4.27.2006 ET

(CSRwire) BOSTON, MA - Wainwright Bank & Trust Company (NASDAQ: WAIN) has been ranked eighteenth among the "100 Best Corporate Citizens" for 2006 as announced today by Business Ethics Magazine today.

The aim of the listing is to identify firms nationwide that excel at serving a variety of stakeholders with excellence and integrity. The list applies a numerical rating on service to these various stakeholders. The data used to compile the list are obtained from Socrates, a database created by KLD Research & Analytics, an independent research firm serving investment professionals since 1988.

"As one of the country's leading socially progressive financial institutions, we are honored to receive this recognition of our commitment to all our stakeholders - customers, employees, communities and shareholders alike," said Jan A. Miller, President and CEO of Wainwright Bank.

Firms on the list are ranked on service in eight stakeholder categories: shareholders, community, governance, diversity, employees, environment, human rights, and product. For example, the shareholder score is based on three-year average total return (stock appreciation plus dividends) through 2005. The community score is provided for charitable giving, support for housing and education, and volunteer programs.

Wainwright Bank is one of only two banks on the list to rank in the top twenty. The list appears in the Spring 2006 issue of Business Ethics and can be viewed on their website at www.business-ethics.com.

Founded in 1987, Wainwright Bank is a socially responsible commercial bank headquartered in Boston with assets of $780 million primarily serving neighborhoods in Boston, Cambridge, Brookline, Newton, Watertown and Somerville. Over 40 percent of the Bank's commercial lending portfolio is committed to progressive community development initiatives including affordable housing, homeless shelters, HIV/AIDS services, community health centers, and environmental issues to name a few. Wainwright's commitment to supporting social justice issues has been widely recognized including being named one of the 11 Best Lenders to Women in the U.S. and one of the Top 10 Best "Green" Banking Firms nationwide.

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