SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Fremont General
Corporation (the "Company") (NYSE: FMT), doing business primarily through
its wholly-owned industrial bank, Fremont Investment & Loan ("FIL"), today
announced that the Company's Board of Directors has appointed Stephen H.
Gordon as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company.
Mr. Gordon has over twenty years of financial services experience. He
was a Co-Founder of Commercial Capital Bancorp, Inc. ("CCBI"), and served
as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer from June 1999 until CCBI was
acquired by Washington Mutual, Inc. in October 2006 for nearly $1 billion.
At the time of its acquisition, CCBI was the 5th largest California-based
thrift and the 22nd largest nationwide.
Also joining the Company are several of Mr. Gordon's former colleagues
at CCBI, including David S. DePillo, who will serve as Vice Chairman and
President; Richard A. Sanchez, who will serve as Executive Vice President
and Chief Administration Officer; Thea Stuedli, who will serve as Executive
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; and Donald E. Royer, who will
serve as Executive Vice President and General Counsel.
Mr. Gordon and Mr. DePillo have been appointed to the Company's Board
of Directors, and have been elected Chairman and Vice-Chairman,
respectively, effective immediately. Louis J. Rampino and Wayne R. Bailey,
the Company's former President and Chief Executive Officer and Executive
Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, respectively, have resigned
from the Board of Directors and have been replaced by Messrs. Gordon and
DePillo.
Subject to the approval of FIL's banking regulators, Mr. Gordon and his
team also will be appointed to the same executive management positions at
FIL.
"We plan to move quickly to address the critical issues that are facing
the company, beginning with the regulatory and legal issues, improving the
cost structure, continuing to restructure the balance sheet and enhancing
earnings and thereby shareholder value," said Mr. Gordon.
"As part of what we anticipate to be a successful turnaround of the
company, we plan to set Fremont on the path toward becoming a
community-based financial institution that offers the financial products
and services that serve the needs of our clients, leveraging the company's
70-year history and attractive retail depository footprint located in
dynamic markets across California," added Mr. Gordon.
"We look forward to working closely with our highly talented team of
employees whose continued commitment and dedication will help the company
achieve its goals. We're committed to exploring all opportunities that
deliver value for our shareholders and look forward to communicating our
progress."
The Governance and Nominating Committee of the Board of Directors will
work diligently with Mr. Gordon to identify nominees for election to the
Board of Directors at the Company's 2007 Annual Meeting of Shareholders,
which the Company expects to hold in January 2008. None of the Company's
current directors is expected to run for reelection. The Company intends to
announce the date for its 2007 Annual Meeting of Shareholders promptly upon
identification of new director nominees.
Complete biographies of the newly appointed management team and board
members are included below.
Stephen H. Gordon - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Stephen Gordon is a former investment banker and successful banking
executive with over twenty years of financial services experience. Stephen
Gordon is currently the founding Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of
Vitruvian Group, LP ("Vitruvian"), which is the general partner of
Vitruvian Financial Partners, LP, a private equity fund in the process of
formation, which will focus on investing in regulated financial
institutions in need of capital. Stephen Gordon was a Co-Founder, Chairman
and Chief Executive Officer of CCBI, and its subsidiary companies,
Commercial Capital Bank ("CCB"), a federally chartered savings bank
headquartered in Irvine, CA, Commercial Capital Mortgage ("CCM"), a
commercial mortgage banking company, and Comcap Financial Services ("CFS"),
a registered broker dealer. Stephen Gordon also served as Chief Executive
Officer of TIMCOR Exchange Corporation, North American Exchange Company and
Lawyers Asset Management Inc., each "qualified intermediaries" or "Section
1031 companies" that facilitate tax deferred real estate exchanges and were
subsidiary companies of CCBI.
CCBI was acquired by Washington Mutual, Inc. in an all-cash
transaction, valued at approximately $1 billion in October 2006. Prior
thereto, Stephen Gordon led CCBI through (i) its first acquisition in 2000
(Mission Savings & Loan, which became CCB), (ii) its initial public
offering in December 2002 that resulted in a market capitalization of $125
million and (iii) the all stock acquisitions of Hawthorne Financial in June
2004, valued at approximately $472 million, as well as Calnet Business Bank
in 2006, valued at approximately $41 million. Additionally, Stephen Gordon
initiated and led CCBI through acquisitions of the three Section 1031
companies referenced above during 2005 and 2006.
At the time of its initial public offering in December 2002, CCBI had
three banking offices and approximately $849 million in total assets, $312
million of total deposits (including $187 million of transaction accounts),
and a market capitalization of approximately $125 million. By 2006, CCBI
was the 5th largest California-based thrift and 22nd nationwide. CCBI was
the second largest multifamily lender in California and operated out of 24
banking and 11 lending offices. By 2006, CCBI's assets had been increased
to over $5.7 billion, representing a 73% compound annual growth rate
("CAGR"), while deposit balances increased to approximately $2.4 billion
(including $1.1 billion in transaction accounts), representing a 79% CAGR.
CCBI's market value increased to nearly $1.0 billion, at the close of the
sale to Washington Mutual, Inc., representing a 79% CAGR. During the period
December 2002 through 2006, CCBI operated at an average efficiency ratio of
36%.
Prior to founding the CCBI companies, from July 1995 to December 1996,
Stephen Gordon was the sole stockholder, director and President of Gen Fin,
Inc., the General Partner of Genesis Financial Partners, LP, a hedge fund
that invested exclusively in underperforming middle market financial
institutions. From October 1988 to July 1995, Stephen Gordon was an
investment banker at Sandler O'Neill & Partners, L.P., a New York based
investment banking firm, and was a Partner from January 1992. At Sandler
O'Neill, Stephen Gordon specialized in advising management and directors of
underperforming, undercapitalized and troubled financial institutions on
such issues as strategic planning, capital and liquidity management,
balance sheet management and restructuring, asset/liability management, and
the enhancement of shareholder value. Stephen Gordon successfully executed
billions of dollars in capital market transactions, including structuring
some of the largest negotiated residential loan securitizations completed
through FNMA and FHLMC for troubled financial institutions located in the
northeast.
Stephen Gordon is involved in various charitable and community
organizations, serves as a board member for the Orangewood Children's
Foundation, and is a founding board member of UC Irvine's Paul Merage
School of Business-Center for Real Estate. Stephen Gordon also served as
Chief Executive Officer of the Commercial Capital Bank Community Foundation
until its dissolution in 2006.
David S. DePillo - Vice-Chairman and President
David DePillo is currently the founding Vice Chairman and President of
Vitruvian, which is the general partner of Vitruvian Financial Partners,
LP. David DePillo was one of the founding stockholders of CCBI, and served
as its Vice Chairman, President and Chief Operating Officer from June 1999
through October 2006 and as the President, Chief Operating Officer and Vice
Chairman of CCBI's subsidiary companies, CCB, CCM and as a director of CFS.
He led an operations team that managed several acquisitions, and developed
one of the largest multifamily and commercial real estate lending platforms
in the western United States. This was accomplished with a high degree of
credit quality and operational controls while maintaining high growth and
profitability.
From April 1991 to March 1998, David DePillo served as the first Vice
President and Director of Multifamily Banking for Home Savings of America,
and as the President and Chief Operating Officer for its real estate
development subsidiaries and for H.F. Ahmanson & Co., its thrift holding
company. He disposed of a multi-billion dollar nationwide real estate
development portfolio while maximizing capital preservation. He
restructured the multifamily and commercial lending franchise which
resulted in increasing the 2nd largest division of the bank to the most
profitable by 1996. At that time, the bank's multifamily lending operation
was the largest in the United States.
From May 1987 to March 1991, David DePillo served as Senior Vice
President, Director of Asset Management at Coast Federal Bank, a savings
institution, and as President of its mortgage banking subsidiary. During
his tenure at Coast, he was responsible for managing the disposition and
restructuring of a multi-billion dollar troubled asset portfolio throughout
the United States. From January 1985 to April 1987, David DePillo was a
certified public accountant with KPMG LLP, an accounting firm.
Richard A. Sanchez - Executive Vice President, Chief Administration
Officer
Richard Sanchez has served as both a bank executive and banking
regulator. From 2002 through 2006, he was a director of CCBI and served as
Executive Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer and Corporate
Secretary for CCBI and CCB. Richard Sanchez was responsible for corporate
risk management and government relations, as well as policy development and
review.
From 1993 to 2002, Richard Sanchez was Deputy Regional Director for the
Office of Thrift Supervision ("OTS"), in the Western region. In this
capacity, Richard Sanchez supervised examiners responsible for and planned
and directed the examination and supervision of 85 insured financial
institutions with total assets over $300 billion. Richard Sanchez directed
the corrective actions of federally chartered thrifts found to be operating
in an unsafe and unsound condition, or not operating in compliance with
laws, regulations or federal regulatory policies. Richard Sanchez was the
recipient of Treasury Secretary Awards in 1994 and 1996 in connection with
the resolution of seriously troubled thrifts at no cost to the Resolution
Trust Corporation or SAIF insurance fund. Mr. Sanchez supervised six
assistant directors and a staff of approximately 100 professionals located
in San Francisco, Seattle and Southern California. Richard Sanchez spent
the six previous years at the predecessor agency of the OTS in various
capacities, which included Assistant Director with supervisory
responsibilities of both problem institutions and large institution groups.
Thea Stuedli - Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Thea Stuedli, a certified public accountant, has more than 11 years of
financial services experience. From 2004 to 2006, Thea Stuedli served as
Senior Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer at CCB, where she was
primarily responsible for all internal and external financial reporting,
including all SEC filings, board of directors' reports, and regulatory
reports. Additionally, Thea Stuedli was responsible for the integration and
implementation of CCB's various mergers and acquisitions, and was
principally responsible for, managed and coordinated the preparation and
filing of all CCBI corporate income tax returns, as well as the
implementation of all technical accounting pronouncements and regulatory
standards.
From 2002 through 2004, Thea Stuedli served as the Corporate Controller
at Jackson Federal Bank, a $2 billion federally chartered bank formerly
headquartered in Brea, CA. Prior to 2002, Thea Stuedli served as a manager
in the financial services audit practice at KPMG, LLP, specializing in
audits of public and non-public banks and finance companies. Recently, Thea
Stuedli was engaged as an independent consultant providing expertise in the
planning of financial accounting, reporting, and operational policies,
processes and internal controls primarily to financial services companies.
Donald E. Royer - Executive Vice President and General Counsel
Donald Royer has had a distinguished thirty year legal and business
career representing and working in the California financial services
industry. During 2007 to present, Mr. Royer has acted as a consultant and
actively represents various mortgage lending clients. In 2006, Mr. Royer
joined CCB and CCBI as Executive Vice President and General Counsel. Mr.
Royer was retained by Washington Mutual, Inc. following its acquisition of
CCBI to assist in resolving legacy litigation involving CCB. In late
October 2006, this litigation was successfully resolved and Mr. Royer
thereafter resigned.
From 2002 through 2003, Mr. Royer was in private practice as a sole
practitioner. In September 2003, Mr. Royer joined the Law Offices of Steven
J. Melmet, Inc., where he handled litigation for large financial
institutions, banks, credit unions, and thrift institutions, as well as
nationwide mortgage lenders, and large mortgage service companies. In
October 2004, the Melmet firm merged with the law firm of Pite Duncan, LLP.
From 1991 to 2002, Mr. Royer was employed by Downey Savings, as Executive
Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary. Mr. Royer helped
Downey grow from $3 billion to over $11 billion, while substantially
increasing shareholder value. Mr. Royer helped Downey's management and
Board complete a State charter conversion for Downey to become a federal
savings association, and obtain shareholder approval to organize its
parent, Downey Financial Corporation, as a unitary thrift holding company.
Mr. Royer's previous positions included serving from late 1988 to 1991 as
Executive Vice President and General Counsel of American Savings Bank, with
responsibility for a law department with 100 employees.
From 1984 to 1988, Mr. Royer served as Executive Vice President and
General Counsel of Financial Corporation of America ("FCA"), and American
Savings and Loan Association. Mr. Royer was retained by a newly assembled
management team in 1984. Mr. Royer worked to resolve $20 billion in problem
loan assets, including numerous litigation matters, shareholder securities
class and derivative claims. The new management team successfully
eliminated "Going Concern" and "Litigation Uncertainty" qualifications
reported on FCA's audited financial statements at year end 1984. Prior
thereto, Mr. Royer held positions as General Counsel for American Savings
and Loan Association from 1979 to 1983 and began his legal career working
at First Federal Savings from 1977 to 1979.
Regulatory Filings
The Company's periodic reports as filed with the SEC can be accessed at
http://www.fremontgeneral.com and on the EDGAR section of the SEC's website at
http://www.sec.gov.
About Fremont General
Fremont General Corporation is a financial services holding company. To
find out more about Fremont General, or to subscribe to the Company's email
alert feature for notification of Company news and events, please visit
http://www.fremontgeneral.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are made pursuant to the safe harbor
provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such
forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations and beliefs
of the Company and its subsidiaries and may contain comments related to the
effect of economic and market conditions; the level and volatility of
interest rates; the impact of competition and pricing environments; effect
of the performance of financial markets on investment income and fair
values of investments; plans and objectives of management for future
operations; projections of revenues; expenses; income; earnings per share;
dividends; capital structure; change in debt ratings; reduced access to
corporate debt markets or other sources of liquidity; unforeseen cash and
capital requirements; changes in generally accepted accounting principles;
the judgments and assumptions made by management regarding accounting
estimates and related matters; the impact of current, future and pending
legislation, regulations or litigation; the ability to secure requisite
regulatory approvals; economic performance and other expectations
concerning future developments and their potential effects on the Company.
These statements and the Company's reported results herein are not
guarantees of future performance or results and there can be no assurance
that actual developments and economic performance will be those anticipated
by the Company. Actual developments and/or results may differ significantly
and adversely from historical results and those anticipated by the Company,
as a result of, among other things, the events, circumstances and risk
factors set forth in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 2006, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and
its reports on Form 8-K and other documents filed by the Company with the
Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. The Company does not
undertake to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect the
impact of circumstances or events that arise after the date the
forward-looking statements are made, except as required under applicable
securities laws.
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SOURCE Fremont General Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.fremontgeneral.com
CONTACT:
Investor Relations of Fremont General
Corporation, +1-310-315-5500; or Media Relations, Daniel Hilley
of Abernathy MacGregor Group, Inc., +1-213-630-6550, for Fremont
General Corporation
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