Stanley Gibbons Group Limited 25 November 2005 Stanley Gibbons Limited 399 Strand, London WC2R 0LX www.stanleygibbons.com www.stampinvestmentfund.com 25 November 2005 STANLEY GIBBONS LAUNCHES RARE STAMP INVESTMENT FUND Stanley Gibbons, the world famous rare stamp dealers, today launches a fund investing in rare stamps. The Stanley Gibbons Rare Stamp Investment Fund has been established to invest in rare stamps from around the world with the aim of achieving long term capital growth with a minimum annualised return of 10% pa. The fund is managed on a full discretionary basis by Stanley Gibbons Limited, which has traded in stamps for nearly 150 years and is recognised globally for its expertise in rare stamps. During this time Stanley Gibbons has also actively managed stamp investments on behalf of investors through its investment department. Tony Banwell, the Fund's Investment Director, has over 25 year's experience in the philatelic industry and is a highly respected specialist. Investment in the Fund is for a 5 year term and subscriptions are raised periodically in segregated tranches. The Fund's first tranche is open for subscriptions until 23 December 2005. Subscription proceeds are used to acquire and trade in stamps from around the world to generate double digit returns. At the end of the 5 year term the stamps are sold and the proceeds distributed to investors. There is a success fee to encourage exceptional management performance. Paul Fraser, Chairman of The Stanley Gibbons Group Limited and a Director of the Stanley Gibbons Rare Stamp Investment Fund said: 'The launch of the Stanley Gibbons Rare Stamp Investment Fund gives both investment managers and individual investors the chance to benefit from the consistently high returns available from rare stamps through a unique collective investment scheme. Stamps have a low correlation with other asset classes, providing investors with the opportunity to diversify their portfolios using the expertise of Stanley Gibbons, without the need for direct rare stamp ownership.' The Fund is approved for distribution in the United Kingdom by Chiltern Corporate Finance Limited, authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Editor's Notes: Subscription Friday 23 December 2005 Closing Date Investment To generate long term capital appreciation by acquiring, Objective holding, selling and trading in rare stamps from around the world Minimum Subscription £20,000 Subscriptions Are raised periodically in segregated tranches, each with a 5 year term. The current tranche is open for subscriptions until 23 December 2005 Investment 5 years. Tranche assets are then sold and funds returned to Period investors Fees Subscription fee: 5% Management fee: 1.5% pa Performance fee: 20% on returns above a hurdle rate of 150% Investment Stanley Gibbons Limited Manager Fund Operator and Chiltern Corporate Finance Limited Placing Agent Fund Anro Limited Administrator and Registrar Auditor MRI Moores Rowland LLP Legal Adviser Cox Hallett Wilkinson Bankers The Royal Bank of Scotland Redemptions None, except on the death of an investor Denomination Pounds Sterling Domicile Bermuda Listing Not listed Website www.stampinvestmentfund.com An investment in the Fund is defined in the UK as an investment in an "unregulated collective investment scheme" and the promotion of such schemes either within or from the UK is severely restricted by statute. Investment in the Fund is only made available to Intermediate Customers and Market Counterparties as defined by FSA and to persons falling within the Financial Services & Markets Act 2000 under the (Promotion of Collective Investment Schemes) (Exemptions) Order 2001 and should only be undertaken by persons with professional experience of participating in unregulated schemes. The information in this press release should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus including the risk warnings incorporated therein. Investment Manager - Stanley Gibbons Limited The Stanley Gibbons business commenced trading in 1856 since when it has established a globally recognised brand name and a reputation for expertise in the field of rare stamps. During this time, Stanley Gibbons has actively managed stamp investments on behalf of investors through its investment department. It has been a Royal Warrant holder since 1914 and is part of The Stanley Gibbons Group Limited, which is quoted on AIM, the market operated by the London Stock Exchange. Investment Director Anthony Banwell is the Fund's Investment Director. A law graduate from Cardiff University, Tony Banwell has been involved in the philatelic industry for over 25 years. After a period as Director of the Philatelic Bureau in Montserrat, he joined Christie's Robson Lowe in 1980 where, in his early days, he shared an office with the renowned stamp expert, Robson Lowe. As both a specialist and auctioneer, he played a major role in expanding Christie's Robson Lowe's stamp auctions in Switzerland before joining Sotheby's Europe in 1992, becoming a deputy director and stamp department auctioneer. Tony Banwell was responsible for the instigation and development of philatelic sales in Hong Kong which totaled over HK$100million up to his leaving in 1999, subsequently becoming a director of Phila China Limited, a Hong Kong based auction house. More recently Tony Banwell has acted as UK adviser to a leading Swiss auctioneer. He both lectures and writes on philately and has made several appearances as an expert on the BBC's Antiques Roadshow. Historic Returns on Stamps • Rare stamps have historically been a good investment. Salomon Brothers rated rare stamps among the top four investments of the 20th century, giving an average return of 10% pa between the period 1907 and 1990. • Double digit annual returns are backed up by the Stanley Gibbons SG100 and GB30 performance monitoring indices enabling investors to compare performance of stamps with other asset classes. • The SG100 Stamp Price Index (SG100) measures the price performance of 100 of the most popular and traded items from across the world. The GB 30 Rarities Index (GB30) gives an accurate picture of the market for 30 of the most scarce British stamps. • With the FT House Price Index continuing to stagnate it is encouraging to report that the prices of rare stamps continue to rise strongly. Stamp prices, based on the GB30 Index, have risen 103.3% since 1998, an average annual increase of 10.7% per annum. Longer term, the GB30 shows a 9.5% increase per annum over the past 50 years. The SG100 also continues to outperform most traditional investments, having risen by 57.8% in the 7 year period ending December 2004, and a further 8.1% to October 2005. Prospects for Stamps • The current low interest rate and low inflation environment provides advantageous conditions for investment in stamps to achieve maximum growth potential, which is attractive to both retail and institutional investors when compared to returns available from mainstream investments. • The huge worldwide collector base coupled with fundamental market forces of supply and demand suggest that stamp prices will continue to rise in the future, and the historical evidence is that stamps have proved to be a consistent and reliable long term investment. • A large percentage of collectors are in the 50-60 year age group, the only growth consumer market according to the UK Government Actuary Department, due to their higher disposable income. With official British Government figures showing an expected 6 million extra over 50's by 2012 in the UK alone, the coming years look set for a boom period for interest in hobbies/alternative investments such as stamps. • The rare stamp market has also benefited from an increase in collectors from the newly emerging economies, such as Russia and India, where investors are interested in repatriating their national heritage, and from the large amount of philatelic information now available on the Internet. • This increased interest for a limited supply product should only have a positive effect on prices. CONTACTS: for further information please contact: Richard Director, Stanley Gibbons Limited tel: +44 (0)20 7557 4428 Purkis fax: +44 (0)20 7836 7342 email: info@stampinvestmentfund.com Michael Chief Executive, The Stanley tel: +44 (0)1425 481020 Hall Gibbons Group Limited email: mhall@stanleygibbons.co.uk Andrew della Director, Stanley Gibbons Rare tel: +44 (0)20 7352 2672 Casa Stamp Investment Fund email: andrew@alladdin.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange