RateGenius, Inc., an Austin-based online financial services company, has announced that its first Internet-based product, new-car refinance loans, is available in four major Texas markets. The company¹s service now spans the Lone Star State from Austin and Dallas to Houston and San Antonio.

RateGenius today also announced it has secured an additional $1 million in funding. The company estimates that $4 million more will be raised by the end of January.

Focusing first on auto refinancing and new auto loans for 1997 and newer models, rateGenius provides a loan platform where lenders can come to obtain loans to round out their loan portfolios. In addition, consumers can improve the interest rate they received from a the dealership.

"The rateGenius philosophy is simple: we're harnessing the power of the Internet as a distribution channel and combining that with a traditional product: ­new-car refinance," said Cathy Ghiglieri, rateGenius president and chief executive officer.

Through its user-friendly application, the rateGenius online loan process is designed to be quick and easy on both ends -- the consumer's and the lender's, according to Ghiglieri. Consumers get lower interest loans on their new and used cars, and lenders get pre-qualified, pre-screened loan applicants.

The company is slated to expand its product offerings to home mortgage and home equity loans, credit card consolidation and other financial services. Although the company is licensed only in Texas today, rateGenius plans to expand nationally.

"The beauty of our business model is that we can simultaneously provide a mechanism for banks and lenders to augment their loan portfolios and all consumers to save time and money," Ghiglieri said. "By leveraging the power of the Internet and its real-time, interactive nature, rateGenius revolutionizes the way consumer loans will be made in the 21st century."

First Customer

RateGenius' Web site went live in mid-October and the company's first online customer, Catie Patrone, put the online service to the test. The result: savings of $4,260 over the course of her auto loan. For the 23-year-old Minnesota native, the entire rateGenius auto loan process -- from the time she completed and submitted the online application to the time she received notification that she had been awarded a lowered-interest auto loan -- took only one day.

"RateGenius is amazingly easy to use," Patrone said. "I saved a ton of time, effort and money by using rateGenius. But most importantly, I saved myself the headaches, pain and agony that I've experienced in the past while dealing with traditional lenders and auto dealerships. I didn't even have to take any time off work; ­ it's completely painless."

About rateGenius

For more information about rateGenius, see the rateGenius Web site at www.rategenius.com or call 1-888-696-8728 or 1-800-995-2711.