PRESS RELEASES

Expansion-Stage Private Equity Firm
San Francisco Equity Partners Launches Operations
Founded in Partnership with Leading U.K. Investment Firm LMS Capital

SAN FRANCISCO, July 18, 2005 - San Francisco Equity Partners (SFEP), a private equity firm focused on expansion-stage companies within the information technology, media, consumer, and service industries, announced today the launch of the firm's operations. Founded in partnership with LMS Capital, the firm is initially capitalized with $80 million under management. Founding managing partner Scott Potter has overseen LMS Capital's North American private equity and venture capital portfolios for the past several years. SFEP is launching with a portfolio of five leading expansion-stage companies.

SFEP seeks equity investments in companies with revenues ranging from $10 million to $50 million. The firm's target transaction size is $5 million to $20 million, although SFEP's strategic relationship with LMS Capital will allow it to lead or participate in transactions with larger capital requirements. SFEP will invest in both private and public companies that meet its investment criteria and is an active investor.

LMS Capital, SFEP's founding limited partner, is the private equity arm of London Merchant Securities plc (LON: LMSO), a U.K.-based investment and real estate company with over $2 billion in assets. LMS Capital has a 40-year track record of private equity investing in both Europe and the U.S. and has been a strategic source of capital for some of the world's leading private equity and venture capital firms. SFEP's portfolio companies will have the unique ability to leverage LMS' global network of industry and financial contacts.

"We believe that SFEP's focus on expansion-stage companies offers significant opportunities for successful investment and provides the optimal risk/reward tradeoff," said Robert Rayne, chief executive of London Merchant Securities plc. "Scott is an ideal choice to lead this effort, due to his long collaboration with LMS, and his experience working with expansion-stage companies as a CEO, board member and advisor."

Potter will run the firm as the founding managing partner. In his career as a private equity investor, CEO and advisor, Potter has been involved in over 75 private equity financings, 15 public offerings and 20 M&A transactions. Prior to founding SFEP, Potter served as a managing director for LMS Capital. Previously, Potter was a senior executive at Inktomi Corp., which he joined following its acquisition of Quiver, a venture-backed enterprise software firm, where Potter was president and CEO. Potter began his career as a corporate finance attorney for Silicon Valley law firm Venture Law Group.

SFEP's five initial portfolio companies are all leaders in their respective industries:

• Merriman Curhan Ford & Co. (AMEX: MEM) is a publicly-traded securities broker-dealer and investment bank serving the needs of high growth companies and institutional investors.
• Method Products is a privately-held consumer products company whose premium home care products use design, fragrance, and environmentally sensitive materials to reinvent the home cleaning category. Method's products are available at national and regional retailers, including Target, Costco, Sam's Club and Safeway.
• Penguin Computing is a leading vendor of Linux-based server systems, software, and technical services. Penguin has over 2000 customers, including Cisco Systems, Boeing, Stanford University, and numerous governmental agencies.
• Rave Motion Pictures is a builder and operator of stadium cinema complexes primarily in the southeastern and southwestern United States. Rave currently has 283 screens at 18 locations, with several new cinemas under construction.
• Modviz is an enterprise software company that helps organizations visualize complex data sets on commodity PC clusters. Modviz was spun out of Siemens AG and has its software installed at several of the world's leading oil and gas companies.

"Our relationship with SFEP has been a huge positive for the company," said Method Products CEO Alastair Dorward. "Not only has Scott been a valued board member in helping guide us to become one of the fastest growing companies in our category, but we've been able to leverage SFEP's strategic relationship with LMS Capital to help us attain international distribution for Method's products."

SFEP also announced that Cameron Steele is joining the firm as a partner. Most recently, Steele was a vice president and technology analyst for McMorgan & Co., supporting an actively-managed $5 billion equity portfolio. Previously, Steele was a managing director and equity research analyst with RBC Capital Markets and its predecessor firms. Prior to becoming a Wall Street analyst, Steele served in operational management roles at both Verity and Oracle Corp.

About San Francisco Equity Partners
San Francisco Equity Partners (SFEP) is a private equity firm focused on expansion-stage companies within the information technology, media, consumer, and service industries. SFEP was founded in partnership with LMS Capital, the private equity arm of London Merchant Securities plc (LON: LMSO), a leading UK-based investment company with over $2 billion in assets. Companies within SFEP's portfolio include Merriman Curhan Ford & Co. (AMEX: MEM), Method Products, Penguin Computing, Rave Motion Pictures, and Modviz.

Media Contacts:
Jenny Spitz
The Blueshirt Group for San Francisco Equity Partners
415-217-7722
jenny@blueshirtgroup.com

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