WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., July 23 /EMWNews/ -- BB&T Corporation

(NYSE: BBT) today announced that BB&T's pension plan purchased

approximately 2.45 million shares of BB&T common stock for approximately

$52.9 million in a private placement transaction. At the completion of the

purchase, approximately 5 percent of the fair market value of the pension

plan's assets was held in BB&T common stock. The privately placed shares

are generally restricted from trading for six months.



    At June 30, BB&T's pension plan had more than $1.5 billion in assets.

The price of the shares was determined by an independent appraisal firm,

subject to the review and approval of an independent fiduciary retained on

behalf of the plan.



    At June 30, BB&T had $136.5 billion in assets and operated 1,489

banking offices in 11 states and Washington, D.C. More information about

the company is available at http://www.bbt.com/ .



    This press release contains certain forward-looking statements as

defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These

statements may address issues that involve significant risks,

uncertainties, estimates and assumptions made by management. Actual results

may differ materially from current projections. Please refer to BB&T's

filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a summary of

important factors that may affect BB&T's forward-looking statements. BB&T

undertakes no obligation to revise these statements following the date of

this press release.