LONDON, September 5 /PRNewswire/ --     At an EGM of the International Investor Relations Federation
Limited (IIRF) held on 3rd September 2008, the members agreed to dissolve the
existing organisation and initiate a new body to be called the Global IR
Network (GIRN), to focus more on sharing the experience and resources of the
existing national societies, rather than on having to organise commercial
activities in order to fund the international body.

Membership of GIRN will be open to all societies representing
primarily investor relations professionals around the world. A new chairman
will be elected by simple majority vote each year.

- Ian Matheson of the Australasian IR Association was elected as the
      first chairman and he will appoint a steering committee for the new 
      network shortly.

    The initial objectives of the new network were agreed to be:

    - Encouraging the development of new IR societies.

    - International meetings of IROs as requested by national societies.

    - Development of responses on cross border issues relating to IR
      practice.

    - Maintenance of a database of international contacts.



The chair society will host and organise meetings and
specialty committees or task forces will be created to cover specific topics
of interest (eg XBRL) as necessary.

GIRN plans to set up a website containing basic information on
the network and the national societies as well as a collection of IR studies,
and each member society will be expected to create an international page on
their own web site, giving an international contact and links to other
members' websites, as well as to education and course programmes, best
practice guidelines and other useful information.

Membership of the network will be free, with the emphasis on
the sharing of experience and resources by the member societies, with the
larger members supporting the smaller or newer societies.

New chairman Ian Matheson said he was delighted with the
agreement to form the Network: "This initiative was originally put forward by
several of the more developed national societies, and it was great to see the
support from the other former members of the IIRF. As our discipline becomes
more global we all increasingly have to meet the international aspirations
and needs of our own members, and none of us can afford to retain a purely
domestic focus. We need to broaden and deepen the relationship between our
societies and this was the initial premise of the Network.

"It is also clear that many of the national societies have
developed significant resources in areas such as education and professional
development, research and event management, so it makes more sense to share
these between us than to develop an increasingly costly superstructure."

Outgoing chairman of the IIRF, Lynge Blak, hailed the
formation of the new network as an endorsement of the achievements of its
predecessor. "When the IIRF was established," he said, "there were just four
national societies in the world - in Denmark, France the UK and USA. Its
primary aim was always to promote the international development of the
discipline encourage the formation of new national societies. The fact that
there are now 25 of them, with enough resources to run a new network using
their own resources, proves that the IIRF succeeded spectacularly in this
prime objective.

With this new structure, the more mature members agree to
encourage and support the newer IR associations. "The new Network should
enable the national societies to share best practices and resources with the
minimum complexity and cost. I would like to thank all those who have helped
to get us this far, and wish the best of luck to those who will continue the
good work."

For further Information Contact:
    Ian Matheson
    CEO
    Australasian Investor Relations Association
    Email: ian.matheson@aira.org.au
    Tel. +61-419-444731

    Lynge Blak
    Financial Communication in Practice
    China tel. +86-21-5497-2000 ext.41
    China mob. +86-1381-7416145
    China fax +86-21-5497-1507

    Skype: lynge.blak
    E-mail: lynge.blak@lbir.dk
    Web: http://www.lyngeblak.dk