American Home Mortgage Holdings Announces Exclusive Agreement With CIBC's Amicus Holdings Inc

Business Wire,  Feb 26, 2002  

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Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 26, 2002

American Home Mortgage to Provide Mortgage Services to Amicus

Holdings' Private Label Partners Safeway SELECT Bank(TM)and

Marketplace Bank(TM)

American Home Mortgage Holdings, Inc., (Nasdaq: AHMH) one of the nation's largest independent retail mortgage bankers, and Amicus Holdings Inc., an electronic banking division of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (NYSE: BCM), announced today an exclusive agreement.

American Home Mortgage's online mortgage channel, MortgageSelect.com will provide private label mortgage origination services to Amicus Holdings' private label banks, specifically Safeway SELECT Bank in California, Arizona, Washington, Colorado, Oregon and Nevada www.safewayselectbank.com and Marketplace Bank in Florida www.marketplacebank.com.

Amicus Holdings' private label banking programs, Safeway SELECT Bank and Marketplace Bank, are able to draw upon the strength of American Home Mortgage's position as a large mortgage originator to provide low prices and great mortgage rates. These financial institutions will now accommodate their customers' demands for mortgage services, while MortgageSelect.com handles everything from providing products to processing and underwriting the loan. And because the relationship is private labeled, all activity is provided under the bank's own brand.

"We chose MortgageSelect.com to outsource our mortgage services because of their commitment to superior customer service, extensive product selection and competitive mortgage rates," said Rob Almeida, chief officer of strategy and development for Amicus Holdings. "We believe they are one of the most highly rated online mortgage lenders in the industry and their online platform will enable us to seamlessly extend our product and service offering. This agreement will allow us to provide front end banking services to prominent brands, while having MortgageSelect.com provide backend mortgage services."

Through this offering, Amicus Holdings' private label banking programs will be able offer their customers the ability to apply for a loan, use decision-making tools, check the status of a loan, request a credit report, and track interest rates, among many other valuable time-saving tools. The banks also stand behind their on-line rates by offering a $300 money-back `Best Price Guarantee' on certain mortgages.

"The chance to work with Amicus Holdings is a tremendous opportunity for our private label solutions business in terms of penetrating new banks and offering these financial institutions a large variety of mortgage services," said Donald Henig, Executive Vice President of new sales channels for MortgageSelect.com. "As an Internet banking leader, Amicus Holdings can also strengthen its service offering to its private label partners with MortgageSelect.com's proven track record of compelling products and services."

About MortgageSelect.com

MortgageSelect.com is the Internet division of American Home Mortgage Corp. Launched in 1999, MortgageSelect.com continues to lead the industry in online technology and service. MortgageSelect.com acquires customers on a variable cost model through private labeling, co-branding partnerships, and over 3,000 affiliates. MortgageSelect.com supports three call centers located on both coasts and is currently ranked as one of the top Internet mortgage lenders by National Mortgage News.

About American Home Mortgage

American Home Mortgage Holdings (Nasdaq "AHMH") is a leading independent retail originator of residential mortgage loans both online and offline. Its online operation, MortgageSelect.com is a leader in online closed loan volume, and has outperformed its online competitors in terms of profitability. Offline, the Company has grown organically and by acquisition and now has 63 community loan offices across the country. For additional information, please visit the Company's Website at www.mortgageselect.com.

About Amicus Holdings Inc.

Amicus Holdings Inc., a division of CIBC, provides electronic financial services for many great brands in North America including President's Choice Financial, Marketplace Bank and Safeway SELECT Bank. Through its network of more than 395 pavilions, contact centers open 24/7 and more than 8,000 ATMs in North America, Amicus Holdings Inc. services more than 900,000 customers and is acquiring more than 30,000 new customers a month. Amicus Holdings Inc. offers a superior customer experience by combining a new standard of friendly, helpful and responsive customer service with better rates and no fees on day-to-day banking.

About Safeway SELECT Bank

Safeway SELECT Bank is the result of a strategic alliance between Safeway Inc. and Amicus Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, one of the leading operators of electronic banking in North America. Amicus Holdings Inc. provides all banking services, employs Safeway SELECT Bank Customer Associates and holds all deposits, which are insured by the FDIC. The bank currently operates 120 in-store bank pavilions inside select Safeway stores in Northern California, Colorado, Nevada, Arizona, Washington and Oregon.