Friday, November 11, 2005 Veteran's Day
Headlines--- Veteran's Day ######## surrounding the article denotes it is a “press release”
Veteran's Day
All the male members of my immediate family served in the armed forces: my father, army; myself, army; brother Michael, Coast Guard pilot; brother Peter, Air Force, strategic command computer operator; Thomas, Marine, and my son is active today, a regular in the U.S. Navy, Riverine. My uncle was a regular U.S. Army sergeant, serving in the Korean war in the artillery. On my mother's side, we have relatives who were on both sides of the Civil War, plus two who were riflemen in the Pennsylvania brigade in the American Revolution. The name of this special day may be different in different places throughout many nations; but its significance is the same. It was on this day, at 11 a.m., that World War I ceased. The Allied and Central Powers signed an armistice agreement at 5 a.m. in Marshal Foch's railway car in the Forest of Compiegne, France. Even today, many still bow their heads in remembrance at the 11th hour of this the 11th day of the 11th month. 8.5 million dead, 21 million wounded, 7.5 million prisoners & missing...plus worldwide influenza epidemic (today thought to be the first “bird flue,” kills 22 million by 1920. It was originally called "Armistice Day", the date World War I ended in Marshal Foch's railway car in the Forest of Compiegne, France upon signing of the Allied and Central Powers agreement to end the war. From 1919 to 1970, it became known as "Veteran's Day," observed the 11th of November, but in 1971, it was changed, Public Law 90-363 with "The Monday Holiday Law" to be observed on the "fourth Monday of October." This moveable observance date, which separated Veterans Day from the November 11 anniversary of World War I armistice, proved very unpopular. State after state moved it observance back to the traditional November 11th date, and finally, Public Law 94-98 of September 189, 1975, required that effective January 1, 1978, the observance of Veterans Day reverted to November 11, also known as "Armistice Day."
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Welcome. Leasing News has changed since we started the web site on May 21,2000. The best way to learn about us is to go to our index page: http://www.leasingnews.org/sitemap.htm We also have a “Frequently Asked Question” page, too: http://www.leasingnews.org/FAQ/FAQ.htm We go to “press” when we think there is enough equipment leasing news to do so. By joining our list, you get notices of a new edition. Readers on our mailing list also get notices of major events from time to time. We add new features, often suggested by readers. The latest is “Restaurant Reviews.” The idea is when you travel, here are restaurants your colleagues have tried and recommend. We invite you to send in your favorite restaurant. Most of our industry news comes from readers “on” and “off the record.” All senders' name are held confidential, as is “background information” given to us in confidence, as a tip to develop a story. We welcome you and hope you enjoy and find informative Leasing News. Christopher Menkin, Publisher -------------------------------------------------------------- Netbank Reports ‘Irregularities'. Delays ¾ Q Earnings NetBank Inc., the leader on the internet banking circuit with $5 billion in assets, considered one of the largest internet banks, said it had found "irregularities" associated with $13 million in mortgage loans. The delay, they report, concerns how loans were underwritten and how the properties were appraised. "The company also became aware that certain misrepresentations may have been made by one or more of the parties involved in the sale of the underlying properties," NetBank wrote in a filing Wednesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. "The loans were originated by the company and were sold to third-party investors. The company's investigation of the facts and circumstances surrounding the loans is continuing." The “parent” of Netbank Business Finance also has a large network of ATM machines in the South. It also specializes in sub-prime mortgages. The problem which delays the report until this money comes from loans discovered last month. Netbank has originated $10 billion in mortgages loans this year through Sept. 30. It is here that they expect the figures to be revised. A NetBank spokesman told the Atlanta-Journal that the company is still reviewing the loans and opted to delay reporting earnings until it's clear what impact they will have on the bottom line. "We think completing that review and having all of the facts and being able to report to investors — that's in the best interest of our shareholders," said NetBank spokesman Matthew Shepherd. -------------------------------------------------------------- Classified Ads--- Documentation Manager / Finance / Legal
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-------------------------------------------------------------- Pictures from the Past---2003 ----Charlie Lester and LPI Originally f eatured on Leasing News: 3/25/2003
LPI Office: 3535 Roswell Road Suite 53 Marietta, Georgia “LPI Financial Services, Inc. has been serving the financing needs of medical professionals since 1986. We changed our name from Lease Pro, Inc. to LPI Financial Services in 1999 so that our name would better describe changes that include our exclusive working capital loan program.”
LPI Staff (left to right: Barbara Willingham, Kurt Hess, Don Dennigmann, Audrey Jinks, Ali Porterfield, Krisen Meers, Kay Smith, Jon Hall, Charlie Lester Charlie today has shed both 45 pounds and his company, too.
(Charlie Lester, taken on Father's Day, perhaps in 2002, with his oldest daughter Sharon Hess on the left, and his youngest daughter Melanie Milligan) He sent this message on March 25, 2005: Leasing Icon Charlie Lester told us we can now release the news: “I am at the office most of the time, but I nap a lot.” "Thank you for holding the news. As you know, in mid-July, I had a mild stroke that put me in the hospital for a few days. In plain English, I have had a "rapid heart" since my early 20's, but like most medical conditions, it has gotten worse with age and it finally caught up with me in July. "The recovery was complete as far as we can tell and the doctors are controlling the irregular heart beat with medication for the time being. If it does get any worse, they will install a pacemaker which only takes about 25 minutes with an entry through the neck. In my situation, it took more time than I would have imagined to get my mindset back to positive thinking and rebuilding the stamina level took almost two months "Like every bad situation, some good has come of it. The weight is down to somewhere below the Pillsbury Doughboy for a change and my wife Barbara makes sure my eating habits are healthier. With the loving support of my family and God's grace, life is pretty much back to normal and I expect to be around for a long time." His biography when he was a member of the Leasing News Advisory Board: Charlie Lester is President of LPI Financial Services located in Marietta, GA and has been in the leasing industry since leaving IBM in 1984. In 1986, he founded Lease Pro, Inc. specializing in leasing for the medical profession. In 1997, Lease Pro was acquired by First Sierra Financial. In 1999, he resigned from First Sierra and started LPI after sitting out his non-compete period. Since 2000, LPI in conjunction with one of the most respected funding sources in the industry has offered a unique one of a kind working capital loan program to medical professionals through brokers, consultants and direct client marketing. Charlie graduated with a Master's Degree in accounting from Virginia Tech in 1965 and became a CPA in 1966 shortly before going to work in sales for IBM. After 18 years in sales and sales management in six different cities, he resigned from IBM in 1984 to raise his family in Atlanta. In 1985, a friend introduced him to the world of equipment leasing, and on May 17, 2004 he sold the assets of LPI Financial Services to LPI Healthcare Financial Services. An up-date: "For a little background, the majority stockholders of LPI Healthcare Financial Services, Inc. are Kurt Hess and Kay Smith. The company was formed in early 2004 and purchased the assets of LPI Financial Services, Inc. in May, 2004. Since the company only offers working capital loans to medical doctors, adding the name Healthcare to the new corporation certainly made sense. Kurt is President and heads up sales with Kay Smith as the VP of Administration managing all the administrative functions. Add Kristen Meers who manages the credit functions and you have the 3-K's. "To say the least, I am extremely proud of the 3-K's. Kurt is my son-in-law and ha d been with me at LPI Financial for 4 years at the time of the asset sale. Kurt has demonstrated an uncanny ability to communicate well with our broker and consultant data base s . Kay ha d been with me for 10 years at the time of the sale and there is no finer documentation and funding manager to be found anywhere in this country . Kristen is doing a great job of managing the credit piece since taking over credit in mid-2004 . To top off the K issue, our super funding source contact's name starts with a K. "Since the sale in May 2004 , funded volume has been consistently higher than it was when I ran the company which shows you what imagination, youth and energy will do for you. I make a few contributions on the company direction as a consultant, but the 3-K's are the company and deserve the credit for the sensational growth since the sale . They are good to the point I am beginning to really dislike them. Charlie and his wife Barbara have both been active in their church and civic activities since moving to Atlanta in 1981. They spend a lot time with their five grandkids (which are the greatest kids in the world, he adds, of course.) With Barbara's help to keep him in line and handle the administrative piece, Charlie works from his home office a good portion of the time now as a broker and consultant for LPI Healthcare. Leasing News considers Charlie an Emeritis member of our Advisory Board. --------------------------------------------------------------
NewsDay Gets “Inside” on Why FBI Raided R.W. Professional Leasing (See coda at end of news story) Feds: Escrow scheme busted Bank of New York branch in Island Park helped business customer fraudulently obtain loans using sham agreements, government says BY SUSAN HARRIGAN STAFF WRITER Newsday.com November 10, 2005 Escrow accounts are supposed to be guarantees that debtors will pay what they owe. But at a Bank of New York branch in Island Park, they were anything but, according to federal prosecutors. As part of a nonprosecution agreement with the government, Bank of New York has laid bare the details of a more than decade-long scheme by some managers and employees of its Island Park branch to help a business customer fraudulently obtain loans by setting up what the government called "sham escrow agreements." In bank escrow agreements, a borrower deposits money at the bank to be used, if necessary, to ensure repayment of a loan or other contract. Court papers filed by Bank of New York in connection with an agreement announced Tuesday show that at least 62 banks were taken in by the Island Park scheme. In all, the banks lent at least $92 million to the customer, R.W. Professional Leasing Services Corp., also based in Island Park, of which at least $18 million was never repaid, according to court exhibits. The banks made the loans believing they were backed by escrow agreements. The borrowed money supposedly was to be used to help R.W. Professional Leasing buy medical equipment and lease it to customers. In the court filings, Bank of New York said that its policies didn't allow escrow accounts to be set up at a branch, and that no escrow accounts had actually been established. In addition to the Island Park criminal investigation, Bank of New York settled an investigation Tuesday by Southern District federal prosecutors into fraud and money laundering involving more than $7billion from Russia. As part of the overall settlement of both cases, Bank of New York will forfeit $26 million to the government, including $12 million to the Eastern District, and pay another $12 million to the banks victimized in the Island Park scheme. It said in court papers that it also will pay about $5.9million to settle bank lawsuits resulting from the scheme. The bank said Tuesday that it was cooperating with the government and issued a statement by its chairman, Thomas Renyi, saying that it was "taking the right steps ... to ensure sound business practices." It declined to comment further yesterday. Stuart Abrams, an attorney for R. W. Professional Leasing, didn't immediately return a call asking for comment. According to a court statement filed Tuesday by Bank of New York, $24 million was transferred by wire from the leasing company's Bank of New York account to Medpro, a Huntington Beach, Calif., "shell company that rendered no services" to R.W. Professional Leasing. After a number of banks complained about not being repaid, federal agents raided the leasing company's Island Park office in June 2002 and arrested a number of its executives. In March 2004, five company executives were indicted in the Eastern District, along with a former Bank of New York branch manager in Island Park and the owner of a California firm, Carefree Financial Services, that allegedly recruited medical providers to obtain financing for equipment through R.W. According to the indictment, R.W. Professional Leasing had diverted at least $28 million in proceeds from the bank loans to the firm's owners. The former branch manager, Myrna Katz of Long Beach, pleaded guilty to making false statements and will be sentenced in January. Four R.W. principals - Rochelle Besser, her brothers Adam and Roger Drayer, all also of Long Beach, and Susan Cottrell, of Mansfield, Mass. - also have pleaded guilty. Another principal, Barry Drayer of Wellesley, Mass., is scheduled to be tried in January before U.S. District Judge Arthur Spatt, along with Stephen Barker of Lake Forest, Calif., the owner of Carefree. Katz's attorney, John Wallenstein, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Steve Zissou, one of Barry Drayer's attorneys, said his client is "innocent, and we're going to show that at the trial ... Barry was a salesman." Terrence Buckley, Stephen Barker's attorney, said his client is "completely innocent of any wrongdoing and we expect to prove that when we have our day in court." --- Coda: (Editor: There also is a $20 million suit filed by American Express from its portfolio it purchased from Thomas J. Depping's Sierra Cities/First Sierra and $10 million plus from Crawford and Sons which handles pension plans for teachers and is publicly traded, plus a group of community banks. The person allegedly behind the operation, Barry Drayer, has reportedly filed personal and business bankruptcy. An inside source says that everyone but Barry Drayer and Steve Barker had taken a plea bargain deal. Supposedly even Barry Drayer's sister, Rochelle Besser, the "dummy" president of the company, has agreed to testify against him. Insiders keep saying that the delay is his old trick of stalling, waiting for witnesses to change, prosecutors to move on, and everyone to just get too tired to pursue. The defense that Barry was just a “salesman,” has Al Crawford, Charlie Lester, and perhaps even Tom Depping laughing, perhaps even a belly laugh. Of course, it is true he reportedly “sold a bill of goods” to Old Kent Bank, CIT, Sierra Cities, Crawford and Sons, among many regional and local banks. But just a “salesman???” Note: It was Greg McIntosh, now as part of American Express Business Finance, with new authority and change in responsibility, who caught payments being made on leases that he found out that had been “paid out” to R.W. Professional, and other discrepancies. He brought it to the “new management” attention. The industry controversy centers on whether Tom Depping traded a release of escrow funds and a personal guarantee from Barry Drayer for a $1 million policy while under the management at Sierra Cities. Perhaps in retrospect, it may have been a solid business decision, but it also brings up the question about how much did Depping know about Drayer, who employees reported would visit and have long lunches and dinners with Depping. We asked questions at the time, but never were able to obtain a comment from either party. Leasing News wrote a series on this: http://www.leasingnews.org/articles.doc/newsletter3.htm For current stories , please go to:) http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/RW_stories.htm ----------------------------------------------------------------- FTC Singles out IFC Credit Corp MORTON GROVE -- The Federal Trade Commission asked a federal judge Thursday to aid its efforts in investigating debt collection by a Morton Grove finance company. FTC officials want information from IFC Credit Corp. because the firm has collected consumer debts purchased from a New Jersey telecommunications firm accused of unfair trade practices. The firm NorVergence promised customers that its Matrix black box would save them moneyon services, FTC attorney Randall Brook said in an affidavit. But "the black boxes were nothing more than standard telephone routers, which NorVergence rented to customers for inflated prices," Brook said. The FTC is investigating whether the actions of IFC and other firms that tried to collect on the rental agreements also might have violated federal law, the petition states. -------------------------------------------------------------- Story Credit Lessors ( for other "funder", who do not specialize in “story credits,” click here These companies specialize in "C" and "D" credits, often news businesses, or businesses where the principal(s) have Beacon score around 600 or previous difficulties; meaning to become comfortable with the credit and financial situation you need to learn the "story" to make a positive decision, often requiring further security, shorter term, or additional guarantors. Many of these companies may also be a "B," but appear otherwise without the "story" to understand the full financial picture. (To qualify for this list, the company must be a lessor and not a broker or superbroker, along with an acceptable Better Business Bureau Rating and no history of complaints at Leasing News. We reserve the right to not list a company who does not meet these qualifications.) We encourage companies who are listed to contact us for any change or addition they would like to make. Adding further information as an "attachment" or clarification of what they have to offer would be helpful to readers is very much encouraged. ( To apply to be listed, please fill in this form and fax to 408.374.3843)
(A) Pawnee Leasing Corporation; Some times we go higher than $30,000, but our marketplace is from $1,000 to $30,000. (B) Allegiant.pdf (C) Mesa Leasing, Inc., Industries served: Titled vehicles (Trucks, trailers, OTR, etc.), Construction, Restaurants, and all the other "hard to get approved" industries. (D) ABCO Leasing, Inc. in Seattle area has been operating since 1974 serving the broker community. We required full financial disclosure on every transaction. We do story transaction, but do not like to refer to them as "C" of "D" credits. We think of therm as "A" type credits that have not been discovered yet. In actuallity, we do not really like to look at what most describes as "D" credits. (E) Black Rock Capital comment: We book anywhere between $15 to 20 million per year. We do no "app only" business and require a full financial package for each transaction. Our average size transaction is approximately $250k and, although, we concentrate in printing, packaging (steel rule die industry) and road construction equipment we do not rule out anything that makes sense. More information can be found at www.blackrockcapital.com. (F) Black Rock Capital (Ireland) Limited and Black Rock Capital (UK) Limited provide the same services for small to middle market corporations in the European Economic Community and the United Kingdom. (G) Cobra Capital, LLC. Comments: Our registered trademark "Making impossible possible" is our central marketing tagline for both strong and weak credits. I have developed a 10 year history, (from Cobra and my prior company GALCO), with specialty, non-conforming transactions (story credits) and have a solid reputation for candidly responding to our originators and lessees and working diligently to mitigate deal risk rather than making excuses to turn deals down. Our originators prefer our underwriting approach to non-conforming transactions since unlike most non-conforming funders, we prefer to mitigate risk versus jacking our return. Both Originators and Lessee's prefer our candid approach as we are also frequently asked to advise lessee's and lessors on the best way to structure their bank loans and raise capital due to our 25+ year banking and accounting backgrounds as my partner and I are both former bankers and CPA's. (H) Pentech is the lessor partner with Manifest Funding Services for their Navigator, Navigator Plus & Navigator Direct. This is through our sister company Pentech Funding Services, located in San Diego and headed up by Ron Wagner. (I) Sunrise International Leasing Corporation Comment: The broker program is "...an informal program as our primary business is still vendor leasing." (J) Boston Financial & Equity Corporation, most of our leases are venture capital backed startups and turnarounds. We require full financial disclosures, CPA and internal statements, no tax returns. We do not required additional collateral, no PG's or RE needed. Do not send deals with large tax liens, especially if they are payroll taxes. (K) Dakota Financial is a collateral-based direct funding source that specializes in C & D level transaction for customers who are unable to receive funding from traditional sources. Our nationwide program provides funding for start-ups as well as credit profiles that have prior bankruptcies, judgements, tax liens, repossessions or slow pays. I would say that the average credit score of our transactions is in the mid 500s. We have done many deals in the sub 500 range. Although we do all kinds of equipment, we specialize in trucks (including over the road owner operators), trailers, yellow iron and logging equipment. I encourage you to go to our website, www.dakotafinancial.com to find out more information including examples of recent funded transactions. (L) IFC Credit Corporation also services on a regular basis "A" and "B" credits, but it also considers "story credits." "As you say, we need to become comfortable with the credit and financial situation and learn the "story" to make a positive decision, often requiring further security, shorter term, or additional guarantors. I would describe the B and C type credits we fund as companies having 'checkered earnings'." (M) Creative Capital Leasing Group: "We are able to fund tough deals, bad credits, BK's, past tax liens, start ups, used equipment, etc., because we look outside the transaction for real estate, and marketable securities to take as additional collateral." (N) Blackstone Capital Partners, L.P. lends up to 50% of verified auction value for working capital and/or equipment financing requests (we of course include equipment to be acquired in our valuation). Using this formula, allows Blackstone to approve deals on the assets rather than the credit or cash flow that other lenders desire. Also being an asset lender, we are looking for hard assets i.e. yellow iron, machine tool, manufacturing lines, textile etc... We do not care for soft assets such as computers, furniture, restaurant, or "white elephants" (equipment that is too specific to the clients needs and was specially built for them - there would be no resell available and our liquidity if repossessed would be in jeopardy). If you have any questions, please feel free to call, we will do our best to help or seek the answer for you. (O) Bankers Capital " We will do ANY Type of Equipment, in ANY industry, in ANY state. We especially like 6-figure transactions with full financial packages no matter how good or bad they look. We look to structure the story C&D credits with any kind of additional collateral that makes sense. It could be with 2nd or 3rd mortgages on residential or commercial Real Estate, additional equipment, cash value life insurance, security deposits, vendor agreements. We look for any way to make the deal work instead of looking for any way to decline the deal." (P) Financial Pacific Leasing supports a nationwide network of Brokers and Lessors. We specialize in "B" and "C" credits for established companies as well as companies under two years in business. (Q) American Leasefund, Inc. funds small hard to do transactions under $50,000.00. Most of the transactions are "app only". We look for additional collateral or larger first payments to help the weaker credits. We maintain and service our own portfolio. All of our lessee billings are done via ACH. (R) Dolsen Leasing has served the 11 Western States since 1958 and specializes in B & C Credits for established and new companies. We require a full financial package and offer both leases and financing for new and used equipment in the range of $10,000.00 to $250,000.00. Specialties include titled vehicles for both existing and new owner operators. Story credits are considered as long as credit has been reestablished and trends are positive. Credit decisions are based on old fashioned common sense, not credit scores, allowing us a very quick turnaround-often the same day. We accept broker business and also have in house salesmen. (S) We at Summit Leasing consider ourselves to be primarily "B" credit lenders, working almost exclusively through brokers. (T) TechLease - due to previous experiences, TechLease is vertically focused on three primary sectors: Semiconductor, Media and Aerospace. We fund all deals and hold paper an all equipment under $250,000. Deals over $150,000 we typically want to meet the Lessee face-to-face. We prefer business in California, however we will fund nationwide. (U) We specialized in start-up business. These are the northern states we do business in AK, AZ, CA, CO, ID, OR, WA. Click here to read our Product overview and Press Realease. -------------------------------------------------------------- Commonwealth Capital, Clearwater, Florida joins “Funder List” A -Accepts Broker Business | B -Requires Broker be Licensed | C -Sub-Broker Program
(N) Commonwealth Capital Corporation does not directly originate, we do not compete with Lessors. We only buy deals from Lessors.
To view the entire “Funder” list, please go to: http://www.leasingnews.org/Funders_Only/Funders.htm --------------------------------------------------------------
"Must Generate $10,000 in Revenue to Qualify for Sun Finance" Sun expands customer financing program By Paul Weinberg e-Channel Line Sun Microsystems is expanding its worldwide customer financing program via its channel partners by adding software and services to what has been largely a hardware driven program. Furthermore, Sun's customer financing and leasing unit, currently known as Sun Microsystems Finance, has been renamed as Sun Microsystems Global Financial Services (SMGFS). IT vendor financing has been crucial in generating IT product and services' sales, said Paul Perricone, the U.S. director for SMGFS. Generally, the customer financing involves 100 per cent of the purchase, the loan period is generally 36 months in length and the end user enterprise must generate at least $10,000 in revenue in order to qualify for Sun financial assistance, he explained. IT vendors are a more attractive source of financing for solution sales because they have a better handle on the total value of IT hardware and software than might a bank or another kind of standard financial institution, said Perricone. "Certainly financing has been a factor for quick sales. [A client] might have a quicker refresh within the terms of the deal." By delivering custom-fitted financing plans, SMGFS plans to put the newest Sun technology into the hands of more customers without the need for significant upfront capital expenditures, stated Perricone. Also, he indicated that Sun's expanded program is geared for both the large enterprise clients that may seek more attractive terms for the leasing of computer equipment and the small and medium sized businesses which typically might lack sufficient cash to make the IT purchase. Sun's channel partners serve as conduits for customized financing that focus on the individual client needs. Sun's new customer program "is an important differentiator" for resellers seeking to set themselves apart and gain a competitive advantage within the channel, Perricone added. "We want to make sure our channel partners have the financial expertise that an IT company would offer." It is up to the individual reseller to decide how it wants to be engaged with the Sun customer financing program, he said. "The arrangements depend on how much financing expertise the reseller has in- house. We have a new dedicated team working with the channel. This could be a co-sale." -------------------------------------------------------------- Postal Rates to Go Up; Holiday Mailing Deadlines Announced
AccountingWEB.com - The cost of a First Class postage stamp will go from 37 cents to 39 cents in January if, as expected, the Postal Service's Board of Governors approves the rate hikes recommended by the independent Postal Rate Commission last week, the Associated Press reports. The Postal Service had requested an across-the-board increase of 5.4 percent, which was accepted by the Commission with a few revisions. Media and Book rates were increased to 12.7 percent and increases for nonprofits and local newspapers were reduced to 2.3 percent. Nonprofits are expected to pay $17 million less than expected, the Chatham Journal Weekly reported. -------------------------------------------------------------- Classified Ads---Help Wanted Administration Manager
These ads were designed by Maria-Martinez Wong. Let her construct and design your ad with the goal to keep your costs down. ### Press Release ########################### Report: Atlanta Jurassic Lessors Association Meeting More than 300 people showed up at McKendrick's Steak House last evening. I don't think most knew the Jurassic Lessors Association was meeting there. It was great to see so many of our brethren out of jail as we enter the holiday season. (Did Sal find his golf clubs?) Happy Holidays Everyone! John Semon --------------------------------------------------------------- ### Press Release ########################### CIT Announces Sale of Micro-Ticket Leasing Business NEW YORK, -- CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT), a leading provider of commercial and consumer finance solutions, today announced that it has signed an agreement to sell its micro-ticket leasing business unit (Lease Finance Group), to affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. and Goldman Sachs. The sale is consistent with CIT's continued focus on freeing capital for redeployment into targeted strategic growth opportunities. The sale includes approximately $295 million in equipment leases and related infrastructure. The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close on or before year end. Other terms of the deal were not disclosed. About CIT: CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT), a leading commercial and consumer finance company, provides clients with financing and leasing products and advisory services. Founded in 1908, CIT has over $60 billion in assets under management and possesses the financial resources, industry expertise and product knowledge to serve the needs of clients across approximately 30 industries. CIT, a Fortune 500 company and a component of the S&P 500 Index, holds leading positions in vendor financing, factoring, equipment and transportation financing, Small Business Administration loans, and asset-based lending. With its Global Headquarters in New York City, CIT has approximately 6,000 employees in locations throughout North America, Europe, Latin and South America, and the Pacific Rim. For more information, visit http://www.cit.com. SOURCE CIT Group Inc. ### Press Release ########################### TCF Bank Enters Arizona; Timothy B. Meyer Elected President ### Press Release ########################### GATX Announces Personnel Moves
CHICAGO----GATX Corporation announced several personnel changes in support of its key objectives. Alan C. Coe will move from GATX Air to a new role in GATX Rail as Managing Director, focused on strategic growth opportunities. Mr. Coe has worked at GATX since 1977, most recently as the head of GATX Air. Prior to joining GATX Air in 1997, Mr. Coe led the rail group at GATX Capital. James F. Earl, Executive Vice President - Rail, said "Throughout his career, Alan has demonstrated his ability to develop attractive, profitable business for GATX. I am pleased that he has joined the team to help GATX Rail accelerate the growth of our North American rail business." GATX Air will be led by Jim Morris, Senior Vice President - Commercial and Susan A. Noack, Senior Vice President - Operations, both of whom will report to Brian A. Kenney, President and Chief Executive Officer of GATX Corporation. Mr. Morris has been with GATX since 1980 and will lead the air marketing and business development efforts. Ms. Noack will move from her current position of Vice President, Chief Risk Officer, to take over the air technical, finance and operations groups. COMPANY DESCRIPTION GATX Corporation (NYSE:GMT) provides lease financing and related services to customers operating rail, air, marine and other targeted assets. GATX is a leader in leasing transportation assets and controls one of the largest railcar fleets in the world. Applying over a century of operating experience and strong market and asset expertise, GATX provides quality assets and services to customers worldwide. GATX has been headquartered in Chicago, IL since its founding in 1898 and has traded on the New York Stock Exchange since 1916. For more information, visit the Company's website at www.gatx.com. Investor, corporate, financial, historical financial, photographic and news release information may be found at www.gatx.com. CONTACT: GATX Corporation Rhonda S. Johnson, 312-621-6262 rhonda.johnson@gatx.com SOURCE: GATX Corporation ### Press Release ########################### Irwin Financial Reports third quarter earnings of $18.5 million COLUMBUS, Ind., -- Irwin Financial Corporation (NYSE: IFC), a bank holding company focusing on mortgage banking, small business banking and home equity lending, today announced net income for the third quarter of 2005 of $18.5 million or $0.61 per diluted share. This compares with net income of $16.3 in the third quarter of 2004 and a loss of $3.4 million in the second quarter of 2005. All segments had sequential quarter improvement in net income and good loan originations. In the third quarter, return on average equity was 14.6 percent and return on average assets was 1.1 percent. Capital remains strong, with capacity for on-going growth. All figures in this earnings release are unaudited, and figures for prior periods reflect changes in accounting for home equity segment incentive servicing fees (ISFs) that will result in the restatement of certain prior periods as described in more detail in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q dated November 9, 2005. "We are obviously pleased with results this quarter. The quarter-over- quarter improvement was fueled by the turn-around in mortgage banking. In addition, our commercial segments continued their steady progress. Loan growth and credit quality remain strong and both our commercial segments reported record quarterly net income," noted Irwin Financial Chairman Will Miller. "Last week we announced that we would need to change the way we record revenues from our home equity incentive servicing fees and, as a result, restate our financial statements from 2004 through the second quarter of 2005," Miller continued. "It is important to understand that the ISF change is an accounting correction at our home equity segment only and does not impact the underlying economics of that business. It simply changes the timing of when we will be recognizing income from these assets. The ISF accounting correction will have no impact on the reported results of any of the other segments. Finally, this development does not change the positive turn-around in our consolidated results we achieved in the third quarter and which we believe will continue into the fourth quarter." Full press release at: http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/newsitem.asp?id=15810&print=1 ### Press Release ########################### The World Leasing Yearbook is the Industry Bible on DUBLIN, Ireland--(---Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c27524) has announced the addition of World Leasing Yearbook 2006 to their offering. ### Press Release ###########################
News Briefs---- Poll: Consumers less worried about economy Profit Declines 28% at Dell as Sales Growth Slows http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/11/business/11dell.html?pagewanted=all Trade deficit hits record as oil imports rise to all-time high http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/business/20051110-1503-economy.html Delta adds $1.1 billion loss http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/delta/1105/11bizdelta.html ---------------------------------------------------------------
You May Have Missed White House Honors Internet Pioneers http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3563316 ---------------------------------------------------------------
Sports Briefs---- NFL, Coliseum reach preliminary agreement on return to LA http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2005/11/10/sports/s141630S68.DTL ----------------------------------------------------------------
California News Briefs--- Schwarzenegger Takes Blame, “Buck Stops with Me.” http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/11/11/GUV.TMP Special Elections Over; CA Governor Heads to China http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/5-11-10/34412.html ----------------------------------------------------------------
“Gimme that Wine” Recommended Northwest pinot gris for Thanksgiving http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/foodwine/2002611921_webpinot09.html Kicking Beaujolais up a notch http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9883836/ Grape expectations: New Jersey harvest is outstanding Boxed Wine in the Round, With a Spigot http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/09/dining/09tube.html?pagewanted=all Breeding ground Santa Barbara County incubates the next generation of winemakers http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/11/10/WIGICFKE3J1.DTL China to host first int'l red wine festival http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-11/09/content_3754901.htm If you want to know if you got a value for your wine, or what the wine price is today, go to www.winezap.com Type in the vintage (year) and name of the producer with wine type or geographic area, such as 1995 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac. Even 1995 Lynch Bages will work, or 1999 Viader ---------------------------------------------------------------
Restaurant Review Leasing News invites your recommendations, for our page in development for leasing industry travelers: http://two.leasingnews.org/Recommendations/rstrnt.htm Houston, Texas Mark's http://www.marks1658.com/welcome.htm Map: http://www.marks1658.com/pdf/MarksMap.pdf Every time I am in Houston, Texas (step-daughter went to college here, and medical residency,) we always dine at Mark's. Generally I ask for the manager or whoever is on duty to help choose the wine and the food. The last time I was here it was Kristofer Stanley, but don't see him on the current web site. While I am a former wine maker, since I was 15, was in the business for ten years, have been president of several wine societies and collect wine, I always ask the sommelier or manager for their recommendations and help. They know their cellar. They know their food. They know what their customers “rave” about and can tell right away just by the questions you ask, how much you are willing to spend or what you want for yourself and your guests. I also try wine that is new, not something I have in my cellar or have tasted before—unless it is recommended for the meal. This is billed as a romantic restaurant, and I guess it is, but I have seen tables of men together (for business) and couples of four and six. I even saw one evening a family with children, which I thought “odd” for the atmosphere---but this is Houston where I told people eat out four times a week. Food is American cuisine. I would say “expensive,” if you want the best. I have always had a reservation, most often via the internet at: About the Chef: ----------------------------------------------------------------
Today's Top Event in History 1982 -- Vietnam Veterans Memorial dedicated in Washington, D.C. http://www.vietvet.org/thewall.htm
This Day in American History 1620-The Mayflower Compact, the first social contract for a New England colony, was drafted and signed by 41 adult males in Provincetown Harbor, Massachusetts. The Pilgrims did not settle there, but went on after a time to Plymouth. |
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