Bridger Commercial Funding Announces BridgerFunding.com; 'E-powering the Banking Industry'.

Business Editors/High-Tech and Real Estate Writers

MILL VALLEY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 2000

Bridger Commercial Funding LLC, the leading Internet-powered commercial real estate lending partner to U.S. commercial banks, has launched BridgerFunding.com, the only Internet gateway available exclusively to banks for pricing, underwriting and closing commercial real estate loans for sale into the global market for Commercial Mortgage Backed Securities (CMBS).

In the last six weeks, BridgerFunding.com provided instant loan quotations for over $1.1 billion in unique commercial mortgages requested by Bridger's bank clients. Bridger has closed more than $300 million in loans through its bank partners.

BridgerFunding.com provides banks with the interactive tools to complement their traditional mortgage lending operations. The site offers an array of services not available through traditional commercial mortgage web sites:

      --  The Bridger Interactive Pricing System (BIPS), the most
        accurate online pricing engine for long-term, fixed-rate
        commercial mortgages.

      --  BridgerDocs(TM), a fully-downloadable online library of more
        than 350 loan documents, underwriting forms, and bank
        marketing tools (with loan documents conformed specifically
        for most states).

      --  RateLink(TM), a special program that allows bank clients to
        private-label the BIPS pricing engine for integration with
        their own website.

      --  WebSource(TM), a groundbreaking service that refers
        Internet-sourced borrower requests to bank clients.

      --  The Internet's most comprehensive live interest rate data
        viewable on a single page, updated via satellite every five
        minutes.

"The Internet is currently populated with a confusing array of commercial mortgage sites that basically replicate the traditional mortgage brokerage function," according to Bob Schonefeld, CEO of Bridger Commercial Funding LLC. "BridgerFunding.com is a dedicated website allowing Bridger's bank clients around the country to obtain up-to-the-minute information on interest rates, price a loan, download vital loan documents and, in essence, expedite the loan process to offer a higher level of service to the bank's customers," he added.

"BridgerFunding.com is an excellent use of technology because, in our experience, it is user-friendly and efficient," said Greg Saunders, Bridger's CFO. "Clients are consistently telling us it's easy to navigate, simple to use, efficient and informative. BridgerFunding.com is a great example of how Internet technology applied in a business-to-business setting can be highly productive," he added.

"One of the unique aspects of BridgerFunding.com, in addition to the technological innovations introduced, is the site's time-tested client service features such as toll-free telephone lines and dedicated personnel who can quickly respond to customer inquiries," said Schonefeld. "Bridger's customer service is a regular feature of our traditional relationship with our bank partners, and we feel that they will be even more valuable in a cyber-relationship."

"One of the biggest failings of the Internet is that if something goes wrong, it's often difficult to contact a human being to correct it," said Schonefeld.

Bridger Commercial Funding is the leading Internet-powered commercial real estate lending partner to U.S. commercial banks. Bridger's large capitalization enables local and regional banks to offer highly competitive fixed-rate, long-term, non-recourse commercial real estate loans that are underwritten to secondary market standards. Bridger's unique lending programs allow banks to increase their return on equity by generating substantial fee income while retaining and growing their borrower relationships. Bridger's growing network of banks has placed the company among the top providers of commercial bank-originated loan products to the global commercial mortgage backed securities market (CMBS). Through BridgerFunding.com, clients are provided an array of tools to efficiently price, underwrite and close loans for sale into the global capital markets.