Chinacast Education (NASDAQ:CAST)

BEIJING, December 8, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- As previously announced on November 15, 2011, the Board of Directors of ChinaCast Education Corporation (the "Company" or "ChinaCast") (Nasdaq GS:CAST), a leading post-secondary education and e-learning services provider in China, formed a special committee of independent directors (the "Special Committee") to consider all strategic alternatives that would enhance shareholder value after receiving an unsolicited bid for the Company made by a qualified institutional investor at a significant premium to the current market price of the Company's common stock.

Today, the Company announced that the Special Committee has retained Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP to act as its independent legal counsel and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC to act as its financial advisor in connection with the Special Committee's evaluation of strategic alternatives. The Special Committee, working with its advisors, intends to proceed in a timely and orderly manner, but has not set a definitive timetable for completion of its evaluation, and does not currently intend to announce developments unless and until a definitive transaction or strategic option has been approved. The Company cautions that there are no guarantees that the strategic alternative review process will result in a transaction or, if a transaction is undertaken, the terms or timing of such a transaction.