Asta Funding, Inc. Announces Amendment to Revolving Credit Line

Cash Flow Enables Pay-down by December 31, 2009

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., July 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Asta Funding, Inc.
(Nasdaq: ASFI), (the "Company") a leader in consumer receivable asset
management and liquidation, today announced that the Company has secured an
amendment to its revolving credit agreement that effective today, extends the
facility until December 31, 2009. The amendment is provided by a consortium of
lenders for which IDB Bank serves as agent. The initial level of the revolving
credit agreement is $40 million as of July 10, 2009 with a minimum interest
rate of 5.5% per annum.

Under terms of this amendment to the agreement, the revolving credit facility
will liquidate over the remaining six months of the calendar year with funding
capacity limited to the Company's current commitments through the end of the
calendar year. The Company continues to make steady progress in debt
reduction, reducing the revolving line of credit over the last ten months from
$84.9 million as of September 30, 2008 to $31.9 million at July 10, 2009. The
Company will file a Current Report on Form 8-K with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission in the next few days regarding this amendment to the
revolving credit agreement.

The Company's total senior debt level is approximately $139.5 million as of
July 10, 2009, including $31.9 million under the revolving line of credit, and
$107.6 million due to the Bank of Montreal under the borrowing facility for
its Palisades XVI subsidiary. This represents a reduction of 35 percent in
total senior debt from approximately $213.5 million as of September 30, 2008.
The Company previously announced an agreement, effective February 20, 2009, to
amend certain terms of the Palisades XVI facility and extend it to April 2011.

"We appreciate this expression of confidence in Asta Funding and our business
model by the lending group," said Gary Stern, President and Chief Executive
Officer of Asta Funding. "While the current lending environment dictated a
longer path to completion than we might have hoped, we are pleased with this
outcome and are confident our debt level is now appropriate to the current
environment. In addition to the significant progress in paying down debt, we
made portfolio purchases with a face value of $335.6 million at a cost of
$13.8 million during the third quarter of fiscal year 2009."

Mr. Stern added, "We look forward to continuing our discussion with the bank
group to secure a longer term agreement before the expiration of this
amendment."

About Asta Funding:

Based in Englewood Cliffs, NJ, Asta Funding, Inc., is a leading consumer
receivable asset management company that specializes in the purchase,
management and liquidation of performing and non-performing consumer
receivables. For additional information, please visit our website at
http://www.astafunding.com.

Except for historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in
this news release are "forward-looking" statements (as defined in the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.) Although Asta Funding, Inc.
believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are
based upon reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that its
expectations will be realized. Forward-looking statements involve certain
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from Asta Funding, Inc.'s expectations. Factors that could contribute to such
differences include those identified in Asta Funding, Inc.'s Form 10-K and
Form 10-K/A for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2008, Form 10-Q for the
quarters ended December 31, 2008 and March 31, 2009 and those described from
time to time in Asta Funding, Inc.'s other filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, news releases and other communications. Asta Funding,
Inc.'s reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission are available free
of charge through its website at http://www.astafunding.com

SOURCE Asta Funding, Inc.

Cameron Williams, COO or Robert J. Michel, CFO, Asta Funding, Inc.,
+1-201-567-5648; Alex Stanton, Stanton Public Relations and Marketing,
+1-212-780-0701