MCLEAN, Va., April 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- For the third year, Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE: COF) ranked as one of the best companies in America for training and developing its employees according to Training magazine's listing of the Training Top 100. Capital One's executive development program was noted for its unique approach and positive development outcomes.

"In large measure, we owe our success at Capital One to our ability to hire talented people, give them challenging work in a well-managed environment, and constantly encourage them to develop a voracious appetite for learning," said Dennis Liberson, Executive Vice President for Human Resources.

The Training Top 100 ranks companies according to their level of investment in workforce development. The ranking is determined by assessing a range of qualitative and quantitative data including financial investment in employee development, the type and scope of training and development programs provided to employees, the quality of these programs and how closely such development efforts are linked to business goals and objectives.

"It's overwhelmingly clear that training and development inside Top 100 companies is a key driver of corporate prosperity," said Tammy Galvin, executive editor of Training magazine. "And these organizations truly understand that human capital, when developed and nurtured properly, can serve as a company's greatest competitive advantage."

Capital One employs more than 18,000 associates worldwide. Among the programs that differentiate the company from other employers are an emphasis on nurturing the company's cultural values; a rigorous and consistent associate selection process; a number of ongoing training and development courses; outstanding benefits, including tuition reimbursement; and performance-driven entrepreneurial compensation.

Capital One has operations in Richmond, Fredericksburg and McLean, Virginia; Dallas, Fort Worth and Plano, Texas; Tampa, Florida; Federal Way, Washington; Boise, Idaho; San Diego, California; and Boston, Massachusetts; as well as London and Nottingham, United Kingdom and Paris, France.

Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Capital One Financial Corporation (www.capitalone.com) is a holding company whose principal subsidiaries, Capital One Bank and Capital One, F.S.B., offer consumer lending products. Capital One's subsidiaries collectively had 47.4 million accounts and $59.7 billion in managed loans outstanding as of December 31, 2002. Capital One, a Fortune 500 company, is one of the largest providers of MasterCard and Visa credit cards in the world. Capital One trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "COF" and is included in the S&P 500 index.

(Note: For more on Training magazine's Top 100, as well a complete ranking, visit www.trainingmag.com )

SOURCE Capital One Financial Corporation -0- 04/03/2003 /CONTACT: Hamilton Holloway, Corporate Media, of Capital One Financial Corporation, +1-804-934-5900, or hamilton.holloway@capitalone.com/ /Web site: http://www.capitalone.com http://www.trainingmag.com/ (COF)