Martina Gruber will head the German central securities depository's Sales and Relationship Management, Customer Service and Marketing areas. Berthold Kracke will be responsible for Risk Management and Compliance, Finance and Controls. Martina Gruber and Berthold Kracke are joining Clearstream Banking AG's Chief Executive Officer Stefan Lepp and Mathias Papenfuß on the board. The new board members are taking on their new duties in addition to their managerial responsibility at various company locations within the entire Clearstream organisation.

Jeffrey Tessler, CEO of the parent company Clearstream International and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Clearstream Banking AG, said: "The appointment of Martina Gruber and Berthold Kracke - both experts in German and international banking and finance - strengthens the Executive Board of Clearstream Banking AG. Martina Gruber will leverage her extensive market experience in the interest of our German and international clients. With his in-depth knowledge of operational processes, Berthold Kracke is predestined to take on key tasks in the area of business continuity. One of the main challenges of the new Executive Board will be to position the German CSD for TARGET2-Securities, thus making a decisive contribution to the business success of our entire group."

Martina Gruber has over 20 years' experience in the financial industry. She has held a number of management positions in Deutsche Börse Group and is familiar with the whole value chain of the company's business (new issues, trading, clearing, settlement and custody). With a qualification as a bank clerk and a degree in business administration, Martina Gruber has been at Clearstream since August 2002, where she currently heads Relationship Management for German speaking Europe and Central and Eastern Europe. She has also served as managing director of Deutsche Börse Commodities GmbH since July 2007. Previously, she also worked in the clearing area of Deutsche Börse Group for two years. Prior to her career at the Group, she was employed at Financial Markets Service Bank GmbH in Munich, at ManagementTeam consultancy in Wiesbaden and at KPMG in Frankfurt and Hamburg.

Berthold Kracke has been at Clearstream since January 1998 and has held various management positions in the company, primarily in operational areas. He is currently in charge of quality measures to improve customer satisfaction, reduce risk and increase efficiency. Berthold Kracke was also in charge of a variety of strategic projects to position Clearstream globally, including setting up the Clearstream branches in Prague and Singapore. Prior to that, Berthold Kracke worked at Deutsche Bank AG in global transaction banking and cash management solutions for key customers. Berthold Kracke, who holds a PhD in physics, was a lecturer at the University of Göttingen from 1993 to 1996.