Huntington Announces Addition of National Settlement Service

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Dec. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Huntington National Bank (Nasdaq: HBAN) has launched a settlement program to serve law firms, claims administrators and regulators who work with legal settlements. Huntington is one of the few banks in the country to offer a specialized settlement fund program. The new unit reports through Huntington's Private Financial Group.

"At Huntington we have the financial expertise to manage, grow and protect awarded settlements," said Dan Benhase, Private Financial Group director. "Adding the settlement program to our range of services is part of our larger strategy to grow in the next few years."

Previously, Huntington has worked on such high-profile cases as Freddie Mac Securities Settlement Fund, Prudential Securities Inc. Settlement Fund and Bristol-Myers Squibb Settlement Fund (Buspar), among others.

"We are a true partner in the settlement process," said Liz Lambert, senior vice president and Private Financial Group sales leader. "The expert service we provide gives the attorneys and claims administrators we work with more time to focus on their cases. They know they can rely on us to make the banking process as smooth and easy as possible."

Huntington bankers leading the new program include:

    --  Lambert has 23 years of experience with a number of financial
        institutions, including Mellon Bank, Comerica Bank and Citizens Bank.
        She earned her bachelor's degree from State University of New York at
        Albany.

    --  Robyn Griffin, also a senior vice president, has 14 years of experience,
        most recently with Merrill Lynch and Citizens Bank. She earned her
        bachelor's degree from Rutgers University and her master's of business
        administration from the New York University Stern School of Business.

    --  Chris Ritchie is a senior vice president with 21 years of experience
        with Chase Manhattan Bank and Citizens Bank. He earned his bachelor's
        degree from Fairfield University and his master's of business
        administration from Fordham University.

    --  Melissa Villain, an assistant vice president, has 16 years of experience
        with Wachovia Bank, The Bank Brevard and Citizens Bank. She earned her
        bachelor's degree from the University of Central Florida.

About Huntington

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated is a $53 billion regional bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Through its affiliated companies, Huntington has been providing a full range of financial services including checking, loans, savings, insurance and investment services to customers for 143 years. Huntington also offers retail and commercial financial services online at huntington.com; through its technologically advanced, telephone bank; and through its network of nearly 1,400 ATMs.

SOURCE Huntington Bancshares Incorporated

Released December 16, 2009