New BBBTips(TM) Will Provide Small Business Entrepreneurs with Information to Help Their Businesses Survive and Thrive

MCLEAN, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 16, 2004--The Better Business Bureau system and Capital One Financial (NYSE:COF) today announced the launch of a national financial education partnership to provide consumers who are considering starting a small business with tips and information on a range of financial and business management topics.

The Capital One-sponsored BBBTips(TM) for Small Business will provide new small business owners - and small business hopefuls - with unbiased and factual information to help them think through the various challenges they will face and better prepare themselves, and their businesses, for success. The information will also include resources and strategies designed to guide new entrepreneurs through the basics of saving and investing and the various tools available to help them meet their business goals. All of the information will be free and available online at www.bbb.org/tips/capitalone.

In announcing the launch of the partnership, Ken Hunter, President and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, said: "Most small businesses begin with a single good idea. But starting a business and turning that idea into a reality requires many action steps, from developing a business plan, to securing financing, to dealing with sales and marketing issues." He added, "We are very pleased to partner with Capital One to be able to provide a helpful resource where entrepreneurs can get the information they need to make their businesses successful."

Capital One is a Founding National Sponsor of BBBTips(TM), the Better Business Bureau's enhanced consumer education program. "Capital One is committed to furthering financial education and giving people the information they need to make responsible financial choices," said Diana Don Colby, Director of Financial Education at Capital One. "Our partnership with the BBB is a natural extension of that commitment and we are excited about the opportunity to work together to give new entrepreneurs the tools they need to research and evaluate business and financial options and help them make informed plans and decisions about their businesses."

The BBBTips(TM) program supplements other helpful information provided by Better Business Bureaus to promote an ethical marketplace.

About Capital One

Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Capital One Financial Corporation (http://www.capitalone.com) is a holding company whose principal subsidiaries, Capital One Bank and Capital One, F.S.B., offer consumer lending products and Capital One Auto Finance, Inc., offers automobile and other motor vehicle financing products. Capital One's subsidiaries collectively had 46.6 million managed accounts and $73.4 billion in managed loans outstanding as of June 30, 2004. 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.

Capital One, one of the largest small business card lenders in the U.S. and one of the top three in number of SBA loans, offers a range of small business products, including credit cards, loans and lines of credit.

About BBBTips(TM)

BBBTips(TM) is a trademark of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc. (CBBB) that is used to identify consumer information articles and brochures that have been developed in partnership with the Better Business Bureau Consumer Education Foundation, Inc. All BBBTips(TM) are made possible, in part, through the generous financial and technical support that is provided by corporate sponsors who are members of the CBBB and of the local BBB where the corporate sponsor is headquartered. BBBTips(TM) are designed to provide unbiased and factual information to assist consumers in making informed and intelligent purchase decisions.

CONTACT: Capital One, McLean
Diana Don Colby, Director, Financial Education
703-720-2371
diana.don@capitalone.com
or
The Council of Better Business Bureaus
Sheila Adkins, 703-247-9312
sadkins@cbbb.bbb.org

SOURCE: Capital One