Christy E. Newton

Smith Barney, Inc. is a broker/dealer located in New York City. The firm is a subsidiary of Citigroup Global Markets Holdings, Inc. and their ultimate parent is Citigroup, Inc. The firm provides an array of trading and execution services for their clients. They do not provide any internal research

In 1915 Charles Edward Merrill founded Merrill Lynch & Co. (NYSE: MER) with Edmund C. Lynch in Baltimore, Maryland. The modern Merrill Lynch was formed in 1940 through mergers with E.A. Pierce & Cassatt and, soon after, Fenner & Beane. In 1973, Merrill Lynch adopted a holding company format, with Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. as the parent and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith as the operating subsidiary. Merrill Lynch Asset Management, Inc. (MLAM) was created as an integral business unit in the Merrill Lynch family in 1976. Fund Asset Management, doing business as Mercury Asset Management, was acquired in December 1997. In 2000, MLAM and Mercury were combined under the name Merrill Lynch Investment Managers. MLAM manages the Merrill Lynch family of mutual funds, as and acts as sub-advisor to other mutual funds.

Freestone Capital Management LLC (Freestone) is a SEC-registered investment advisor and wealth management firm headquartered in Seattle, Washington. The firm was founded by Gary Furukawa and Gary Smart in 1999 and is principally owned by Freestone Capital Holdings LLC. Freestone provides wealth management and investment advisory services to high net worth families and individuals on a discretionary or non-discretionary basis, typically through managed accounts. They also serve as investment manager to private funds.