Exhibit 99.1

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
AT MEDALLION FINANCIAL CORP.	AT ZLOKOWER COMPANY
437 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10022	PUBLIC RELATIONS
Andrew Murstein, President	Harry Zlokower
Larry D. Hall, CFO	David Closs
(212) 328-2100	(212) 447-9292

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MEDALLION FINANCIAL CORP. REPORTS

RECORD 2006 FIRST QUARTER RESULTS

• Net investment income after taxes increases 36% to $0.21 per share.

• Net interest margin increases to 4.89%.

• Loan portfolio reaches record highs with more than 10,000 loans.

• Corporate NYC Medallion prices reach record highs of $450,000.

• Dividend increased 33% from last year’s quarter to $0.16 per share.

NEW YORK, N.Y. — May 9, 2006 — Medallion Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:TAXI), a specialty finance company with a leading position servicing the taxicab industry and other niche markets in small business commercial and consumer lending, announced that net investment income after taxes increased 36% to $3,766,000 or $0.21 per diluted common share for the 2006 first quarter, up from $2,760,000 or $0.16 per diluted common share for the 2005 first quarter. Net investment income before taxes increased 44% to $4,768,000 or $0.27 per diluted common share for the 2006 first quarter, up from $3,317,000 or $0.19 per diluted common share for the 2005 first quarter.

Medallion loans increased 22% to $498,000,000, from $408,000,000 during the last 12 months. Commercial loans remained at $147,000,000. Consumer loans increased 31% to $90,000,000, from $69,000,000. Total assets increased 14% to $836,000,000, from $735,000,000. Medallion loans, consumer loans, and total assets were record highs for the Company.

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Medallion Financial Corp. Announces Record First Quarter Results – p. 2

Andrew Murstein, President of Medallion stated, “We are very pleased with our continuing trends of strong net interest margins and solid and improving quarterly earnings. During this quarter, New York City medallion prices continued to rise. Since late 2001, corporate medallion values have increased from $195,000 per medallion to approximately $450,000 today. With another New York City taxicab medallion auction of newly issued medallions scheduled for June of this year, we think the prices may continue to increase during 2006.”

Larry Hall, CFO stated, “During the quarter we experienced a new level of growth for Medallion, as we now have more than 10,000 loans on our books for the very first time. In addition, as we use our bank, which has been growing rapidly, our margins have continued to increase. As our bank is our only large taxable entity, we are also able to retain its earnings for future growth. That is partly why our pre-tax earnings were so high this quarter. Our loan quality continues to remain strong, and remains one of the hallmarks of Medallion. Delinquent loans 90 days or more past due for the entire Company have decreased to 2.2% of the loan portfolio, from 2.9% one year ago. Loan losses in our bank were also better than anticipated, and loans 90 days or more past due were less than one half of one percent.”

The Company also announced that its Board of Directors declared a dividend of $0.16 per share on its common stock for the 2006 first quarter, an increase from $0.12 a year ago. The dividend is payable on May 25, 2006 to shareholders of record on May 12, 2006. Since the Company’s initial public offering in 1996, the Company has paid out over $95,000,000 in dividends, or $6.47 per share.

Medallion Financial Corp. is a specialty finance company with a leading position in the origination and servicing of loans financing the purchase of taxicab medallions and related assets. The Company also originates and services commercial and consumer loans in targeted niche industries. The Company and its subsidiaries have lent over $2.3 billion, primarily to the taxicab industry and also to various commercial enterprises and to consumers.

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Please note that this press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties relating to business performance, cash flow, costs, sales, net investment income, earnings, and growth. Medallion’s actual results may differ significantly from the results discussed in such forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, those factors discussed under the heading “Risk Factors,” in Medallion’s 2005 Annual Report on Form 10-K.

(Financial tables follow)

Medallion Financial Corp.

Consolidated Income Statements

(Unaudited)

	Quarter Ended
	March 31, 2006			March 31, 2005
Total investment income	$	16,447,194		$	12,966,259
Total interest expense		7,428,730			5,221,336
Net interest income		9,018,464			7,744,923
Gain on sales of loans		—			239,520
Other income		399,917			673,238
Total noninterest income		399,917			912,758
Salaries and benefits		2,439,233			2,912,428
Professional fees		610,783			505,257
Other operating expenses		1,600,488			1,923,308
Total operating expenses		4,650,504			5,340,993
Net investment income before income taxes		4,767,877			3,316,688
Income tax provision		1,001,571			556,661
Net investment income after taxes		3,766,306			2,760,027
Net realized gains (losses) on investments		(2,241,423	)		2,047,887
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on investments		261,287			(2,572,235	)
Net realized/unrealized loss on investments		(1,980,136	)		(524,348	)
Net increase in net assets resulting from operations	$	1,786,170		$	2,235,679
Weighted average common shares outstanding
Basic		17,211,707			17,135,682
Diluted		17,722,064			17,605,676
Net investment income after income taxes per share
Basic	$	0.22		$	0.16
Diluted		0.21			0.16
Net increase in net assets resulting from operations per share
Basic	$	0.10		$	0.13
Diluted		0.10			0.13
Dividends declared per share	$	0.16		$	0.12

Medallion Financial Corp.

Consolidated Balance Sheet

(Unaudited)

	March 31, 2006		December 31, 2005
ASSETS
Medallion loans	$	497,763,372	$	449,672,510
Commercial loans		146,998,855		145,796,651
Consumer loans		90,290,515		85,678,412
Equity investments		23,610,251		24,012,508
Investment securities		18,790,633		18,092,838
Net investments		777,453,626		723,252,919
Cash		32,865,475		43,035,506
Accrued interest receivable		3,299,740		3,580,460
Fixed assets, net		632,652		614,858
Goodwill, net		5,007,583		5,007,583
Other assets		17,006,832		17,481,876
Total assets	$	836,265,908	$	792,973,202
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Accounts payable and accrued expenses	$	3,703,482	$	4,837,461
Accrued interest payable		925,982		1,759,737
Floating rate borrowings		370,885,658		323,664,951
Fixed rate borrowings		294,721,694		296,357,214
Total liabilities		670,236,816		626,619,363
Total shareholders’ equity		166,029,092		166,353,839
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity	$	836,265,908	$	792,973,202
Number of common shares outstanding		17,265,415		17,173,297
Net asset value per share	$	9.62	$	9.69
Total managed loans	$	742,290,230	$	690,280,561
Total managed assets		843,503,396		802,106,190

SELECTED FINANCIAL INFORMATION

(Unaudited, in thousands, except for dividends per share)

	1Q 04		2Q 04	3Q 04	4Q 04	1Q 05	2Q 05	3Q 05	4Q 05	1Q 06
Medallion
loans	306,331		328,616	348,413	392,131	408,271	423,799	434,085	449,673	497,763
Total assets	478,876		608,709	658,021	709,910	734,817	761,001	783,007	792,973	836,266
Total investment income	6,485		10,401	10,978	11,255	12,966	14,138	14,699	15,370	16,447
Net interest income	3,588		6,744	6,451	6,272	7,745	8,267	8,202	8,563	9,018
Net investment income after taxes	(62	)	1,510	1,841	2,138	2,760	3,753	3,186	3,763	3,766
Dividends	0.08		0.08	0.10	0.11	0.12	0.13	0.14	0.15	0.16

SELECTED FINANCIAL INFORMATION

(Unaudited, in thousands, except for dividends per share)