PRESS RELEASE

                                                                        Contact:
                                                                  Todd A. Gipple
                                                        Executive Vice President
                                                         Chief Financial Officer
                                                                  (309) 736-3580

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 21, 2002

                               QCR Holdings, Inc.

                       Announces Settlement of Arbitration

QCR Holdings,  Inc. announced today that it has settled its arbitration  dispute
with Nova Information  Systems,  Inc. In September of 2000, QCR Holdings and its
subsidiary,  Quad  City  Bancard,  Inc.,  initiated  legal  action  against  PMT
Services,  Inc.  (a  subsidiary  of  Nova)  in an  effort  to  collect  a  large
receivable.  In response, PMT filed a lawsuit in California against QCR Holdings
and Quad City  Bancard  seeking a recovery of damages.  The court ruled that all
claims must be arbitrated in Iowa.

The  settlement  amount paid to Quad City Bancard  resulted in the collection of
the  receivable  due from Nova,  less an amount that  approximated  the costs of
continued  arbitration.  The effect of the  settlement  is a reduction  in third
quarter after-tax earnings of approximately  $175,000,  or $.06 per share. While
management  believed that Nova's claims were without merit, a determination  was
made that a settlement at this time was the most cost  effective  option for QCR
Holdings.