LeaseTrading Teams With Edmunds.com

    NORWALK, Conn.--July 23, 2001--LeaseTrading Inc., the first and only full-service, independent marketplace for the transfer of vehicle and equipment leases, today announced an agreement with Edmunds.com, the Web's leading resource for unbiased automotive information, to offer consumers greater flexibility when entering or exiting vehicle leases.
    Effective immediately, the LeaseTrading offering is part of Edmunds.com's Used PowerShopper service. PowerShopper is a free consumer service that simplifies and aggregates the various transaction options in the used vehicle marketplace, making them easily understandable and accessible to used vehicle shoppers and sellers. After a visitor inputs a ZIP code and indicates interest in buying or selling a vehicle, Used Vehicle PowerShopper provides a list and description of appropriate service providers in the selected region. Through Used PowerShopper, Edmunds.com's visitors can directly access the LeaseTrading online marketplace, located at www.leasetrading.com. As a national service, LeaseTrading is available to users across the United States.
    "LeaseTrading is pleased to partner with Edmunds.com, the leader in consumer automotive information," said Michael Penfield, president and chief executive officer of LeaseTrading. "Edmunds' customers will use LeaseTrading in two key ways - first, to exit leases prior to maturity and be free to make a new car purchase, and second, to acquire, under extremely favorable terms, quality late model autos that are still under lease."
    With LeaseTrading, potential vehicle lessees can locate and lease high-quality assets for attractive terms and existing lease holders can efficiently exit a lease agreement by transferring payments to a new lessee, a cost-effective alternative to defaults or expensive exit penalties. Using its proprietary technology, LeaseTrading manages all aspects of the transfer process from initial listing of assets to exchange negotiation and contact with credit institutions and, finally, to logistics arrangements and asset delivery.
    "Many Edmunds.com visitors are interested in vehicle leasing, and LeaseTrading expands our suite of consumer services by providing additional options and tools necessary to make informed automobile decisions," said Avi Steinlauf, vice president, strategic partnerships and alliances, Edmunds.com. "As the only leasing facilitator in Used PowerShopper, LeaseTrading is a most welcome addition and a resource consumers will appreciate."
    Used PowerShopper is available at http://applications.edmunds.com/products/ups/.