Valley Forge, Pennsylvania—February 16, 2001—IKON Office Solutions (NYSE: IKN) commented today on Standard & Poor's decision to lower IKON's senior unsecured debt rating. "We believe that S&P's move reflects more on the uncertainty that now affects our industry," said James J. Forese, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "In fact, as S&P acknowledged in its announcement, IKON has a strong market position and continues to generate free operating cash flow. We are confident that we are on the right strategic path and that we have the resources needed to capture the many marketplace opportunities that exist. "In addition, we have historically relied on asset-backed securitizations as our primary source of financing for IKON's captive leasing subsidiary, IOS Capital. As AAA-rated transactions, these securitizations are not impacted by IKON's credit rating. IOS Capital is a major player in the asset-backed securities market and we intend to continue to utilize this market as its primary source of financing," Forese concluded.