NEW YORK, NY May 7, 2001—Fortis, Inc., part of international financial services provider Fortis [BSE: FOR and AMS: FOR], today announced that Fortis Chief Executive Officer Anton van Rossum has been elected Chairman of the Board of Fortis, Inc.

Mr. van Rossum was named Chief Executive Officer of Fortis and Chairman of the Boards of Fortis Bank and Fortis Insurance in September 2000. He is responsible for managing Fortis' extensive global insurance, investment and banking operations, including Fortis, Inc. Prior to joining Fortis, Mr. van Rossum was a Senior Partner at McKinsey and Company with management responsibility for its Brussels office. Mr. van Rossum holds a master's degree in Economics and Business Administration from the Rotterdam Erasmus University.

Mr. van Rossum said, "I am delighted to have been elected Chairman and look forward to helping Fortis, Inc. continue the successful execution of its strategy to build and manage a select portfolio of U.S. specialty businesses that are leaders in their respective markets."

In addition to Mr. van Rossum, Fortis, Inc.'s Board of Directors is composed of the following nine individuals:

Hendrik Jochem Hielkema, Vice-Chairman, Fortis, Inc. Board of Directors
Mr. Hielkema is a member of the Board of Directors of Fortis. Prior to his current position Mr. Hielkema was Vice Chairman of the Fortis Executive Committee and Chairman of the Management Committee of Fortis Insurance N.V. Mr. Hielkema started his career with Fortis in 1988 when he joined the Executive Board of Fortis AMEV N.V. (formerly N.V. AMEV, now Fortis (NL) N.V.). Before joining Fortis, Mr. Hielkema was a Senior Vice President at Chase Manhattan Bank and Chairman of the Executive Board of Nederlandse Crediet Bank. He earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from University of Oregon and a master's degree of business administration from Texas Tech.

Beth Bronner, Former President and Chief Operating Officer, ADVO, Inc.
Beth Bronner is the former President and COO of ADVO, Inc., the nation's largest full-service targeted direct mail marketing company. Before her position at ADVO, Inc. Ms. Bronner was President of the Health Division at Sunbeam Corporation. She has also held senior management positions at Citibank and AT&T. Ms. Bronner received a bachelor's degree from Vassar College and has a master's degree of business administration from the University of Chicago.

John Michael Palms, President, University of South Carolina
Dr. Palms has been President of the University of South Carolina since 1991. Earlier in his career, Dr. Palms served as President of Georgia State University and was a professor and administrator at Emory University. Dr. Palms received a bachelor's degree in physics from the Citadel. He received his master's degree in physics from Emory University and his Ph.D. from the University of New Mexico.

Robert J. Blendon, Professor, Harvard School of Public Health and the Kennedy School of Government
Dr. Blendon has taught at Harvard University since 1987. Previously, he served as Vice President of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Mr. Blendon earned his bachelor's degree at Marietta College in Marietta, OH. He has a master's degree of business administration and an Sc.D. from Johns Hopkins University.

H. Carroll Mackin, former Executive Vice President, Fortis, Inc.
Mr. Mackin was an Executive Vice President at Fortis, Inc. from 1982 to 1997. Before joining the company, he was Director for Investments at Forstmann, Leff. Mr. Mackin has a bachelor's degree from Georgia Institute of Technology and a master's degree of business administration from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.

J. Kerry Clayton, President and Chief Executive Officer, Fortis, Inc.
Prior to becoming President and CEO, Mr. Clayton held a variety of management positions at Fortis, Inc. including Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Fortis, Inc. and President of Fortis Benefits Insurance Company. Mr. Clayton earned an engineering degree from Georgia Tech and a master's degree of business administration from Harvard Business School.

Allen R. Freedman, former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Fortis, Inc.
Mr. Freedman joined Fortis, Inc. as its first president in 1979 and retired from his position as Chairman and CEO in 2000. With over three decades in the financial services industry, Mr. Freedman's experience includes banking, venture investing and tax law. Mr. Freedman has an undergraduate degree from Tufts University and a law degree from the University of Virginia.

Arie Aristide Fakkert, General Manager, Fortis International N.V.
Prior to assuming his current position, Mr. Fakkert served as the General Manager, AMEV Praktijkvoorziening N.V. Mr. Fakkert began his career at Royal Dutch Shell Group serving in the U.S. and the U.K. He has a master's degree in business from Rotterdam Erasmus University.

Georges Valckenaere, Advisor to Chief Executive Officer of Fortis
Before being named Advisor to Anton van Rossum, the CEO of Fortis, Georges Valckenaere was Chief Excutive Officer of Fortis International. Before joining Fortis International, Mr. Valckenaere was Director - General Manager of Fortis AG. In addition to serving on the Fortis, Inc. and Fortis International Boards of Directors, Mr. Valckenaere also serves on the boards of Fortis Bank, AMEV/VSB, ASLK--CGER Bank and CAIFOR. Georges Valckenaere holds a masters degree in mathematics and a masters degree in actuarial science from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL).

About Fortis, Inc.

Fortis, Inc. is a financial services company that, through its operating companies and affiliates, has built leadership positions in a number of specialty insurance market segments in the U.S. The company has approximately $25 billion in assets under management. The companies of Fortis, Inc. are leading providers of individual, temporary and small group health insurance; group disability, life and dental insurance; preneed funeral insurance; credit related insurance products and services; and membership and extended service programs.

Fortis, Inc. is part of Fortis, an international financial services provider active in the fields of insurance, banking and investment. Fortis employs approximately 70,000 people worldwide and offers a broad range of financial services. In its home market, the Benelux countries, Fortis occupies a leading position and offers a broad range of financial services to individuals, companies and the public sector. Outside its home market, Fortis concentrates on selected market segments. At year-end 2000, Fortis had total assets in excess of $410 billion. As one of the world's largest financial services companies, Fortis ranks 26th on the Fortune 'Global 500' and 33rd on the Forbes 'World Super 50' (July 24, 2000). For more information, visit the company's website at www.fortis.com.

Contacts

Fortis, Inc.
Media:
Melissa Kivett
(212) 859-7029
[email protected]