Countrywide's Investor Relations Program Wins Stevie(TM) Award in 3rd Annual American Business Awards(SM)

CALABASAS, Calif., June 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Countrywide Financial Corporation , a diversified financial services provider and a member of the S&P 500, today announced that its Investor Relations program has received a Stevie Award at the 3rd Annual American Business Awards ceremony in New York City on June 6, 2005.

"We are proud to receive this national recognition as the number one Investor Relations Program by the American Business Awards," said David Bigelow, managing director of investor relations for Countrywide. "The Investor Relations team could not be successful without the strong support of our CEO, Angelo Mozilo; our president and COO, Stan Kurland; our CFO, Eric Sieracki; and the other members of our senior management team, all of whom are active participants in the investor relations effort."

Lisa Riordan, executive vice president of Countrywide's Investor Relations department added, "The Stevie Award underscores the excellence and cohesiveness of our IR team, while also reflecting Countrywide's commitment to providing superior levels of customer satisfaction to investors and analysts."

Hailed as "the business world's own Oscars" by the New York Post (April 27, 2005), The American Business Awards are the first national, all-encompassing business awards program honoring great performances in the workplace.

More than 100 Stevies were presented in over 40 categories including Best Overall Company, Best Executive, Best Support Staffer, and Best Corporate Web Site. More than 1,200 nominations from companies of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted for consideration.

Members of the Awards' Board of Distinguished Judges & Advisors and their staffs selected Stevie winners from among the Finalists. Finalists were chosen by business professionals nationwide during preliminary judging in February through April.

Joining Countrywide as finalists in the Best Investor Relations Program were Lucent Technologies and SI International.

About Countrywide Financial Corporation

Founded in 1969, Countrywide Financial Corporation -- America's #1 residential lender as ranked by Inside Mortgage Finance (Jan. 28, 2005), Copyright 2005 -- is a member of the S&P 500 and Fortune 500. Countrywide, through its subsidiaries, provides mortgage banking and diversified financial services in domestic and international markets. Mortgage banking businesses include loan production and servicing principally through Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., which originates, purchases, securitizes, sells, and services primarily prime-quality loans. The company is headquartered in Calabasas, California and has a workforce of approximately 45,000 with over 700 offices. For more information about the company, visit Countrywide's Web site at http://www.countrywide.com/.