5 February 2008

ALLIANCE TRUST COMMENTS ON ITS EXPECTED ENTRY INTO FTSE-100 INDEX

Following the announcement today (Tuesday) that Alliance Trust PLC is expected to join the FTSE-100 on Thursday, Alliance Trust Chief Executive Alan Harden said:

“Alliance Trust is an actively managed, broad-based investment group and the fact it has reached this size is a testament to our company’s success in generating investment growth and meeting our core objective. We are here to drive capital and income return over the long term through different economic cycles and that is what we focus on every day.”

“While it is a notable milestone for the Company to be included in the FTSE-100, we remain focused on our strategy of improving investment returns from our own portfolio, diversifying our investments in areas such as private equity and developing our asset management and financial services businesses. As we roll out all of our planned enhancements both in our core investment trust and in our growing subsidiaries, the effect of improvements will become even more apparent and, as such, we believe the share price will better reflect our company’s real value and far-sighted strategy.”

“In the current volatile market we are seeing fluctuations to the indices as a result of turmoil that we warned about 18 months ago. In late summer 2006, anticipating the coming strain in the markets, we took a defensive stance and made certain decisive moves such as raising cash and selling almost all of our investments in Japan. This was in line with our goal to enhance and preserve shareholders’ capital and has since allowed us to take advantage of sharp drops on markets to buy quality, well-managed companies at good valuations, positioning us even more strongly for the long term. Over the last 18 months we have made key appointments of world-class executives across the group that will enable us to carry out our strategy effectively and continue growing.”

“I am particularly pleased that Alliance Trust is taking its place in this prominent ranking in the same year that we are celebrating our company’s 120^th anniversary. We are proud of our long history of working for our shareholders and rightly proud of our staff who have helped adapt and renew the company through the challenges of the changing marketplace. We believe our progress also shows that ambitious Scottish-based companies with deep understanding of international markets are as relevant today as ever.”

Alliance Trust PLC is an investment company that was founded in 1888. Alliance Trust heads an international investment and financial services group that has offices in Dundee, Edinburgh, London and Hong Kong. Through its financial services subsidiaries it offers asset management for other companies and clients and investment accounts, share-dealing and self-invested personal pensions. Its financial services subsidiary, Alliance Trust Savings, is a top ten SIPP provider.

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Contacts

Jane Holligan, Media Relations Manager Anna Schirmer / Stuart Lerman / Anna Moulds

Alliance Trust Lansons Communications

Tel +44 (0)1382 306064 Tel +44 (0)20 7294 3605 / 3674 / 3681

Mobile 07745 783212 Email alliancetrust@lansons.com

Email jane.holligan@alliancetrust.co.uk

Web www.alliancetrust.co.uk

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. Alliance Trust PLC heads an international investment and financial services group specialising in asset management, pensions and investment services. The company’s Net Asset Value is more than £2.7bn (as at 04/02/08).

2. Established in 1888, Alliance Trust’s headquarters are in Dundee and it has offices in London, Edinburgh and Hong Kong.
   
   
3. Our objective at Alliance Trust PLC is to be a core investment for investors seeking a long term store of increasing value.
   
   
4. Unconstrained by an equity index benchmark, we allocate our capital across a broad range of asset classes including owning and managing businesses to enhance and preserve total returns and provide shareholders with real growth over the medium to long term.
   
   
5. Our assets are invested worldwide and across a range of sectors and asset classes to achieve diversification and manage risk. As well as quoted equities, the company also invests in other assets such as private equity, direct property and in its subsidiary companies.
   
   
6. As at the end of January, the company’s gross assets included 88.5% invested in quoted equities, 5.1% in private equity, 3.2% in direct property and 1.4% in its subsidiaries. (unaudited figures based on published NAV)
   
   
7. At the end of January of the quoted equities, 50.8% were in the UK, 17.1% in North America, 18.2% in Europe, 11.4% in Asia-Pacific (ex-Japan), 1.3% in Japan and 1.2% in the rest of the world.

8. Its principal subsidiaries are in asset management and financial services. Its asset management business manages assets for other companies and funds for institutional and private investors. 
   
   
9. Its wholly-owned financial services company, Alliance Trust Savings, which is also an authorised bank, offers investment dealing and pensions to individual investors and their advisers through its enhanced wrap platform. Alliance Trust Savings provides sharedealing, investment wrapper accounts such as PEPs and ISAs, a full range of Self-Invested Personal Pensions, and accounts for investing for children such as First Steps and its Children’s SIPP.
   
   
10. Alliance Trust Savings is one of the UK’s top ten SIPP providers by number of accounts. It offers a full range of SIPPs from the sharedealing Select SIPP, which allows a choice of more than 3,000 investments, to the Full SIPP that permits investment in property and other assets.
    
    
11. Alliance Trust Savings administers investment accounts on behalf of more than 48,000 customers (at end Jan 2008)
    
    
12. Alliance Trust employs more than 300 people, most of whom are based at its Dundee offices

13. Alliance Trust is being admitted to the FTSE-100 as a consequence of the delisting of Kelda Group plc, the parent company of Yorkshire Water, which is being acquired by a private company, Saltaire Water Limited.