BRIDGEVIEW BANK GROUP OPENS BRIDGEVIEW BANK MOKENA
New Location Extends Bank’s Network in Southwest Chicago Suburbs

CHICAGO, July 15, 2004 – Expanding its network of community banks in Chicagoland, Bridgeview Bank Group has officially opened Bridgeview Bank Mokena, a full-service personal and business banking center in the fast-growing southwest suburban area. Bridgeview announced it was purchasing the facility from Chicago-based First East Side Savings Bank in April. The bank is located at 19031 Old LaGrange Road in Mokena.

“We are glad to be up and running in Mokena,” stated Peter J. Haleas, chairman of Bridgeview Bank Group. “This is a vibrant and full-of-pride area that is a perfect match for our style of family-owned and customer-friendly community banking. It is also an area undergoing a tremendous amount of positive growth and expansion. Now that we are firmly established, we look forward to growing along with the community and delivering our ‘better banking experience’ to the good citizens of Mokena, Frankfort, Tinley Park, New Lenox and neighboring communities.”

The Mokena location is the latest expansion effort of Bridgeview, following last summer’s acquisition of Uptown National Bank of Chicago. That deal enabled Bridgeview to establish six new locations on the Near North Side of Chicago, and an additional two locations in metropolitan Phoenix, Arizona. The bank also operates two facilities in Bridgeview, as well as multiple locations in the Western and Northern suburbs and in the Andersonville and Lincoln Park neighborhoods of Chicago.

About Bridgeview Bank Group
Bridgeview Bank Group was founded in 1971 in Bridgeview, Illinois. Today, Bridgeview Bank operates more than 18 full-service banking and lending centers in Illinois and Arizona. The bank also operates Bridgeview Capital Solutions (www.bridgeviewcs.com), a nationwide rural business lending operation in Atlanta, Georgia; and AirBanker (www.airbanker.com) an aircraft financing, appraisal and consulting business in Sugar Grove, Illinois. To learn more about Bridgeview Bank Group, please visit www.bridgeviewbank.com.