Metropolitan Mortgage & Securities Issues Update SPOKANE, Wash., Dec. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Metropolitan Mortgage & Securities Co., Inc. , together with its financial advisors, continues to explore its strategic alternatives to address its short-term and long-term liquidity concerns. As previously announced, the company's affiliate, Metropolitan Investment Securities, Inc. (MIS), a National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. (NASD) member firm, ceased operations and customer transactions on December 15, 2003. MIS was the sole broker dealer for the sale of the company's securities and MIS will no longer sell the company's securities. Such sales have been in the past a significant source of liquidity for the company. The cessation of MIS' customer transactions and operations followed its entry into a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) with the NASD, which was finalized on October 23, 2003. The AWC settled allegations by the NASD that MIS had inadequate supervisory procedures and engaged in fraudulent and unethical sales practices in connection with the sale of debentures, investment certificates and preferred stock issued by the company and another affiliated company, Summit Securities, Inc. MIS neither admitted nor denied the allegations. Pursuant to the AWC, MIS was censured and fined $500,000. In addition to other undertakings, MIS agreed to make restitution of approximately $2.8 million to certain investors and to maintain for a five-year period a special escrow account in the amount of $1 million for the benefit of additional investors. DATASOURCE: Metropolitan Mortgage & Securities Co, Inc. CONTACT: MARY KELLER, MARKET DEVELOPMENT & EXTERNAL AFFAIRS of Metropolitan Mortgage & Securities Co., Inc., +1-509-835-2811

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