FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                      99-101

SEC Sues IG Holdings, Inc. in First Ever "Mini-Tender Offer" Case;
Warns Investors To Carefully Scrutinize Offers To Buy Their Stock
                                
     Washington, DC, August 19, 1999 -- The Securities and
Exchange Commission today sued IG Holdings, Inc. for failing to
consistently provide investors with adequate information in
hundreds of so-called "mini-tender offers."  Mini-tender offers
are tender offers for less than 5 percent of a company's
securities.  Unlike tender offers for more than 5 percent, mini-
tender offers are not subject to the filing, disclosure, and
procedural requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
and Regulation 14D.  As a result, investors targeted for mini-
tender offers typically don't receive documents that describe the
tender offer in detail.

     The SEC alleged that, during 1998 and 1999, IG Holdings made
more than 200 mini-tender offers that had offering prices below
the prevailing market prices.  The SEC further alleged that the
means used to disseminate these offers resulted in some
shareholders not receiving material information about IG
Holdings' mini-tender offers, including the calculation of the
final price to be paid by IG Holdings and the fact that the
offering price might not reflect the market price.  In addition,
shareholders were not always informed that they could not
withdraw their tenders, nor were they told that IG Holdings could
revoke its offer at any time before completion of the offering.
Without admitting or denying the SEC's charges, IG Holdings
consented to cease and desist from committing or causing
violations of the federal securities laws.

     Securities and Exchange Commission Director of Enforcement
Richard H. Walker said, "Today's action serves as a warning to
investors to monitor their investments carefully.  Because the
success of mini-tender offers depends on the offeror's ability to
catch investors off guard, investors should take special care to
scrutinize any offer for their securities.  Don't assume you'll
receive a premium over the market price if you tender your
shares.  Instead, do your homework and ask questions to find out
whether the offer is a good deal or a rip-off."

     To help investors learn which questions to ask about mini-
tender offers, the SEC has released a new investor alert, Mini-
Tender Offers:  Beware of Offers to Buy Your Securities at Below
Market Prices.  This alert is available on the SEC's Web site at
www.sec.gov/consumer/search.htm under the heading "Search Key
Topics," a searchable database of quick answers and solutions to
common investor questions.

     For additional information, please call:  Steve Cutler,
Deputy Director, Enforcement Division at 202.942.4500.
                                
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