STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 7, 2001--Pitney Bowes (NYSE:PBI) today announced the expansion of its Asia Pacific direct operations with the opening of an office in Bangkok, Thailand in line with the firm's strategic focus on accelerated global growth.

Wanvipa Luepromchai, formerly manager of the Pitney Bowes dealership operation in Thailand will head the newly formed organization as Managing Director. A 10 year veteran with Pitney Bowes, Ms. Luepromchai will report to Henri Ho, Vice President of Pitney Bowes Inc./Asia Pacific, headquartered in Hong Kong.

Thai customers and Pitney Bowes shareholders will benefit from this move, according to Mr. Ho. "Valuable customers such as the Communication Authority in Thailand (CAT) and Thai Post; key financial institutions, such as Bangkok Bank, Citibank and American Express; and other commercial customers using Pitney Bowes products and services will benefit from the higher level of service and attention that a direct operation can provide. With enhanced support from the Hong Kong regional office, the Bangkok operation is ready to deploy new solutions and services to Thai customers ranging from traditional document messaging management to cutting-edge e-commerce messaging solutions."

The new operation will manage its own sales, customer service and support, solutions consulting services, logistics, product localization and administration. Besides enhancing growth in the Thai market, the new operation will add needed infrastructure to complement regional support capabilities for other S.E. Asia and Indo-China dealer operations, maximizing efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Pitney Bowes Inc. is a $3.9 billion global provider of integrated mail, messaging and document management solutions headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. The company serves over 2 million businesses of all sizes in more than 130 countries through dealer and direct operations. For additional information about Pitney Bowes, please visit our website at www.pitneybowes.com.

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