COMPUTERSHARE LIMITED. — Capital/Financing Update 2002

Dec 16, 2002

Melbourne - 17 December, 2002

COMPUTERSHARE ANNOUNCES THE ACQUISITION OF EFA GROUP ASSETS

Computershare Ltd. (ASX:CPU) announced today that it has agreed to acquire certain assets of EFA Software Services Ltd and EFA Cyprus Ltd. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of January 2003.

The assets in question include the software rights to EFA's trading systems and settlement and clearing systems. The purchase price is CDN \$6.25 million (approximately A\$7.1 million) payable in cash.

Through the purchase of these assets, Computershare will gain access to trading and clearing software that is installed in over 25 stock exchanges. Although the transaction does not contemplate Computershare assuming obligations under existing EFA client contracts. Computershare will as soon as possible contact existing and potential clients to firmly establish its commitment to on-going business relationships.

EFA's trading systems are particularly suited to the small to mid-sized exchanges, whilst Computershare's trade matching system – Computershare X-stream - is a solution that is better suited to the middle to high end of the global market. In this context, there are clear synergies between the two trading engines. Following this acquisition, Computershare will be strongly positioned to win business as exchanges come to the market in search of new trading technology.

Chris Morris, Computershare's CEO said "We have been in market technology for 7 years now and we have been very pleased with our progress. This acquisition adds further depth to our product offering and places us in the leading group of providers of exchange technology". He added, "Significantly, this deal also provides us with a powerful clearing and settlement system, which is an important addition to our product portfolio."

The transaction is subject to standard conditions, including completion of final due diligence by Computershare and bankruptcy court approval.

Ends.

About Computershare

Computershare Limited is a leading financial services and technology provider for the global securities industry, providing services and solutions to listed companies, investors, employees, exchanges and other financial institutions. It is the largest and only global share registry, managing more than 68 million shareholder accounts for over 7,500 corporations in ten countries on five continents, and it provides sophisticated trading and surveillance technology to financial markets in fourteen countries across each major time zones. Founded in Australia in 1978 and headquartered in Melbourne, Computershare employs more than 5,000 people worldwide.

For more information visit the company web site http://www.computershare.com

For further details please contact:

Australia

Dudley Chamberlain Head of Investor Relations Computershare Ltd Tel: + 61 3 9235 5500 Mobile: +61 417 374 316

$U.S.A$

Paul Conn Head of Global Services Group Computershare Ltd Mobile: +1 646 372 9594

United Kinadom

lain Saville Managing Director, Europe Computershare Ltd Tel: +44 870 703 6186