Contact Information: Contact: Stephen Lange Ranzini Chairman and President 734-741-5858, Ext. 226 Email:
New York Times Article Regarding University Bank's Islamic Banking Subsidiary, University Islamic Financial
| Source: University Bank
ANN ARBOR, MI--(Marketwire - March 13, 2008) - Stephen Lange Ranzini, President and Chairman
of Ann Arbor's University Bank®, a wholly owned subsidiary of University
Bancorp (NASDAQ : UNIB ), announced that The New York Times has published an
article entitled, "Banks Springing Up to Serve the Underserved," that
discusses Islamic Banking in the United States and features information on
University Bank's Islamic Banking Subsidiary, University Islamic Financial
Corporation (UIFC). The article is currently available free online at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/08/business/yourmoney/08money.html?_r=1&st=cse&sq=university+islamic+financial&scp=1&oref=slogin.
UIFC, currently with over $35 million in assets, has the largest balance
sheet of any retail Islamic banking enterprise in the U.S. and holds both
Islamic financings and Islamic deposits offering the Islamic community the
opportunity to support a virtuous cycle of investment in compliance with
the Sharia'a. UIFC offers the only Islamic Sharia'a FDIC-insured Deposits
(offered through University Bank) and originates Islamic Sharia'a home
financings as agent for University Bank. UIFC's products have received
favorable legal rulings (fatawa) from some of the leading Islamic legal
scholars in the U.S. and the world. University Bank also has a master
commitment with one of the Government Sponsored Enterprises to create a
secondary market for UIFC's Sharia'a compliant home financings nationwide.
For additional information about UIFC's Sharia'a compliant products and its
fatawa, see www.universityislamicfinancial.com.
Ann Arbor-based University Bancorp owns 100% of University Bank whose
subsidiaries service a total of over $4.4 billion in financings.
University Bank is an FDIC-insured, locally owned and managed community
bank, and is the only financial institution headquartered in Washtenaw
County rated "Outstanding" by the FDIC for Community Service and Community
Reinvestment. University Bank also engages in Islamic Banking through
80%-owned University Islamic Financial Corporation, the first and only
Islamic Banking subsidiary of a bank in the U.S. University Islamic
Financial offers home mortgage alternative financing, the only FDIC-insured
Islamic deposits (offered through University Bank) and Islamic equity
mutual funds (offered through University Insurance & Investments).
University Bank also specializes in mortgage subservicing and mortgage
origination primarily serving over 250 credit unions (representing 2.6% of
all credit unions in the U.S.) through its Houghton-based 80%-owned
subsidiary, Midwest Loan Services, Inc. In 2007, University Bank was
selected as the "Community Bankers of the Year" by U.S. Banker magazine.
Additional comprehensive investor relations information on University
Bancorp is available at www.university-bank.com/bancorp.htm.