Jefferson is concerned the banks current issues will end up with his investments suffering.
“This bank is under a consent order, that means they are not allowed to pay any dividends and the trust preferred payment is a dividend. So they can’t pay the trust preferreds and they can’t pay themselves a dividend from being a common shareholder, so they are getting around paying terms es a dividend by just paying themselves more money in salaries.”
Jefferson has thoughts on what could be going on with the bank and why it is askew.
“In 2013 Charles Chrietzberg of Monterey County Bank’s ratios were basically the same as they are now, and we needed up buying his trust preferreds at a discount because the CDO was liquidated and we could buy them at a discount. He defers for five years, which he can do, and then he comes up with the money not through the banks, because he’s not allowed to make the payments, but through some outside source. But what I find just appalling is his non-interest expenses, for things like rent and compensation, are some of the highest of banks in the country, he could be the highest paid bank executive of you looked at it on an asset basis in the country. And who else does he pay? His children. So this is some sort of crazy estate planning of taking all the assets out of the bank and then one day he’s going to call us up and say I’m declaring bankruptcy because I’ve just stolen all the money out of the bank.”
