Paris, London, Cologne, and Boston -- December 8, 2004 -- State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT), the world's leading provider of services to institutional investors and AXA Investment Managers ("AXA IM") today announced that State Street has been appointed to provide a broad range of services including fund administration, fund accounting and investment operations support for more than €300 billion of AXA IM's assets under management.* WM Performance Services, State Street's performance evaluation business, will also provide performance measurement services.

AXA IM and State Street announced in March 2004 that they had entered into exclusive discussions regarding the transfer of AXA IM's fund administration and investment operations support in France, Germany and the U.K. to State Street.

As a result of the appointment, more than 200 AXA IM employees have joined State Street in Europe. These employees, with their knowledge of AXA IM's operations, will augment State Street's expertise while continuing to service their current customers. The transfer of operations in the U.K. is scheduled to be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2005. In total, more than 300 AXA IM employees will transition to State Street.

"This landmark mandate from AXA IM, the fourth major investment operations outsourcing appointment for State Street in Europe and the first ever mandate to a third-party service provider in France and Germany, demonstrates our ability to secure complex and multi-jurisdictional servicing business," said Jay Hooley, executive vice president of State Street Corporation. "Key factors in our success are our ability to deliver a seamless and integrated global platform for our clients as well as our expertise and local presence in Europe. We are delighted to forge this agreement with AXA IM as we help them continue to expand their business globally."

"State Street's ability to meet all of our pan-European needs was a key differentiator for us," said Nicolas Moreau, Chief Executive Officer of AXA IM. "As we continue to grow our business, we are confident that State Street will be a key partner to assist in our servicing requirements. The choice of State Street was based upon its proven expertise of securing large and complex investment operations mandates and a demonstrable track record of service delivery."

This mandate from AXA IM further solidifies State Street's leadership in Europe. It significantly expands its existing operations in France and adds to its already strong presence in Germany, while furthering the reputation of WM as a leading provider of performance evaluation services. State Street first opened its Paris office in 1991. In Germany, helped by its acquisition of Deutsche Bank's Global Securities Services business last year, State Street is the largest depotbank and investment service provider, building on more than 30 years of history in the market with an extensive presence in both Frankfurt (Eschborn) and Munich.

State Street Corporation (NYSE: STT) is the world's leading specialist in providing institutional investors with investment servicing, investment management and investment research and trading. With $9.0 trillion in assets under custody and $1.2 trillion in assets under management, State Street operates in 24 countries and more than 100 markets worldwide. For more information, visit State Street's Web site at www.statestreet.com.

*Source: AXA IM as of 30 August 2004.