Executive Changes: Asta Creates, Fills COO Spot; Announces Promotion

Asta Funding, Inc., (Nasdaq: ASFI), a company that acquires, manages, collects and services portfolios of distressed consumer receivables for its own account, today announced the appointment of Cameron (Bill) Williams to the newly created position of Chief Operating Officer and the promotion of Mary Curtin to the position of Senior Vice President.

In this new role, Mr. Williams' responsibilities include outsourced servicing activities, the acquisition and sale of portfolios, and certain support functions -- human resources, portfolio analysis, and process management. Prior to joining Asta Funding, Williams spent 40 years in finance company operations. He spent the last eight years as the CEO of Popular, Inc.'s North American finance company operations. Before his time with Popular, he was the Chief Operating Officer of BankAmerica's consumer finance company.

Ms. Curtin has spent the last seven years in the capacity of Vice President of Operations for Asta Funding, Inc. In her new role she will now be involved in the review and acquisition of new portfolios, while continuing to oversee the internal collection activities, and the management of the associated supporting departments. Prior to joining Asta Funding, Mary Curtin spent 10 years in analytical and operational capacities within the financial industry.

Gary Stern, Asta's President and CEO, said, "I am pleased to announce these new appointments for Asta, which I believe will strengthen our management team. Bill's appointment adds depth to our management pool and will help us continue to grow the organization while building a necessary view to best practices in managing that growth. Mary has been a major contributor to Asta's success. Her promotion will enable us to utilize her talents in other critical areas of the organization as we execute on our strategies."