FALLS CHURCH, Va., March 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE: COF) topped Training's inaugural list of "Top 50 Training Organizations." The list is the cover story in the magazine's March 2001 issue.

Training ranked companies on their ability to align personal development goals with corporate strategy, prepare associates for future leadership roles, and find and retain talented associates -- all areas in which Capital One was found to excel.

"The success of Capital One is a direct result of our emphasis on human capital," said Nigel Morris, Capital One's President and Chief Operating Officer. "Our strategy is to hire the best and the brightest and then place them in an environment where development is encouraged and innovation is rewarded."

Capital One, known for using research and testing to transform the "one- size-fits-all" credit card industry, relies on the same innovative techniques to recruit new associates and develop their skills.

To ensure success from the start, all recruits go through rigorous testing and simulations that have a proven track record of predicting job performance. Capital One then invests heavily in development, starting with an intensive four-day assimilation program designed to indoctrinate new associates in the company's distinct culture.

Capital One associates work with their managers to create a Development Action Plan that highlights areas for improvement and includes specific steps to attain the next level. The DAP is supported by a competency-based performance management process that aligns the individual's objectives with the company's objectives to ensure the development of core competencies and provide a way to reward performance.

"We have made a commitment to investing in our associates to develop the leadership and other competencies needed to support our rapid growth," said Dennis Liberson, Executive Vice President for Human Resources. "This recognition from Training validates what we've seen -- you can expect more from your associates when you provide more resources to help them succeed."

In six years, Capital One has grown from 2,000 associates to almost 20,000. The company hired associates for 3,000 new positions in 2000 alone and plans to fill 8,000 more positions in the next four years.

In addition to this award from Training, Capital One has been on Fortune's list of the "Best Companies to Work For" the past three years and Computer World's list of the "Best Places to Work in IT" by for the past two years.

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

Headquartered in Falls Church, 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. Capital One's subsidiaries collectively had 33.8 million accounts and $29.5 billion in managed loans outstanding as of December 31, 2000. Capital One is one of the major financial service providers on the Internet, with online account decisioning, real-time account numbering, online retail deposits and a growing number of customers serviced online. Capital One is a FORTUNE 500 company that trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "COF" and is included in the S&P 500 index. SOURCE Capital One Financial Corporation

CONTACT: Hamilton Holloway of Capital One Financial Corporation, 804-934-5900/