MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Olympic Financial Ltd. (NYSE: OLM)
today announced that Richard A. Greenawalt has accepted the position of
President and Chief Executive Officer.  Mr. Greenawalt comes to Olympic
Financial from Advanta (Nasdaq: ADVNB; ADVNA), an $18 billion financial
services concern, where he was President, Chief Operating Officer and a
Director.  The Board also announced that Warren Kantor has been elected
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Olympic Financial.
    Mr. Greenawalt was instrumental in directing Advanta's advancement over
the past nine years, growing the business from less than $1.0 billion in
assets under management to a greater than $18 billion business focused on
consumer finance niches in credit cards, mortgages services, small business
lending and insurance.  The market value of Advanta grew from less than $100
million to more than $2.0 billion during this time.
    Chairman of the Board of Olympic Financial Kantor, commented, "Olympic
Financial is one of the fastest growing auto finance businesses in the U.S.
today approaching $4.0 billion.  Rich's experience having grown Advanta from a
$1.0 billion company to an $18 billion business, exemplifies his
qualifications for the new role he has taken on.  It is an indication of
Olympic's excellent potential that one of the industry's leading executives is
joining the Company as President and Chief Executive Officer."
    Mr. Greenawalt stated, "Olympic represents a new challenge.  I am excited
by the opportunity to be the CEO of an emerging consumer finance company.  The
Company has great vitality and superb potential.  I believe my experience
combined with that of the management team and the Board of Directors will
create success."
    Previously, Mr. Greenawalt spent fifteen years with Citicorp, where he ran
two of their consumer finance operations: first as President and Chief
Executive Officer of Retail Services, Inc. and later as Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer of Citicorp. Person-to-Person, Inc.  He also served as
President of Transamerica Financial Corporation prior to joining Advanta.
    Mr. Greenawalt has an M.B.A. from Carnegie Mellon University and is an
engineering school graduate of Drexel University.  He is a member of the
Drexel University Board of Trustees and the Executive Committee of the Board.
He also serves on the Franklin Institute Board and since 1990, he has been a
Director of MasterCard International.
    Mr. Kantor had been serving the Company as Chairman of the Executive
Committee and Acting Chief Executive Officer since the resignation of
Jeffrey C. Mack on August 26, 1996.
    Olympic Financial Ltd. is a Minneapolis-based consumer finance company
which purchases, sells and services prime retail installment contracts for new
and used automobiles originated by more than 7,500 dealers nationwide.
Olympic is the largest independent provider of automobile financing.  The
Company, which was founded in 1990, has Regional Buying Centers in Arizona;
Northern and Southern California; Colorado; Florida; Georgia; Massachusetts;
Minnesota; Missouri; New York; North Carolina; Ohio; Tennessee; North, South
and West Texas and Washington.  The Company acquires loans through 17 Regional
Buying Centers and has expanded its dealer network to include dealers in 38
states.

Link to this page: