J. Brandon Black Succeeds Carl C. Gregory, III as CEO of Encore Capital Group

Encore Capital Group, Inc., a leading accounts receivable management firm, today announced that J. Brandon Black has assumed the position of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to the management succession plan announced in April 2005. Mr. Black, 37, replaces Carl C. Gregory, III, 61, who is retiring as CEO, but will continue to work full-time as Encore Capital Group’s Vice Chairman.

Mr. Black has served as Encore Capital Group’s Chief Operating Officer since joining the Company in May 2000. Prior to joining Encore, Mr. Black was the Senior Vice President of Operations for West Capital Financial Services Corp., an accounts receivable management firm that was acquired by Encore in 2000. Mr. Black previously served as the Senior Vice President of Operations for First Data Resources and the Vice President of Risk Operations for Capital One Financial Corporation. Mr. Black received a bachelor’s degree from the College of William and Mary and an MBA from the University of Richmond.

Richard Mandell, Chairman of the Board, said, “Since joining Encore, Brandon has demonstrated exceptional leadership skills and a deep understanding of how to adapt to the constantly changing conditions in the debt collection industry. We believe he is ideally suited to lead Encore to the next level and continue building value for our stockholders. We would like to thank Carl Gregory for his exceptional work in making Encore a significantly stronger, more profitable company during his tenure as CEO, and we are pleased that he will remain closely involved with the Company in his role as a full-time Vice Chairman.”

Mr. Black commented, “We have a very clear strategic plan in place for optimizing our traditional debt collection business while diversifying into complementary areas of the debt collection market that are experiencing more rapid growth. We are very excited about our recent entrance into the secured bankruptcy services and healthcare debt collection markets, and we continue to look for opportunities to extend our valuation, underwriting and collection expertise to additional debt collection businesses that can generate solid returns. I look forward to working with our Board and the other members of our management team to continue implementing the strategic plan that we believe is creating a strong foundation for profitable growth in the future.”