First International Bank Examines The Role Of E-Signatures In Financing Small Industrial Transactions For Ebizchronicle.Com

CEO Silvers Gains "First Mover Status" For His Company
By Delivering Loans Online To Users Of Industrial E-Marketplaces

HARTFORD, Conn., August 16, 2000—First International Bank, which has established "first mover status" financing small industrial companies in the global marketplace, has strategically expanded its business on the Internet, as featured on EbizChronicle.com, an online daily newspaper that covers the world of B2B.

EbizChronicle.com interviewed Brett N. Silvers, First International Bank’s chairman and CEO, calling him a "pioneer in leveraging e-business in the financial industry." According to Sarwar A. Kashmieri, publisher of EbizChronicle.com, the Silvers article is one of the publication’s top 10 most-read articles since it began publishing in December 1999.

In the article, Silvers discusses First International’s e-business strategy, which is built on the belief that small manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and contractors must be increasingly sophisticated to meet the demands of their multinational suppliers and customers – or risk being replaced in the global supply chain. According to Silvers, small industrial companies are adapting to the requirements of their supply chain partners, where the standard is quickly becoming full automation for everyday processes such as purchase orders, shipping documents and receipts notification.

To keep in step, Silvers predicts that small industry’s next move will be mastering the ability to conduct business with customers and suppliers via the Internet.

In preparation for the Internet B2B revolution, Silvers has pushed First International to the forefront by developing the capability to finance online transactions. The bank’s ThruCredit® technology is currently in the process of being connected to 13 industrial portals on the Internet, making available 14 different credit products known collectively as the e-CreditMenu(sm), in amounts up to US $5 million per transaction.

Silvers is eager to take advantage of the "Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act," which takes effect on October 1, 2000. This new federal statute, which President Clinton signed into law in July, gives electronic contracts legal validity. The legislation, said Silvers, "was a major missing piece for us and other financiers, (removing) one of the real limits and institutional barriers to actually making loans online." He cites a number of points in the process of commercial and international lending where business borrowers will benefit from the speed of e-signatures, such as instant submission of secure, signed financial statements, credit applications, loan documents and funds transfer authorizations.

According to EbizChronicle.com, "The bank has done so well with its core business of lending to small industrial companies, originating over $550 million in loans just in 1999 alone, that the U.S. Commerce Department awarded it the President’s "E" Award for Export Service in May 2000."

Silvers’ strategy was also affirmed recently in Forbes Magazine, which spotlighted the "buzz" on First International Bank in its July 17th issue. The publication noted First International's agreement to finance deals for one of the Internet’s real movers in B2B – e-STEEL Corporation.

Silvers looks optimistically at his company’s future in delivering online loans to small industrial companies around the world. "If we have been growing and profitable in the ‘stagecoach’ days, just think what we are about to do in the Internet age," he concluded.

Readers can access the article at http://www.ebizchronicle.com/spl_reports/july/firstintlbank_ceo_qanda.htm.

About First International Bank and First International Bancorp Inc.

First International Bank (www.upscapital.com) – a world leader in the use of SBA, USDA and Export-Import Bank-backed loans – provides innovative credit, trade and financial solutions for small and medium size industrial businesses. The company has more than 200 employees and representatives coast-to-coast at 15 U.S. locations and in 14 emerging markets worldwide. During 1999, the company originated $551 million in loans primarily within its industrial niche, and closed the year with a managed loan portfolio of $1.1 billion. Established in 1955, the bank is a subsidiary of the publicly traded First International Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: FNCE), with headquarters in Hartford, Connecticut.

MEDIA CONTACT:

First International Bank:
Michele Zommer
(860) 241-4705
zommerm@firstinterbank.com