SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

   Litigation Release No. 16967 / April 17, 2001

   SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION v. STEVEN T. SNYDER , Civil Action
   No. 01-CV-1870 (E. D. Pa.)

   The Securities and Exchange Commission ("Commission") announced that,
   on April 17, 2001, it filed a complaint in federal district court in
   Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, charging that Steven T. Snyder, a former
   registered representative of Meridian Capital Markets, Inc.
   ("Meridian"), engaged in a fraudulent scheme to generate profits for
   Meridian by charging various school districts and other municipalities
   in Pennsylvania and West Virginia unfair prices for U.S. Treasury
   securities. The Commission's complaint charges that the securities
   were sold to the municipalities from March 1993 through December 1995,
   in connection with certain tax-exempt refinancings known as advance
   refundings. The Commission's complaint further alleges that, in
   connection with those transactions, Snyder engaged in a practice known
   as "yield burning" in which a broker or dealer purposely inflates the
   prices it charges customers on Treasury securities in order to reduce
   the yield on those securities and make it appear that the advance
   refunding transaction complies with federal tax laws. Furthermore, in
   order to secure Meridian's selection in certain advance refundings,
   Snyder arranged for Meridian to make payments to a financial
   consultant who provided services to certain municipal entities in West
   Virginia.

   Without admitting or denying the Commission's allegations, Snyder
   consented to the entry of a judgment which permanently enjoins him
   from violating Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section
   10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5
   thereunder. In addition, the judgment directs Snyder to pay to the U.
   S. Treasury (1) an aggregate of $279,987 in resolution of the
   Commission's claims, as well as potential claims by the Internal
   Revenue Service and the Department of Justice, and (2) a civil penalty
   of $20,000.

   In a related administrative proceeding Snyder consented to an order,
   based on the entry of the civil injunction, barring him from
   association with any broker, dealer or municipal securities dealer,
   with a right to reapply for association after three years.
     _________________________________________________________________

Modified 04/18/2001