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July 6, 2001
Sterling Business Solutions 47% + 2nd Second Quarter-- ( increase of 47.8% over the prior quarter's revenue of $11,500,000. ) FTC Revises Credit Report Signature Policy Unethical? Untruthful? Business as Usual? Leasing World Yearbook 2001-Great Source! Equipment Leasing Association "Principles of Leasing" US Bancorp Manifest " Insurance Policy"
Agilent Technologies Releases Financials for FY99-FY00 Separating Out Discontinued Operations, including sale to CIT
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Sterling Business Solutions, Inc. Announces Second Quarter Results increase of 47.8% over the prior quarter's revenue of $11,500,000.
LONG ISLAND CITY, N.Y. -- Sterling Business Solutions, Inc. (OTC: STLB) "SBS" proudly held its first annual shareholders' meeting today at which it announced its unaudited revenue results for the second fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2001.
Revenue for the quarter ended June 30, 2001 exceeded $17,000,000, an increase of 47.8% over the prior quarter's revenue of $11,500,000.
Commenting on the second quarter performance, SBS President Damiano S. Coraci stated, "Second quarter results were driven primarily by strong revenue performance. We expect our growth to continue to outperform the industry average for the remaining quarters of 2001, as we believe that we are uniquely positioned to capitalize on the rapid growth in our marketplace. As a management team we made significant progress in the second quarter. We are building sales momentum and are excited to take advantage of the tremendous opportunities ahead of us."
Sterling Business Solutions, Inc. is a Professional Employer Financial Organization (PEFO), that provides human resources, payroll, benefits, financing, funds administration, credit card processing and equipment leasing.
Sterling Business Solutions, Inc. is located at 25-21 49th Street, Long Island City, New York 11103. For information, contact Sterling Business Solutions, Inc. at: 718-956-7350 or via the web: http://www.sterling-business.com. SBS common stock is traded on the Pink Sheets under the symbol STLB.
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Signatures on Lease Applications
FTC Letter Agrees to Permissible Purpose for Guarantors Under FCRA
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Staff has revised the July 26, 2000 Medine staff opinion letter concerning the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The new FTC letter addresses the situation where the lessor/lender seeks a credit report on an individual who is a guarantor, co-signor or a sole proprietor having personal liability on the lease/debt. The letter states. "We agree that it is reasonable to view a business transaction in which an individual has accepted personal liability for the business debt as involving the consumer, thus providing a permissible purpose for the lender to obtain a consumer report under Section 604(a)(3)(A)."
This opinion is helpful to lessors and represents a significant change on the part of FTC staff.
However, the new opinion appears not to address the situation where the lessor/lender seeks a credit report on an individual who is a shareholder, officer or director of a corporation and who is not a guarantor or co-signor of the debt.
To read the letter in full, go to http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fcra/tatelbaum2.htm.
( This has been a controversial decision and both the Equipment Leasing Association and United Association of Lease Brokers Listserve have been active with many diverse opinions. Taking the conservative road, all the credit bureau agency agreements we have read require the signature of the individual to obtain a "credit report." It is safer to always require the signature. It appears registered digital signatures are now accepted as we wrote a story about this and a copy who will complete this for 75 cents a signature. http://www.yozons.com/pub/ as reported in our June 16 edition. http://www.leasingnews.org/archives/June01/6-12-01.htm editor )
Manifest Still Has Insurnace Guarantee as US Bancorp
Manifest Insurance Policy
In today's competitive marketplace it seems as though everyone is trying to get more from their current base of customers. Whether it is your lessee base or your vendor base, we would all agree that these are the lifelines of any third party leasing company. At Manifest Funding Services, we understand the importance of your customer base and we would like to insure the protection of these Lists with the following policy:
Your lessee and vendor lists will remain confidential to Manifest Funding Services. At no time will this information be shared with anyone outside Manifest Funding Services. This policy holds true even if your company is no longer doing business with Manifest Funding Services.
At Manifest Funding Services, we take this "Insurance Policy" very seriously. We understand that the cost of a "claim' against our integrity far outweighs any revenues that we might receive from a vendor or lessee that calls us directly.
Troy Molitor Senior Vice President Manifest Funding Services
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Unethical? Untruthful? Business as Usual?
I received the following fax, which I believe to be unethical and untruthful and possibly of interest to you and your readers.
Contrary to the letter's statement we have never funded any transaction through Vendor Capital Corp. as a vendor. In fact I have never ever heard of them and I doubt that they are really a direct Binder.
The writer Stan Hathcock CLP I believe was associated with MetroLease, Inc. and might possibly obtained my name from their records as we attempted to fund a lease thru them functioning as broker and not as vendor. Otherwise I have no knowledge of him or Vendor Capital Corp.
At any rate I consider this a low grade attempt to obtain business.
Yours truly, -
Bob New Bob New, Inc. 818-247-3530
"Dear Sir or Madam"
Vendor Capital Corporation has historically funded leases through lease brokers. Our records indicate that we funded at least one lease for our company as the seller of equipment. As such, we have you as an approved vendor for our leasing programs. We no longer fund lease brokers, and are now able to accept applications directly from the vendor without a middleman. We believe our programs will enable our approved vendors (such as you company) to better compete in your market place.
"We arc sending an outline of some of our programs along with our rates and an application form. You will find the programs priced aggressively as well as flexible to meet the needs of any of your customers. If you have any questions, please give me a call to discuss them in detail
"Sincerely "
Stan Hathcock Accounts Manager VCC Vendor Capital 815-759-8871"
(( Yes, it is the same Stan Hathcock, formerly of MetroLease. MetroLease, allegedly was involved in funding the same leases ( double-dipping ) with one of their banks and Textron Financial Corporation, plus reportedly some other "irregular matters and claims," ( for instance, Bob Baker of Wildwood Financial has a large claim against the company ).As we reported other officers left to start their own leasing companies, again. We are told the company has not filed bankruptcy as fraud does not escape this procedure. We have never been able to obtain a public comment to confirm or deny this.
To the point of the letter from Mr. New, it seems all's fair in love and war and in lease marketing, whether it be form letters as above, plastic card leasing, "we used to be the former United Capital." This is not "illegal" and the senders do not believe it "unethical," or they would not send out such letters. They believe this is ethical, "good salesmanship," and "let the buyer beware." The real estate, insurance, and mortgage business were regulated because of the practices of a few who believed anything was fair as long as you didn't get caught. editor. )
Leasing World Yearbook 2001
In this changing leasing world, one of the most often asked question is "who will do a lease in Australia?" "The Philippines?" There are very few foreign leasing companies who belong to local associations.
The best place to start is with the World Leasing Yearbook 2001. It is considered the international reference book for the asset funding and easing industry.
This is not advertising, although it definitely is a "plug" for a great world leasing resource book. It features over 100 authoritative articles by leading industry experts on international leasing and a unique and comprehensive database of over 6,500 companies active in the leasing market.
In addition, the book provides a concise overview of the principles of leasing and a discussion of current trends and debates in the marketplace.There is also a special report on the leasing software and 50 market. It also has a ranking of the top 50 leasing markets by size worldwide.
Profiles on leasing in 50 regions: Africa - Argentina - Australia - Austria - Bangladesh - Belgium - Brazil - Canada - Chile - Colombia - Czech Republic - Denmark - Egypt - Estonia - Finland - France - Germany - Ghana - Greece - Hong Kong - Hungary - India - Indonesia - Ireland - Israel - Italy - Japan - Korea - Luxembourg - Malaysia - Mexico - Morocco - Netherlands - New Zealand - Nigeria - Norway - Pakistan - Panama - Philippines - Poland - Portugal - Russia - Singapore - South Africa - Spain - Sri Lanka - Sweden - Switzerland - Taiwan - Thailand - Turkey - United Kingdom - United States of America. Database.
The most comprehensive database on the industry in the world. Lists of over 6,500 companies in total worldwide providing leasing services in each country in alphabetical order. Companies that are general leasing companies, specialist leasing companies (vehicles, computers, aircraft, vendor/sales aid, containers, shipping, real estate etc.) merchant or investment bankers, consultants, brokers, packagers, lawyers and accountants.
We list their names and addresses, telephone and facsimile numbers, at least one contact name and title, and a summary of their leasing activities.
The World Leasing Yearbook is the only annually-updated reference book on leasing we have found. It is revised and updated each year it is internationally acclaimed as the standard reference book on the subject.
Cost is $250 from: World Publication Service, 1 Maple Street, Unit 8A, East Rutherford, NJ 07073
You can e-mail for more information at wpsjb@aol.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cost of Computer Operation Story *
The story on ASPs and outsourcing IT services that they offer sounds like a total propaganda piece to me. At and average of $9-$10K a year, per workstation, I would have been out of business a long time ago. In my organization, with 12 workstations, a remote office with 4 PCs and a server, and a 6 server cluster, that would be an expense over $200K per year. That is absolutely ludicrous.
I hate to see pieces like this because I think that the average small business out there actually believes this type of hype and propaganda. Just as an example for the other side, we went through a major network upgrade this spring, with 2 new dual processor servers, 8 new "mission critical" workstations, and 2 new mission critical laptops all running Windows 2000 and MS Office XP platform. The total cost of this upgrade was approximately $2200 per machine, including software upgrades and installation.
Furthermore I control all of my own data which is sent to us from our website or remote sources through our own VPN or via modem, where we provide the internet connection. At least I know my firewall and VPN are secure and I immediately know it becomes unsecure.
The cost of the hardware and software is actually dropping all the time. If people would take the time to educate themselves on the various solutions that are out there, and then weigh that cost against the "perpetual" cost of outsourcing and never owning a thing, I think that some companies would make vastly different decisions with respect to the acquisition and deployment of their technology and automation initiatives.
In this market I would be afraid that my ASP couldn't raise the next round of venture capital to stay in business. If that were to occur in a small business situation, you might as well have anchor chained to your feet when they throw you overboard.
Bob Rodi, CLP President LeaseNOW, Inc. drlease@leasenow.com www.leasenow.com 1-800-321-LEAS (5327)x 101 · story yesterday: July 5 http://www.leasingnews.org/
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July 16, Equipment Leasing Association
Principles of Leasing #1 ELA Workshop for Over a Decade!
Radisson Plaza Hotel Minneapolis, Minnesota
Conference Home Page Principles of Leasing #1 ELA Workshop for Over a Decade! Conference
All registered attendees to Principles of Leasing receive a FREE COPY of the highly acclaimed CD-ROM, Professor Lessor's™ Principles of Leasing as part of their registration fee. Principles of Leasing 2001:
Ten convenient locations and dates: more opportunities to give your employees the training they need
A choice of instructors: attendees can choose from two veterans of the leasing industry who serve as the lead instructor in different workshop locations Group discounts for companies sending three or more employees Comprehensive curriculum to broaden attendees understanding of the leasing industry Reorganized workshop materials to help attendees use their time most effectively Networking opportunities, expanding job effectiveness and establishing peer contacts in the industry
Valuable ELA resource materials, including the acclaimed Professor Lessor's(tm) Principles of Leasing CD-ROM
Certificate of Completion: All attendees who pass the optional workshop quiz receive a certificate of completion from ELA
Who Should Attend Operations, credit, collections, documentation, accounting and sales employees, as well as outside legal counsel new to equipment leasing; veterans of the financial services industry unfamiliar with equipment leasing; and anyone, including managers, wishing to refresh their understanding of equipment leasing principles. Strongly Recommended - Bring a Financial Calculator to Class In order to get the most out of the workshop, the instructors encourage attendees to bring an HP-17B financial calculator (HP-12C also acceptable) to the workshop. Workshop on Lease Administration
September 10-12 Denver Marriott Southeast Denver, Colorado
October 1-3 Hyatt Regency Woodfield Schaumburg, Illinois
December 3-5 Sheraton Fisherman's Wharf San Francisco, California
December 3-5 Philadelphia Marriott Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
4301 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 550, Arlington, VA 22203-1627, 703-527-8655 Fax:703-527-2649 Heller Franchise Finance Announces Appointments
Heller Financial, Chicago, announces the following appointments in its Franchise Finance Unit: John T. Smith, vice president, region credit manager; Rudy Navarro, senior credit analyst; Jennifer Paluch, credit analyst; and Beverly A. Harvey, documentation manager.
Lease Team Announces Seven New Employees LeaseTeam, Inc., Omaha, adds seven new employees, including David Alcorn and Brent Eickoff as interns in Development; Ed Pearce in Quality Assurance; Thomas Keefe, Donald Lux and Matt Michaelsen in Development; and Thomas Nicholas in the Connecticut office.
BancPartners Leasing Adds Personnel BancPartners Leasing Corporation, Birmingham, Alabama, announces that Michael Justice and Jack Burnette join the firm as leasing officers, and Shannon Heath joins as administrative assistant in the Nashville division.
These announcements courtesy of elaonline.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------######### ############## ######################## Agilent Technologies Releases Financials for FY99-FY00 Separating Out Discontinued Operations
PALO ALTO, Calif. Historical Financials Show Healthcare Solutions Business as Discontinued Operations in Anticipation of Finalizing Sale
Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE:A) today released financial statements for FY99-FY00 separating out discontinued operations. The eight quarters of earnings statements, including both GAAP and earnings before goodwill amounts, show Agilent's healthcare solutions business as "discontinued operations" in anticipation of finalizing the sale of this business to Royal Philips Electronics.
Note: Q4 FY'00, Q1 & Q2 FY'01 results include the sale of leasing portfolio to the CIT Group, Inc.
CONTACT: Agilent Technologies Inc. Michele Drake, 650/752-5296 (Editorial) michele-drake@agilent.com Hilliard Terry, 650/752-5329 (Investor) hilliard-terry@agilent.com
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Leasing News Policy Statement http://www.leasingnews.org/policy.htm
-----Nothing is sent out that is not "fair." Always unbiased reporting. Fairness always. If it is questionable, we will ask the writer's permission to quote them. We will print information without attribution, but feel as long as we do not name the person who sent it, we can use the information. Any information we think is suspicious, we try to have if substantiated first by at least two reliable people. We will not purposely send out "negative" news. We prefer "positive" news. We have no "axe" to grind or are not paid or seek or accept any remuneration for product or promotion. We do not spam anyone. To be added to the mailing list, you must request it. We do not send anything about our company or personal e-mail or jokes to the leasing news list. We do not share our mailing list with anyone. We try not to send more than one report a day, if at that, unless an "alert." We follow Internet Netiquette at all times. Our sole purpose is to provide communication to improve our profession. We reserve the right to deny sending the newsletter when requested. We reserve the right to edit or delete an opinion that is not in good taste or is outright derogatory. Leasingnews.org www.leasingnews.org
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