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February
12, 2001
Headlines---- CIT-Atlanta Open or Closed? Old Kent Closing Doors to Broker Business More Pro Linda Kester Funders Leasing Fee Comments NCC Scam--Vendor "sale/leasebacks" as New Equipment eSignatures--Business Technology Editors---- GE Named "Most Admired Company" by Fortune Magazine Survey ( Fourth Year in a Row!!! no wise cracks accepted, you're just jealous ) Comdisco Electronics Tops $100 Million in Sales in First Year in Mexico The Story " Sierra Cities "Private Labels" CompuBank " we considered not as a major story. Compubank announced a similar program for loans on January 17th with Lending Tree.We will re-print it at the end of today's newsletter. We expect more news about Sierra Cities, but will not wait any longer to send out today's news. I expect the suitor to be American Express, who were trained by Advanta personnel and they thought American Express would buy them, but did not. American Express has cash, great customer base, and is approving deals at low rates without much information like they have money to burn. $5 floor rate is the scuttlebutt on the marketplace. As I have stated before, Depping is perhaps one of the best leasing salespeople in the business, a real magician, and I don't think this is just cigar smoke. editor ).
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Old Kent Closing Doors to Broker Business Just wanted to pass along that I have been notified Old Kent is closing its doors to new broker business. My rep said she will be there through 4/12. They will honor outstanding approvals through their expiration dates. Applications not decisioned need to be resubmitted. Blaming it on their recent acquisition. Brett Ugles - ACS Capital Brettugles@aol.com Old Kent just closed their doors. The employees were just let out of a meeting where they were given 60 days pay but laid off. All sales people are gone. They will accept deals that are approved for funding in the next 60 days but will not accept new apps. Name With Held We were just cut off from Old Kent. Not funny. Please do not use my name. Name With Held ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ CIT-Atlanta Open or Closed for Business? Several readers told us that CIT was no longer accepting broker business at their Atlanta Division. One told us it was "shut down." We could not confirm this. Other readers have told us otherwise, such as: All I know is that my contact with CIT in Atlanta told me that as far as he knew CIT was still accepting broker transactions and he accepted for review the transaction I was trying to get funded. Although it was ultimately declined, I have never been told "we are no longer accepting broker transactions"...and he went on to say that he would inform me if that were to change. Either he hasn't been informed or CIT is still accepting broker deals. Again....he said that a few brokers were "cut-off" because of fraudulent transactions, but to his knowledge they were still accepting broker transactions. If there are brokers looking to submit deals to CIT I will be happy to assist them! And will continue to use CIT until I have been informed otherwise. I can be contacted at 405-769-6606. Bill Schimmel Advantage Leasing Co. OKC, OK. ICTKID2@aol.com + + + Kit-- The CIT Closing--I talked with TWO people at CIT this morning. One is a VP and the other is a manager and they both confirmed that the CIT Broker office in Atlanta has been closed--the other offices have already been closed. Hope this helps. Charlie Charlie Lester <clester@lpifinancial.com> + + + Jennifer Martin told me CIT-Atlanta was closed to broker business,and other offices are closing or are closed today. name with held. Kit--- CIT is no longer accepting broker business. I don't know why you can't get confirmation of this!!!! name with held ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ More Pro Linda Kester I simply would like to thank you for the service you provide to the leasing and broker communities. What prompted me to write is your brief editorial comment on Linda Kester. A number of years ago, when I was coordinating sales meetings for (the now bankrupt) Leasing Solutions, I had the pleasure of working directly with Linda. Her warm energy and competent leadership were evident as soon as she entered the room. Her workshop on motivation and goal setting was valuable to me, as well as to the rest of my team. To this day, I have remained in contact with Linda, and believe that she is just the kind of person that best represents the leasing industry to the rest of the world. It gives me pleasure to see that she continues to be a bright star in what sometimes seems like a world of doom and gloom. Sincerely, Haley Carter Cobalt Leasing Program Manager Sun Microsystems, Inc. mailto:haley.carter@sfbay.sun.com + + + Don't listen to the negative remarks...the Linda Kester piece was terrific. Kudos to her. Also, as the editor, you have prerogative. Don't forget that. You deserve some latitude for all the work you do. Keep up the good work. Archie Julian Dumac Leasing <juliana@exchangebank.com> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Leasing Fee Comments I was amused by the big deal Bob Rodi made of a $25 fee charged for a payoff quote and his suggestion that it would invite regulation. I guess the funder could raise rates to the broker to provide for that administrative burden. Judging from the industry fallout, funders haven't been charging near enough as it is. I just came across a $1,000 documentation fee being charged on a $35,000 lease by a super-broker. It is interesting to note different perspectives in our industry and how difficult it seems to be to appreciate some of them. name with held + + + Bob Rodi is speaking as a "broker," not a funder. We get so many calls and arguments, most for curiosity sake or thinking they are going to buy out of the lease in four months, I can't tell you. Rodi is off base. Please don't use my name as I don't want to get in a P*****g contest with him. Name With Held. While I can appreciate Bob's comments about fees, that fact is that fee income is an essential part of any business plan for those in the financial services industry. While we have not charged for payoff quotes, I can tell you that we receive at least a hundred of these requests a month and it is a significant cost to us. I find his comments a hinderance to the essential realization that funding sources and brokers can exist only in a symbiotic relationship. This "us vrs them" mentality might have been yesterdays game plan for some, but it is a sure road to failure today for either a funding source or broker. Rob Day PawneeRob@aol.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NCC Scam It was mentioned yesterday about the NCC Sam. "If the vendor agrees and his company "bills" for a product, he receives a commission, generally 5% -10% of the transaction amount without having any overhead costs or having to actually deliver product. That takes care of the "vendor" side of the equation." There is a company doing that now. They have sent me a fax, then literature. They claim they do sale/leasebacks through a vendor system. The vendor gets better rates from fundors, plus will accept a lower Beacon score, I was told. The vendor buys the equipment and thus is the owner of the equipment. But this does not really happen. The vendor supplies the invoice and pays the lessee. I don't think the funder is aware of this, and what happens, if the lessee does not own the equipment. It is also disguised as "new." Should I tell you the name of the company? name with held ( We know the name of the company and have the literature. The super broker claims it is a legitimate transaction as the vendor is buying the equipment and becomes the owner of it. editor ) + + + Barry Reitman KEYSTONE EQUIPMENT LEASING comments Regarding Fraud Alert -- NNC Enterprises and Ronald J. Brodt's valuable response: The mindless drive for volume at any cost that existed at AT&T Capital Leasing Services has been a root cause of the small ticket leasing community's problems for well over a decade. How can you explain to a loyal vendor that you had no choice but to turn down his credit-challenged (dead beat) customer, when one of these giant lessors buys the deal without blinking. There is no question that corporate policy was to buy bad deals, if necessary, to have enough volume to cover over last year's bad deals. I also remember that one year the footnotes to their annual report stated that "management has determined" that the residual value of the portfolio increased some three percent. That's right, to turn their pile of rotting garbage into a profitable picture, they decided that a bunch of used copiers, leased in a high-delinquency portfolio, had actually increased in value! I knew many good, honest, people at Leasing Services. A number are friends to this day. But, they were in a structure that required poor credit decisions. Advanta appears to have had a similar story. About a year ago, I notified Wells Fargo Bank that one of their low-ranking officers had given me a fraudulent reference on a non-existent checking account. Lessee, vendor, and equipment were all fabricated for the purpose of a scam. (That, of course, is worth a story of its own.) I later documented the fraud for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. A few weeks ago, the FBI Agent with whom I been working called me with good news. They had successfully prosecuted the banker and he was incarcerated. "Do you remember a call you made to Advanta, warning them about the fraud ring," he asked. I had called Advanta because I saw their bureau pull on the "lessee's" principal. After five calls, explaining the situation in detail to the highest level of management who would take my call, it was made clear to me: "The deal has just funded; we won't worry until they become delinquent." The FBI found an Advanta employee's notes of my phone call in their files during the prosecution. Advanta had taken no action to protect themselves, and they had warned no one else. For those of us who do care about quality, your Leasing News is performing a service that the industry associations should have taken on many years ago. Publishing warnings about active scams is a bold move. You are to be commended. Thanks, Barry Reitman KEYSTONE EQUIPMENT LEASING, INC. baldguy@keystoneleasing.com http://www.keystoneleasing.com 1-800-225-3489 1-800-BALDGUY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- E-Signatures: The Sign of the Times for the Mortgage and Finance Industries; Why Electronic Signatures Will Benefit the Mortgage and Finance Industries
DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 12, 2001--E-signatures are used to "sign" and/or encrypt a document electronically and can be used in place of traditional pen and paper signatures. E-signatures may also be used to create a tamper-evident, permanent electronic business record, even where a legal signature is not required. Using a digital certificate or ID issued from a service provider, users have the ability to electronically sign documents and e-mails, ensuring that the message has come from only the intended party, has not been altered by anyone else, and can only be read by its intended recipient. An e-signature can be a secure, user friendly, and cost-effective method for validating an individual's identity as well as ensuring that electronic documents are not tampered with prior to reaching their final destination. This type of technology is of significant benefit to the mortgage and financial industries, which would allow brokers and their clients the opportunity to replace intensive paper processes with rapid and secure online transactions. Successful loan officers, agents, lenders, etc. are integrating these technologies in ways that will fundamentally change their relationships with clients, vendors, investors and insurers. There are many misconceptions surrounding e-signatures: they are expensive, difficult to implement and use, not legally enforceable, or don't provide any real benefit. On the contrary, an e-signature not only guarantees that documents and e-mail are secure, but also offers companies speed and convenience. For example: Printing a mortgage application, signing it in ink, faxing or sending it through overnight mail can be inconvenient and expensive. Electronically signing documents saves money and allows for real-time transactions. The E-SIGN law, which went into effect on October 1, 2000, intends to give an electronic signature the same legal validity as pen and paper, when certain conditions are met. Many people falsely assume that an e-mail transmission is private. The truth is that e-mail can be scanned, read and changed at many points on its journey from one mailbox to another. Companies and individuals are increasingly considering the transmission of business information over standard e-mail as a poor business practice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GE Named 'America's Most Admired Company' in Fortune Magazine Survey for Fourth Year in a Row; New Jersey-based GE Americom Globalizes Satellite Services
PRINCETON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 12, 2001--Fortune magazine announced this week that General Electric is "America's most admired company," according to a survey of leading businessmen and women. GE has now won the honor for four years in a row. "Tireless innovation ... Robust financials ...The ability to lure and keep the smartest people. According to more than 4,000 business people FORTUNE surveyed late last year, no company in the nation demonstrates such enviable qualities better than General Electric...," FORTUNE writes in its Feb. 19 edition (http://www.fortune.com), which will be available on newsstands on Feb. 12. The "Most Admired" list is the result of FORTUNE's survey of the country's leading executives, directors and analysts to determine the top ten companies from a list of the 1,000 largest U.S. corporations (ranked by revenues) and the 25 largest U.S. subsidiaries of foreign-owned companies. "Being again named 'most admired' by FORTUNE is a great way to start the year," said John F. Connelly, Chairman and CEO of GE American Communications (Americom). "Our employees, most of whom are here at Americom's headquarters in Princeton, are working every day to find new and better ways to serve our customers around the world." Connelly continued, "This recognition reinforces our customer-focused strategy driven by Six Sigma quality and an empowered workforce that thrives on winning in the marketplace." With over twenty-five years' experience, GE American Communications, Inc. is recognized as a pioneer and leading provider of global satellite communications services. GE Americom is able to provide end-to-end telecommunications solutions to any region in the world through a fleet of 21 satellites. GE Americom's key customers include ABC Radio Networks, AT&T Alascom, British Telecom, Cidera, Deutsche Welle, Discovery, Disney, Gannett, ICG, Merlin, NBC, the New York Times, NHK, PaxNet, PBS, TELE Greenland, TV Europa, Viacom and TimeWarner/Turner Broadcasting. GE Americom is a GE Capital business. With assets of over US$345 billion, GE Capital is a global, diversified financial services company comprised of 28 specialized businesses. A wholly-owned subsidiary of the General Electric Company, GE Capital based in Stamford, Conn., provides equipment management, mid-market and specialized financing, specialty insurance and a variety of consumer services, such as car leasing, home mortgages and credit cards, to businesses and individuals around the world. GE is a diversified services, technology and manufacturing company with operations worldwide. CONTACT: GE Americom Monica Morgan, 609/987-4143 monica.morgan@gecapital.com KEYWORD: PENNSYLVANIA NEW JERSEY -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Comdisco Electronics Tops $100 Million in Sales in First Year in Mexico
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Continues Expansion Into New Markets by Bringing International, In-country Equipment Rental and Management to Businesses in Mexico Comdisco Electronics, a division of Comdisco Inc. (NYSE:CDO), today announced that revenues from its year-old operation in Mexico have topped more than $100 million in lease volume and services. Comdisco's expansion into Mexico, which began in September 1999, is part of the company's ongoing efforts to extend its worldwide technology services business and network of equipment resources for customers. During the past year, Comdisco Electronics has supplied funded equipment rental, planning, upgrading and remarketing services to leading electronic companies in Mexico. Its unique ability to provide a single source solution for international and in-country equipment rental and management offers companies the flexibility to upgrade to newer equipment several times throughout the course of alease and effectively adapt to a changing market environment. "Mexico now has a $75 billion dollar Maquiladora market and its growth in the electronics industry is unprecedented," said Roger Innes, president of Comdisco Electronics. "Comdisco saw a prime opportunity to leverage our services and help businesses keep pace with this rapidly evolving market while making the most of their equipment investments. Our cross-border remarketing and in-country rental structures have allowed us to manage our equipment portfolio more strategically, resulting in significant savings and a distinct competitive advantage for us and our customers." Comdisco provides real-time, in-depth analysis of industry and equipment trends to assist Mexico's electronics business and Maquiladora industry, in gauging optimum buy, sell and trade opportunities. Remarketing is a key aspect of effective equipment management, as it places underutilized -- yet still functional -- equipment in settings where it continues to generate value. Comdisco's remarketing specialists take into account project longevity, expected equipment utilization, potential market value and other influential factors to determine the most appropriate timing and channel for customers to dispose of equipment. This provides customers with the flexibility to migrate from onetechnology to another as business needs change and enables a higher return on equipment investments. "The expansion into Mexico is the latest in a series of steps to extend global reach for Comdisco and our customers," said Innes. "We will continue to identify new opportunities to help electronics companies cost-effectively meet their business goals." About Comdisco Comdisco (www.comdisco.com) provides technology services worldwide to help its customers maximize technology functionality, predictability and availability, while freeing them from the complexity of managing their technology. The Rosemont, Ill. company offers a complete suite of information technology services including business continuity, managed Web hosting, storage and IT Control and Predictability Solutions(SM). Comdisco offers equipment solutions to key vertical industries, including semiconductor manufacturing and electronic assembly, healthcare, telecommunications, pharmaceutical, biotechnology and manufacturing. Through its Ventures division, Comdisco provides equipment leasing and other financing and services to venture capital backed companies. The company's revenue for the 12 months ended Dec. 31, 2000 was $3.9 billion. About Comdisco Electronics Comdisco Electronics, a division of Comdisco Inc., is a provider of capital equipment acquisition, optimization, and disposition services to the global electronics manufacturing industry. These services include Web-enabled equipment remarketing and disposition; equipment reconditioning; the purchase of surplus equipment; and alternative financial strategies such as equipment leasing, acquisition, and upgrade planning. Comdisco Electronics' customized equipment management strategies help customers mitigate technology risk, reduce and control costs, and increase profitability. Comdisco is a registered trademark of Comdisco Inc. Other company names are trademarks of their respective organizations. CONTACT: Comdisco Electronics Sergio Perez, 858/550-7430 smperez@comdisco.com or Fleishman-Hillard Jessica Bongers, 619/237-7720 bongersj@fleishman.com KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ CompuBank Launches Co-Branded Small Business Finance Center Powered by SierraCities.com ( January 17--Compubank announced a similar arrangement with LendingTree http://www.compubank.com/press01172001.htm ) HOUSTON, Texas, Feb. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- CompuBank®, http://www.compubank.com, the #1-ranked online by SmartMoney Magazine, today announced that it is extending its core business products to include small business financing via a co-branded online loan and lease center, powered by SierraCities.com Inc. (Nasdaq: BTOB - news), a leading innovator of technology solutions for online business-to-business financing. Through this arrangement, CompuBank's small business customers can receive funding decisions in as little as 2 minutes and financing in as little as 24 hours. Through December 2000, SierraCities.com has originated over $3 billion in financing to over 95,000 small business customers throughout the United States and the United Kingdom. ``SierraCities.com has established itself as a leader in originating, funding and servicing equipment leases and working capital loans via the Internet,'' commented Charles Boyd, SVP of Product Development and Management of CompuBank. ``The SierraCities.com suite of online products will enable our customers to receive financing decisions quickly, providing convenience, competitive prices and a choice of financing alternatives. We are excited to team with a leading online small business financing provider, as we continue to focus on enhancing our offerings for the business market.'' ``Small business customers need convenient and innovative financing solutions that will enable their companies to grow. Most small business owners can't afford to be delayed by the paperwork and headaches associated with traditional small business lending. We are excited to be associated with CompuBank so its business customers can receive fast and innovative financing solutions through our streamlined, technology-enabled services,'' said Thomas Depping, CEO & Chairman of SierraCities.com. ``For more than five years, over 95,000 small businesses have trusted SierraCities.com to provide them with convenient, cost effective and affordable financing solutions. CompuBank's history of providing technology-enabled solutions, coupled with outstanding customer service, is consistent with our mission to empower the small business person with fast and competitive products.'' CompuBank's customers can access SierraCities.com's online financing products via CompuBank's home page. In addition to leasing and lending, CompuBank provides business customers with tools to ensure efficient cash management. Business customers can view their balances in real-time, view check images front and back and see their monthly statements online. CompuBank offers free services to enable customers to maximize their funds including free domestic wire transfers, direct transfers from other financial institutions into CompuBank accounts and free bill pay. CompuBank's eCommPay® provides businesses with an electronic payment solution, an efficient and low cost alternative to traditional paper checks. eCommPay is an ideal way for companies that pay royalties, commissions or other monthly payments to third parties to make payments electronically. About SierraCities.com Inc. SierraCities.com is an innovator of technology solutions for online business-to-business financing. The Company's technology platform supports real time funding of e-commerce transactions through one of the most comprehensive online business financing fulfillment solutions available. SierraCities.com's credit technologies enable B2B e-commerce by empowering businesses to complete transactions more quickly, thereby gaining time and cost efficiencies. SierraCities.com's infrastructure solution automates much of the process involved in customer acquisition, application, data retrieval, data warehousing, underwriting, documentation, servicing, collections, funding, auditing, and data mining. For more information, please visit SierraCities.com's web site at http://www.SierraCities.com. About CompuBank CompuBank®, http://www.compubank.com, is the #1 bank online according to Smart Money Magazine, earning top honors in its 2000 rankings for security, account information, fees, and extra products and services. Having customized and leveraged its technology, CompuBank is harnessing the power and speed of the Internet to provide real time account management and payments-processing. FDIC insured, CompuBank provides optimum convenience and security to its customers. As a result of the investment CompuBank has made in its infrastructure and management team, CoBanking partners are able to introduce a banking service quickly and cost-effectively, without having to make a substantial investment in technology. CompuBank CoBanking partners include GE Financial Network (http://www.gefn-compubank.com), H.D. Vest, (http://www.hdvest-compubank.com) and pFreight, (http://www.pfreight-compubank.com ). CompuBank investors and strategic partners are SOFTBANK Finance, GE Capital, Goldman Sachs and Marsh & McLennan Capital. SOURCE: CompuBank www.leasingnews.org |