CALABASAS, Calif., June 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Countrywide FinancialCorporation (NYSE: CFC) announced today that Glass Lewis & Co., a leadingindependent proxy advisory firm, recommends that Countrywide stockholders voteFOR the company's proposed merger agreement with Bank of America (NYSE: BAC)at its special stockholder meeting on June 25, 2008. Glass Lewis joinsISS/RiskMetrics Group in its recommendation FOR the proposed merger.
The voting analyses and recommendations of Glass Lewis and ISS/RiskMetricsGroup are relied upon by institutional investment funds, mutual funds andfiduciaries throughout the country.
Stockholders with questions or who need assistance voting their shares maycall Countrywide's proxy solicitor, Innisfree M&A Incorporated, toll-free at(877) 750-9499.
About Countrywide
Founded in 1969, Countrywide Financial Corporation is a diversifiedfinancial services provider and a member of the S&P 500, Forbes 2000 andFortune 500. Through its family of companies, Countrywide originates,purchases, securitizes, sells, and services residential and commercial loans;provides loan closing services such as credit reports, appraisals and flooddeterminations; offers banking services which include depository and home loanproducts; conducts fixed income securities underwriting and tradingactivities; provides property, life and casualty insurance; and manages acaptive mortgage reinsurance company. For more information about the Company,visit Countrywide's website at http://www.countrywide.com.
Additional Information About this Transaction
In connection with the proposed merger, Bank of America has filed with theSEC a Registration Statement on Form S-4 that includes a proxy statement ofCountrywide that also constitutes a prospectus of Bank of America.Countrywide has mailed the proxy statement/prospectus to its stockholders.Bank of America and Countrywide urge investors and security holders to readthe proxy statement/prospectus regarding the proposed merger because itcontains important information. You may obtain copies of all documents filedwith the SEC regarding this transaction, free of charge, at the SEC's website(http://www.sec.gov). You may also obtain these documents, free of charge,from Bank of America's website (http://www.bankofamerica.com) under the tab'About Bank of America' and then under the heading 'Investor Relations' andthen under the item 'SEC Filings'. You may also obtain these documents, freeof charge, from Countrywide's website (http://www.countrywide.com) under thetab 'Investor Relations' and then under the heading 'SEC & other filings.'
Bank of America, Countrywide and their respective directors, executiveofficers and certain other members of management and employees may besoliciting proxies from Countrywide stockholders in favor of the merger.Information regarding the persons who may, under the rules of the SEC, beconsidered participants in the solicitation of the Countrywide stockholders inconnection with the proposed merger is set forth in the proxystatement/prospectus filed with the SEC. You can find information about Bankof America's executive officers and directors in its definitive proxystatement filed with the SEC on March 19, 2008. You can find informationabout Countrywide's executive officers and directors in Amendment No. 1 to itsAnnual Report on Form 10-K/A filed with the SEC on April 24, 2008. You canobtain free copies of these documents from Bank of America and Countrywideusing the contact information above.
SOURCE Countrywide Financial Corporation
