| Jump In New Mortgages Helps Fremont Bank Thrive
FREMONT, California - March 18, 2011 - Fremont Bank, looks
to be weathering the financial storm, with last year's profit of
$30 million, up 84 percent from 2009. The bank's mortgage operations
turned in its second best year ever, originating $4.5 billion in
residential mortgages. The closely held bank said that it helped
more than 30,000 Bay Area families refinance over the last two years.
President Andy Mastorakis said the bank was able to offset the
drag of its commercial real estate portfolio with the jump in mortgage
originations and a $1 billion increase to $6 billion in its mortgage
servicing operations.
At the end of last year, Fremont Bank had loan loss reserves totaling
2.14 percent of total loans, according to figures from Stone &
Youngberg, SNL Financial and the FDIC. Fremont Bank says that figure
rises to 2.63 percent when excluding residential mortgages held
for sale. The $2.6 billion bank says it has more such loans on its
books because it has a more active residential mortgage operation
than the typical community bank.
Fremont Bank's total risk-based capital ratio of 12.68 percent
is above regulators' 10 percent threshold to be considered "well
capitalized." "While many financial institutions have struggled
to make money during the past few tumultuous years, we are proud
not only of our earnings results, but that we remained a
safe and sound community bank," Mastorakis said. Rigid bank
regs can cause unintended consequences HSBC board member and Oracle
President Safra Catz offered cautionary words as the U.S. implements
bank reform.
She cited a United Kingdom rule that says independent bank directors
are no longer considered independent after nine years on the board.
Catz told the Stanford Institute of Economic Policy Research's annual
economic summit on March 11 that can be detrimental given the complexity
of overseeing a global bank.
About Fremont Bank
Fremont Bank (www.fremontbank.com)
is the leading full-service community bank in Northern California.
Founded in 1964, Fremont Bank is one of the oldest independent family
owned and managed banks in the region and focuses on personalized
service for individuals and businesses. It serves communities through
19 branches and seven additional ATMs throughout the Greater Bay
Area. Exceptional client service is the cornerstone of Fremont Bank’s
business. Accommodation of customer needs in a friendly, personal
atmosphere characterizes the Bank’s culture. |
