CONSECO TO BUY INDIAN COMPANY

Following a recent decision to reduce its work force by 14 percent through outsourcing its customer service and backroom operations to India, Indianapolis-based Conseco Inc. announced that it would acquire exlService, an Indian company which specializes in providing office services. “Exl was founded in early 1999 by a group that included Gary Wendt, who had recently retired as head of G Capital Corporation,” said Conseco’s announcement. “He took the reins as Chairman and CEO of Conseco in mid-2000. Wendt and his wife own 20.3 percent of Exl; his relatives own an additional 9.4 percent. Wendt will be prohibited from realizing any value from his shares unless Conseco recovers its $52.6 million acquisition price through cost savings achieved from the venture and/or profits from third party business managed by Exl.” If this doesn’t happen by the end of his contract with Conseco in 2005, he’s agreed to forfeit the shares. Conseco anticipates cutting 2,000 jobs and relocating the affected services to New Delhi over the next 21 months.