BANINTER: your bank in the Caribbean. (Special Advertising Feature: Focus On...).

BANINTER (Banco Intercontinental), a Dominican Republic financial institution, is the first choice for investors seeking a sound bank in the Caribbean. The most dynamic commercial bank in the Dominican financial system, BANINTER offers its clients a greater variety of financial products than any other Caribbean bank, while providing a level of personal service that makes the client king.

PERSONAL SERVICE

BANINTER's clientele consists of Dominican small individual account holders and small and medium-size businesses, not to mention, of course, the corporate costumers whom the bank also services.

Market studies show that the hallmark of BANINTER's customer relations is its personal service. Despite its broad client base, customers are treated as individuals with particular needs. Personal service continues to be a very important factor in economies such as ours. For this reason, BANINTER makes sure its clientele, without fail, always receives great personal service at every one of its offices.

NEW TECHNOLOGY

In addition to offering the broadest range of products and services on the market, BANINTER also has the most modern technology, ensuring rapid, secure transactions.

BANINTER is on the cutting edge of banking technology and was one of the first banks to have all its offices on line and in real time. The bank started offering e-banking services two years ago at www.baninter.com. do with Baninternet, and the feedback has surpassed BANINTER's expectations. Account and cardholders can now access their statements, balances and transaction histories and make transfers and issue payments on line. BANINTER also counts on interactive voice response (IVR) systems for accounts and credit cards, enabling clients to access their accounts from a cell phone or land line.

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

The bank's outstanding credit services include personal loans, loans to small and medium-size businesses ("Interpymes"), and on-the-spot approval of new car loans.

BANINTER also offers the general public various investment options, such as savings accounts and financial certificates, with excellent interest rates and terms.

Its network of branch offices, approximately 100 locally, and ATMs -- the largest in the Dominican Republic -- means added assurance for clients who manage their transactions at BANINTER.

The nearly 250 conveniently located ATMs have an interactive system that allows the client to see different products and services on screen.

BANINTER also offers its clients products and services not available at other Dominican banks, such as Intermatic, the automatic authorization system for personal checking accounts; a card for remittances to Spain called Banenvios; complimentary personal accident insurance with checking and savings accounts, and many other Bancaseguro products.

The various credit card options are yet another facet of the service par excellence that sets BANINTER apart, with the best rates, financing costs and quality. BANINTER's Visa and MasterCard interest rates are the lowest in the market at just 2.98% a month, while the other banks average 7% a month. This policy, which has been in effect for the past five years, has resulted in a steady increase in the number of credit card customers.

INTERNATIONAL CONNECTION

BANINTER has one of the largest networks of correspondent banks in the United States, Europe, and Central and South America. This allows the bank to offer clients, especially corporate costumers, the opportunity to open letters of credit, make transfers, accept payments, and carry out other foreign trade transactions.

For long- and medium- term investment projects, BANINTER offers financing structured through its Investment Banking Department, which, together with the International Operations Division, negotiates funds abroad at the lowest possible cost to the client. BANINTER also has an offshore unit, BANINTER and Trust, on Grand Cayman Island.

A tribute to the efficiency of its international services is the fact that major companies doing business in the Dominican Republic rely on BAN INTER for account management, international transfer, automated salary payment, currency management and other functions.

Major international entities with local loan portfolios manage them through BANINTER. Notable among these are the European Investment Bank (EIB), the French Development Agency (PROPARCO), France's PNB Paribas, and the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIMBANK). The German Development Bank's DEG subsidiary (German Investment and Development Company), in addition to maintaining open lines to long-term financing, is a shareholder and member of BANINTER's board of directors.

VISION FOR THE FUTURE

In order to provide personal service and continue growing at the same rate, BANINTER needs to link the client's various transactions and options. BANINTER is evaluating the most dynamic CRM (customer relationship management) technologies that could provide solutions to this institution, with the goal of making these services available in early 2003.

To ensure its strong position in the coming years, and given the global economic uncertainty resulting from the September 11 terrorist attacks, BANINTER restricted credit facilities to the areas most severely affected by the tragic events: the tourism sector and related activities. But clients in this sector do not represent a significant percentage of BANINTER's portfolio, so the bank's total risk did not increase.

Generally, Dominican banks' exposure in Latin America is very limited. Since most of the Dominican Republic's economic activity is carried out with the United States, the effects of the Latin American crisis have not been felt in the Dominican Republic.

As a local bank, BANINTER still has a lot of room for growth in the Dominican Republic, and it is not anticipating expanding its sphere of activity in Latin America in the upcoming years. Still, it is important to BAN INTER to participate in business activities in the Caribbean Basin, contributing to multilateral transactions, using the Latin American banks as correspondent banks in the region.

EXPECTATIONS FOR THE FELABAN MEETING

BANINTER will be a sponsor of and direct participant in the annual FELABAN (Federation of Latin American Banks) meeting, which will be held this year in the Dominican Republic. This event is pivotal to banking associations and their member institutions in Latin America.

"Given the typical level of participation at this meeting, BANINTER will be able to make contact with banks with which we can establish correspondent relationships and potential business agreements," comments Nurys Marte, vice president of private banking.

"We have high expectations that this event will be a platform for demonstrating what Dominican banking has achieved in recent years," concludes Marte.