News Release

August 25, 2005 - The Cedar Group and Crestone International "Double Down", Creating a Dominant PeopleSoft Services Provider

Transaction Marks the Beginning of a Wave of Consolidation

WESTWOOD, MA - Boston Corporate Finance, Inc. (BCF), a technology-focused investment banking firm, announced today that it has successfully advised The Cedar Group, based in Baltimore, MD, in its merger and subsequent financing with Crestone International, based in Alpharetta, GA.

Through this combination, the newly formed CedarCrestone has become a leading provider of PeopleSoft deployment, management and optimization services, on pace to generate over $100 million in revenue during 2005. On its first day of operations, the new entity serves over two hundred PeopleSoft Enterprise projects with nearly four hundred consultants. The sales force, aligned by three strategic industry business units (Commercial, Higher Education, and Public Sector) will foster relationships with over one thousand PeopleSoft Enterprise clients. CedarCrestone will be one of the leading systems integrators for Oracle's PeopleSoft Enterprise applications in multiple industries, including the higher education and public sector / government verticals.

This transaction is the first significant execution of the "double down" strategy which BCF originally described earlier this year in a topical article entitled The Opportunity and Dilemma Facing PeopleSoft's Service Providers (available online at www.bostoncf.com/research). "This transaction makes a strong statement in the ERP services market," said Murray Beach, President of BCF. "By 'doubling down' in their core technology expertise, CedarCrestone has become the clear leader in providing PeopleSoft consulting and managed services to its targeted vertical markets. With this leadership role, the company is better positioned to both continue supporting its customers' PeopleSoft needs and manage the eventual conversion to Oracle's combined product suite."

While CedarCrestone represents the first sizeable "double down" among notable firms in the PeopleSoft space, we at BCF expect this transaction to open the gates for a significant increase in M&A activity among PeopleSoft services partners in the coming quarters. As described in our prior research, these firms are tied to a software platform that is destined to change with the release of Oracle's integrated "Super Set" in two to three years. Business has remained strong for PeopleSoft partners thus far, as most PeopleSoft users are still very satisfied with the software and are reluctant to replace existing enterprise systems, but an undeniable period of transition is approaching that carries a high level of uncertainty. It is critical for PeopleSoft partners to begin positioning themselves for this transition by building a value proposition that will help them retain customers as they climb the Project Fusion learning curve – qualities such as seamless execution and delivery of services, a deep portfolio of service offerings and a defensible leadership position in targeted vertical markets. CedarCrestone has created such a value proposition through this transaction and we expect to see other PeopleSoft partners follow suit in the near future.

M&A activity has already picked up among other ERP vendor partners. Industry leaders such as Cognizant, Hewlett-Packard, Keane and Sapient have all made acquisitions of SAP-focused firms, and Tectura has continued its rapid consolidation of Microsoft Business Solutions partners. Specialized ERP skill sets are currently in very high demand and the limited supply of qualified consultants will drive intense acquisition activity over the next 18 months.

For all ERP vendor partners that recognize the need to evaluate their current strategic alternatives, it is essential to find the appropriate financial advisor. Boston Corporate Finance is a premier candidate for providing investment banking services to these players for several reasons:

• Unparalleled knowledge of the market environment facing ERP vendor partners, demonstrated through published research and relevant transaction experience
• Extensive experience in mid-market technology transactions, through which the firm has built deep industry and professional relationships
• Access to the combined global resources of M&A International, the world's leading international M&A network
• Attention from senior-level professionals throughout the course of a relationship
• Straightforward advice, delivered with uncompromising ethics from an independent perspective

About Boston Corporate Finance, Inc.

Boston Corporate Finance, Inc. is a private investment banking firm focused on providing traditional investment banking advisory services to high growth companies primarily in the technology sector. BCF's seasoned professionals leverage their extensive global and regional transaction experience to deliver expert guidance on mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, private placements of debt and equity, and public offering planning. BCF is a member of M&A International, Inc., the world's leading international M&A network, and is registered with the NASD/ SIPC.

Boston Corporate Finance, Inc.
200 Lowder Brook Drive, Suite 2600
Westwood, MA 02090

Tel: (781) 320-3200
Fax: (781) 320-3220
E-mail: info@bostoncf.com

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