Capitol Bancorp Center
200 Washington Sq. North
Lansing, MI 48933

2777 East Camelback Road
Suite 375
Phoenix, AZ 85016

Analyst Contact:
Michael M. Moran
Chief of Capital Markets
877-884-5662

Media Contact:
Joal Redmond
Corporate Communications
602-977-3797

LANSING, Mich., and PHOENIX, Ariz: Dec. 2, 2005: Today Capitol Bancorp (NYSE: CBC) announced that shareholders of Bank of Las Vegas voted to approve the exchange of their privately held shares in Bank of Las Vegas for publicly-traded shares of Capitol Bancorp Limited effective November 30, 2005.

Bank of Las Vegas opened as a de novo community bank on February 11, 2002 following a successful capital raising effort by local business and community leaders who provided 49 percent of the bank's start-up funding. Capitol Bancorp provided the remaining 51 percent of the initial capitalization.

In keeping with Capitol Bancorp's business model of community banking, Bank of Las Vegas continues to be led, guided and operated by a local management team and board of directors. Capitol Bancorp will continue to provide the bank with operating support services such as data processing, risk and compliance oversight and human resources.

Today four of Capitol Bancorp's 40 community banks are located in the Las Vegas market. Each bank was started as a de novo community bank and with today's announcement at Bank of Las Vegas, each of those institutions has now voted to approve their share exchanges with Capitol Bancorp.

About Capitol Bancorp Limited
Capitol Bancorp Limited is a $3.4 billion national community bank development company, with 40 individual bank charters and operations in 13 states. Capitol Bancorp Limited identifies opportunities for the development of new community banks, raises capital, mentors a community bank through its formative stages and manages its investments in its community banks. Each community bank has full local decision-making authority and is managed by an on-site president under the direction of a local board of directors composed of business leaders from the bank's community. Capitol Bancorp Limited was founded in 1988 and has executive offices in Lansing, Mich. and Phoenix, Ariz.