London Stock Exchange : First group of Ohio companies join ELITE USA

• 10 Ohio companies join ELITE today; follows launch of ELITE USA in Ohio to accelerate growth of midmarket companies
• ELITE is LSEG's business support and capital raising initiative helping private companies prepare and structure for their next stage of growth
• More than 1000 companies have joined ELITE from 35 countries across 35 sectors

ELITE, London Stock Exchange Group's (LSEG) international business support and capital raising initiative, today welcomes ten new companies from Ohio. This is the first group of US companies to join ELITE following the launch of ELITE USA in collaboration with JobsOhio earlier this year.

To mark the occasion, the CEOs of companies joining the new ELITE USA cohort will be welcomed by Luca Peyrano, CEO, ELITE and John Minor, President, JobsOhio at an event in Columbus, Ohio today. They will be joined by President of the Ohio Senate Larry Obhof; Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives Ryan Smith; and British Consul General for Chicago John Saville.

The companies represent a diverse range of sectors, from craft brewing to healthcare.

New ELITE USA companies:

Company Name	Sector
BigSandy Superstore	Retail
Holzer Medical	Healthcare
Infosight	Manufacturing
Jackie O's	Brewing
Petland	Retail
Pharmacy4U	Retail
QuickLoadz	Manufacturing
RSS	Staffing
Stockmeister Enterprises	Construction
The City of Athens	Municipality

The state of Ohio is the first state to offer the ELITE programme in the United States of America. The choice to launch in Ohio reflects the state's strong business climate and diverse economy. Ohio is the seventh largest economy in the US, the twenty-first globally; the state also has the fifth highest number of Fortune 500 and Fortune 1000 company headquarters. With over 900,000 small and medium sized businesses, Ohio has one of the largest concentrations of SMEs in the US.

Designed to help ambitious businesses prepare and structure for their next stage of growth, ELITE provides companies with training and mentoring to support management best practice and entrepreneurship; promotes relationships and opportunities with potential investors; and facilitates access to the full range of funding options. Today, more than 1000 companies, advisors and investors from across 35 sectors and 35 countries make up the growing ELITE community. ELITE companies exhibit up to seven times the revenue growth and four times the number of jobs created in comparison to industry peers.

Luca Peyrano, CEO, ELITE:
'I am delighted to welcome the 10 companies from Ohio to ELITE today, our first ELITE group from the United States. Thank you to JobsOhio and the State of Ohio for their support and close collaboration to make the launch of ELITE USA a success.

'We are delighted to work with the state's ambitious companies, supporting them with training and access to business and entrepreneurial networks to help them reach their development goals, driving growth and job creation.'

John Minor, President & Chief Investment Officer, JobsOhio:
'London Stock Exchange Group could have chosen to launch ELITE anywhere in the United States, and it chose Ohio. This speaks to the strength and number of Ohio's small businesses and middle market companies, and we are proud of the inaugural cohort from Southeast Ohio, which will now have access to the world's finest expertise to help them continue to grow and create jobs.'

For further information:

Christopher Loscher - [phone]
[e-mail]