Medallion Financial Increases EPS Estimate

* Company Added to the Russell 2000 Index

NEW YORK, July 8 -- Medallion Financial Corp. , a specialty commercial finance company with a leading position servicing the taxicab industry and small business commercial lending, and owner of the largest taxicab rooftop advertising company in the world, increased its earnings guidance for 2003 from the current First Call estimate of $0.12 per share to an estimated range of $0.17 to $0.20 per share.

Andrew Murstein, President of Medallion Financial stated, "We are very pleased with the continued improvement in our earnings. The Company is continuing to see quality deal flow and its liquidity position is greatly improved from last year. We have always been fortunate to have strong loan production, but now that we have several attractive financing sources, we are better able to meet that demand. We expect this growth to continue throughout the rest of the year and into next year as well."

The Company also announced that James E. Jack, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, has left the Company to pursue other opportunities in the financial community. "I achieved the goals I set out for Medallion when I joined the Company. The Company is well positioned to execute its corporate strategy. Now is a good time for me to seek out new opportunities as part of a corporate executive team."

Mr. Murstein added, "Our business needs have changed and we have decided to have others assume Jim's various financial department responsibilities as we seek to further streamline our management structure and implement our strategic plan."

The Company also announced the promotion of Larry Hall to Acting Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Hall has been with Medallion for several years, most recently as the Company's SVP, Chief Accounting Officer, Controller, and Assistant Treasurer. Mr. Hall has been in the financial services industry for over 25 years, and was previously responsible for external reporting at Citibank for 5 years, and for all Divisional Controllers at Wells Fargo Bank for 5 years. At Citibank he handled financial reporting and analysis, including the issuance of Form 10-Q's, Form 10-K's, and other regulatory filing requirements. Prior to Citibank, he spent several years at a large multinational accounting firm, and is qualified as a Certified Public Accountant.

Mr. Hall commented, "I am very pleased to have the opportunity to continue to work on the Company's various financing activities that I have been involved with the last several years, including our Merrill Lynch facility, and feel I can continue to assist the Company in the next phase of its growth. I hope to have an open forum to discuss all aspects of the Company and will always be available to our shareholders, regardless of the size of their investment. I will do everything I can to provide shareholders and others any information that they desire and that we are permitted to disclose."

Mr. Hall continued, "As previously pointed out one of the first things I would like to initiate is to start providing earnings guidance. We expect to continue to increase our earnings this year above current analyst estimates, due to a number of factors, including gains we have realized from our investment in Select Comfort . The higher earnings are also due to our continued improved deal flow as noted above, and the current interest rate environment. Additional earnings growth beyond our estimate could come from the possible issuance of up to 900 new NYC taxicab medallions, which is subject to various governmental approvals, and with us potentially financing many of the winning bidders, just as we had done at the previous auction 6 years ago."

The Company also announced that it has been added to the Russell 2000 Index, effective July 9, 2003. Mr. Murstein concluded, "We are proud to announce that we have been added to the Russell 2000 Index, which places us among the largest publicly-traded companies in the United States according to market capitalization in that category. As we continue to improve our market cap and the Company's size, including assets under management which stood at over $600,000,000 at the end of last quarter, we believe we are very well positioned to also continue to grow our earnings into the foreseeable future."

Medallion Financial Corp. is a specialty finance company with a leading position in the origination and servicing of loans financing the purchase of taxicab medallions and related assets. The Company also originates and services commercial loans financing small businesses in other targeted industries, and operates the largest taxicab rooftop advertising business in the world. The Company and its subsidiaries have lent over $1 billion to the taxicab industry and commercial equipment industries.

Please note that this press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties relating to business performance, cash flow, costs, sales, net investment income, earnings, and growth. Medallion's actual results may differ significantly from the results discussed in such forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, those factors discussed under the heading "Investment Considerations," in Medallion's 2002 Annual Report on Form 10-K.