San Francisco (January 12, 1999) - Walden International ("WI") is pleased to announce the successful initial public offering of one of its portfolio companies, Hitron Technology Inc. ("Hitron"). The shares of Hitron began trading on December 10, 1998 on the Over-the-Counter Securities Exchange of Taiwan. The offering was underwritten by Fore Most Securities Co., Ltd. A total of 4,704,000 shares were offered at NT$56.00 per share, raising approximately NT$263.42 million (US$8.11 million) to the company.

Hitron was established in 1986 as a trading company of electronics instrumentation. In 1992, the company repositioned itself to focus on manufacturing and marketing of telecommunication equipment. The company's major products include DLC, HDSL, DECT, STS and digital modem, which are applied to the information technology, communication, telecommunication, and Internet industries. Hitron's customers include schools, research institutes, the military, government institutions, television companies, cable TV system companies, banks, and telephone companies. In addition, Hitron acts as a distributor to market electronic products such as digital loop carrier (DLC) system, high bit rate digital subscriber loop, transmission equipment, digital cross connect system, wireless communication equipment and synchronization timing system (STS) etc. It is a distributor for ASCEND and CISCO in Taiwan. Most recently, the company also services as an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and has established its HT.Net, which is currently ranked third among the ISP companies in Taiwan.

For the third quarter ended September 30, 1998, Hitron achieved a net income of NT$90.52 million on a turnover of NT$1.15 billion, a 41% growth over that of the same period in 1997.

Established in 1987, WI is an international venture capital firm with over US$865 million in funds under management. WI's international network of investment professionals are located in the United States, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, the People's Republic of China, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, India, and Australia.