FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ATTENTION FINANCIAL EDITORS ONLINE BANK CHANGES NAME Louisville, KY August 1, 2002 -- USAccess Bank, headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, changed its name to Ascencia Bank effective today. The name was changed to Ascencia Bank as a means to more accurately reflect the company's forward-looking focus. "We selected the name to symbolize a Company that is truly great but reaching ever higher," remarked CEO David Pierce in a letter to the bank's customer base. Although the name has changed, all the key components of USAccess Bank remain in place - management, technology, and location. The organization's FDIC coverage remains in force and the bank's FDIC number will remain the same. "We've worked hard to make this transition as painless as possible for our customers; we don't expect any of our systems to miss a beat," commented CTO Eric Satterly when asked about the transition project. For more information, please contact: Willie Myers wmyers@ascenciabank.com 502-499-4780 One of the original Internet-only banks in the United States, Ascencia Bank (formerly Known as USAccess Bank) (http://www.ascenciabank.com/) provides high-rate, low-fee, and no-hassle online banking and financial services to customers in all 50 states via the Internet. Additionally, Ascencia Bank offers lending services to customers based in the Louisville and Lexington, Kentucky markets. Ascencia Bank is a member of the FDIC and is an Equal Housing Lender.