Huntington's Equipment Finance Funds $2 Billion Since 2001

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Marking its seventh anniversary, Huntington Equipment Finance, a division of Huntington Bank, has provided $2 billion in specialized financing to businesses as of October 1, 2008.

"Huntington Equipment Finance was launched in 2001, and much of our early growth resulted from changes in the industry and new products that we introduced along the way," said Huntington Equipment Finance President Rob Allanson. "More recently, we turned our focus to the needs of existing Huntington customers, and as a result we increased our sales team so that we could provide a higher level of service in our local markets."

Additionally, Huntington Equipment Finance was recently ranked among the top 100 by The Monitor, the most widely read publication in the equipment leasing and finance industry. The publication's analysis of 2007 showed that new business volume soared by more than 60 percent in 2007 positioning Huntington in the 45th spot, compared to 58 in 2006. Additionally, the Monitor ranked Huntington 56th overall in the industry, compared to 77th in 2001 when it re-entered the business. The rankings were based on net investment in equipment related loans and leases as reported in year-end 2007 data.

Huntington Equipment Finance specializes in leasing and other financing structures for customers, allowing them to grow their business with new equipment, while reducing the cash flow constraints commonly associated with capital equipment and expansion. Huntington Equipment Finance now provides a variety of equipment financing products to small and medium size business customers throughout Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

About Huntington

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated is a $55 billion regional bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Huntington has more than 142 years of serving the financial needs of its customers. Huntington's banking subsidiary, The Huntington National Bank, provides innovative retail and commercial financial products and services through over 600 regional banking offices in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Huntington also offers retail and commercial financial services online at huntington.com; through its technologically advanced, 24-hour telephone bank; and through its network of almost 1,400 ATMs. Selected financial service activities are also conducted in other states including: Auto Finance & Dealer Services offices in Arizona, Florida, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, and Texas; Private Financial and Capital Markets Group offices in Florida; and Mortgage Banking offices in Maryland and New Jersey. Huntington Insurance offers retail and commercial insurance agency services in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Indiana, and West Virginia. International banking services are made available through the headquarters office in Columbus, a limited purpose office located in the Cayman Islands, and another located in Hong Kong.

SOURCE Huntington Bancshares Incorporated

Released October 22, 2008