CIT Closes $667 Million TALF-Eligible Equipment Lease Securitization

CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT), a leading provider of financing to small businesses and middle market companies, today announced that it closed a $667 million equipment lease securitization. The Class A Notes issued constitute eligible collateral under the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF).

CIT sold six classes of fixed rate notes in a private offering (Regulation S and Rule 144A) backed by a pool of equipment leases originated by CIT Vendor Finance. The weighted average fixed coupon is 3.31%, which represents a weighted average credit spread of 2.20% over benchmark swap rates for the six classes of notes. The securitization had a net advance rate of 89.5%. All but $50 million of the offering was sold to investors that did not use financing under the TALF program. Details of the transaction are as follows:

¹ Calculated based on a 7% Conditional Prepayment Rate.

Proceeds from the transaction will be used to partially refinance an existing conduit and for general corporate purposes.

This is CIT’s second TALF-eligible securitization. The Company completed a $954 million TALF-eligible small ticket equipment lease deal in June 2009. CIT has completed 17 term equipment securitizations since 2000, 10 of which were backed exclusively by its U.S. vendor finance collateral.

BofA Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank Securities and Barclays Capital served as joint bookrunners on the Class A Notes while RBC Capital Markets, RBS and Wells Fargo Securities served as co-managers on the Class A Notes. BofA Merrill Lynch served as sole bookrunner on the Class B, C and D Notes.

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About CIT

CIT (NYSE: CIT) is a bank holding company with more than $60 billion in finance and leasing assets that provides financial products and advisory services to small and middle market businesses. Operating in more than 50 countries across 30 industries, CIT provides an unparalleled combination of relationship, intellectual, and financial capital to its customers worldwide. CIT maintains leadership positions in small business and middle market lending, factoring, retail finance, aerospace, equipment and rail leasing, and vendor finance. Founded in 1908 and headquartered in New York City, CIT is a member of the Fortune 500. www.cit.com