning solution offered the best combination of training delivery, cost effectiveness, central management and compliance tracking. The company also had considerable content in-house which could be repurposed if an appropriate system could be found.

WBT Systems’ TopClass won out after a formal evaluation process. It was chosen because of its well-established and satisfied installed customer base and because it is a complete LMS and LCMS solution including the unique Compliance Module that allows Alexander Forbes to adopt best practice in regulatory compliance.

Alexander Forbes will use TopClass as its e-Learning portal to manage the entire training process from course authoring, catalog & registration of all forms of learning including induction, employee development, IT, sales, and legal & compliance. In-house courses will be rapidly converted and repurposed as Learning Objects using TopClass Publisher, with its familiar and intuitive Windows user interface. The company will also run a range of off-the-shelf training programmes from content vendor, Element K.

According to Steffan Fourie, former Head of Biznet for Alexander Forbes Financial Services, "We chose TopClass for a number of reasons. Apart from the core functionality offered by the Competency and LMS modules which facilitate outcome-based training and compliance with industry and professional requirements, the system is easy to use, easy to customize and implementation has been quick and straight forward".

"We are delighted with this deal which reinforces WBT Systems’ leadership position as the specialist e-Learning provider for the financial services industry" said Declan Kelly, CEO, WBT Systems. “Our TopClass Compliance Suite offers a unique level of functionality that sets a new standard in Compliance Training Management.”

About Alexander Forbes

Alexander Forbes Financial Services is part of the international Alexander Forbes Group which is based in Johannesburg and listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa. With a turnover of R4.9 billion in 2002/2003, the firm has been ranked as one of the top ten firms of its kind in the world. The Group employs over 6000 employees in subsidiaries and associates in more than 30 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe. Alexander Forbes Financial Services (South Africa) offers retirement fund administration and consulting, actuarial services, employee benefits consulting, healthcare consulting, benefit communication & trustee training and asset consulting. For more information, see www.alexanderforbes.com.

About WBT Systems

WBT Systems is one of the leading providers of Enterprise e-Learning Solutions in the world. WBT Systems' TopClass e-Learning Suite™ enables the rapid creation, deployment, and management of knowledge delivery across the enterprise. It is a robust, easily deployed, web-based Learning platform with over two million users worldwide. Our implementation experience spans a variety of industries, including financial services, healthcare, government, and pharmaceuticals, across blue-chip companies such as Alexander Forbes, Allergan, Basler Insurance, Belgacom, Credit Suisse, Danish Confederation of Trade Unions, Diageo, Dow Chemical, Eurocontrol, Liberty Group, University of Chicago Hospitals, U.S. Department of Defense and Volvo CE.

Established in 1995, WBT Systems is a leading e-Learning platform vendor. With headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, WBT Systems has offices in North America based in Waltham, MA and in the UK (London) and Germany (Düsseldorf). For more information see www.wbtsystems.com.

About Iocore

Iocore (South Africa) is a key provider of technology and services to a wide range of blue-chip companies and government organizations. Iocore (worldwide) operates in Europe, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas. Iocore's key solution offerings include Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Systems Administration and Database Management, Application Development, Business Intelligence, SAP Solutions, e-Learning and Global Resourcing. Iocore is the first company in South Africa to receive Oracle Certified Application Partner status for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). For more information, see www.iocore.com.

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