Global Textile Network and First International Bank To Deliver E-Commerce Financing Solutions For Worldwide Textile Industry.

Business Editors

NEW YORK and HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 26, 2000

International Textile Community Gains Online Access

To Financing Up to $5 Million Per Transaction

Global Textile Network, Inc., and First International Bank, a subsidiary of First International Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FNCE), today announced an agreement to make online financing available to companies that buy and sell textile products and services on Textrade.com, the world's first Internet-based international textile trading, communications and information marketplace. The alliance will facilitate the settlement of textile industry transactions in real time, as well as provide other credit products of value to Textrade.com participants.

Global Textile Network is introducing major efficiencies to the textile industry through Textrade.com, and will now make available the 14 commercial and international financing products in First International Bank's e-CreditMenu(sm). Online business financing today is typically limited to transactions for U.S. based companies up to $100,000. Through Textrade.com, however, companies around the world can access financing options in the e-CreditMenu for transactions up to $5 million. The e-CreditMenu product offerings include creative inventory, equipment and international trade financing for every stage of the textile value chain, from trading raw commodities such as fiber, yarn and greige fabric all the way through to manufacturing and distribution.

First International will underwrite loans and other facilities in e-CreditMenu in accordance with Riscope(sm), the bank's proprietary commercial credit scoring system. Riscope applies to all types of textile companies located in the United States and abroad and assures them of an efficient and rapid credit approval process. Companies that tap First International Bank's e-CreditMenu for financing through Textrade.com will be seamlessly linked using ThruCredit(sm), the Bank's technological solution for automating e-business financing.

According to Jeffrey Silver, Chairman of Global Textile Network, "The agreement with First International Bank to offer online loans worldwide supports our goal of providing the textile industry with unsurpassed value using the Internet in a number of areas, including information, electronic trading, auctions, showrooms and logistics." Robert Cox, Jr., Global Textile Networks' CEO, stated that "We are impressed with First International's extensive experience in financing the commercial and international trade needs of textile buyers and sellers, and believe the bank's strengths will enhance our leading position in key industry segments and markets."

"First International Bank has a strong commitment to the textile industry, with active client and trade association relationships in many countries," said Brett N. Silvers, the bank's chairman and CEO. "Our offices and representatives in the world's important textile manufacturing and distribution centers are a perfect complement to Global Textile Network's extensive international reach. We are proud to be associated with the first mover in e-commerce for textiles," stated Silvers.

About Global Textile Network, Inc.

Headquartered in New York City, N.Y., Global Textile Network, Inc. (GTN) is the world's dominant online resource for the international textile industry. The Company was established in 1996 by industry veterans Jeffrey Silver (Chairman) and Robert Cox, Jr. (CEO), international textile traders with over 40 years of combined experience, in partnership with Switzerland-based La Commerciale SA, one of the world's largest international textile trading companies.

Since its founding, the GTN online textile community has grown into a robust resource for the international textile industry. GTN member companies represent the full spectrum of the textile value chain including manufacturers and buyers of Fiber, Yarn, Greige Fabric, Converted Textiles and Finished Textile Products, and Wholesalers and Retailers of Finished Textile Products. Today, more than 4,500 textile and related companies in over 50 countries are registered members of the GTN online trading community, with new members signing up every day. GTN members include representatives from such companies and organizations as Alice Mills, Burlington Mills, ChinaTex, CMI, East Asia Textiles, Noble Mills, Springs Industries, and Taiwan Textile Federation. For additional information regarding GTN, please visit the Company's website at www.textrade.com

About First International Bank and First International Bancorp, Inc.

Hartford-based First International Bank (www.firstinterbank.com) and First International Bancorp, Inc. specialize in providing innovative credit, trade and financial solutions to small and medium size industrial companies located in the United States and international emerging markets. The Company is the nation's most active combined user of loan guarantee programs made available by the U.S. Small Business Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Export-Import Bank. During 1999, the Company originated $551 million in loans primarily within its industrial niche, bringing the managed portfolio including loans on-balance sheet and serviced for investors to $1.076 billion.

The Company has SBA preferred lender status in 21 districts, USDA certified lender status in several states, and Export-Import Bank AA delegated authority for export working lines of credit on a national basis. The Company operates domestic representative offices in Boston, MA, Cleveland, OH, Detroit, MI, Hartford, CT, Miami, FL, Morristown, NJ, Philadelphia, PA, Pittsburgh, PA, Providence, RI, Springfield, MA, St. Louis, MO, and Washington, DC. The Company also has international representatives in Argentina, Brazil, Central America, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Korea, Mexico, North Africa, the Philippines, Poland, South Africa, Turkey and West Africa.