Rome, December 18, 2007—The Rome office of Shearman & Sterling acted as U.S. and English counsel to Il Sole 24 ORE S.p.A. in connection with the initial public offering in Italy and the private placement to institutional investors internationally of Il Sole 24 ORE S.p.A.’s special shares. This offering was one of the largest IPOs completed in Italy during 2007 (and one of only three completed after the summer break). The Issuer’s special shares were listed on the Mercato Telematico Azionario of Borsa Italiana as of December 6, 2007.

The Sole 24 ORE Group is the leading provider of financial and economic information in Italy. The Group publishes “Il Sole 24 ORE”, which is the most read financial newspaper in Italy and the second most circulated financial newspaper in Europe, as well as books, periodicals, databanks, online applications, management software and real-time financial information services.

The Shearman & Sterling team was led by Rome-based Capital Markets and M&A partner Michael Bosco, assisted by partner James Comyn (LN-MA) and associates Ethan Perry (RM-CM), David Ingrassia (RM-CM), Vincenzo Armenio (RM-CM), Rita Lo (LN-MA), Remi Christien (LN-MA) and international trainees Serena Scarabotti (RM-CM), Maria Antonietta Romeo (RM-CM), and Matteo Melis (RM-CM). The transaction also involved lawyers from the firm’s International Tax Group.