Thrift Appeared to Have One Owner : U.S. Agency Tells Pioneer S & L to Reveal Names of 7 Investors
A Newport Beach savings institution that appeared to be owned by one person is actually owned by eight individuals, and a federal regulatory agency is requiring the other seven investors to reveal their interests officially.
Pioneer Savings & Loan Assn. opened in January, 1985, with $2 million in capital supplied by James F. Deane, who became the S&L;’s chairman and apparent sole owner of 200,000 shares.
But Deane, it turned out, got more than $1.8 million of the funds in a complicated financing arrangement with the seven other individuals, and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board has determined that the arrangement hid the true ownership of the S&L;, according to documents recently filed with the state Department of Savings and Loan.
Finding that the group was acting “in concert,” the bank board has required the other seven to file a change-of-ownership application that indicates their true interest in Pioneer and to seek approval as owners.
Offer to Buy Shares
The recently filed application and the regulatory approval process, expected to take two to three months, would not result in any money changing hands or in any additional money going into Pioneer.
On behalf of the other investors, however, William C. Ring, a Corona del Mar real estate agency owner and one of the principal S&L; investors, has offered Deane $10 a share for the 55,000 shares Deane would have left after the application is approved, according to Shirley Thayer, a deputy state S&L; commissioner. The offer has not yet been accepted but remains open, she said.
Deane is on vacation this week and unavailable for comment, Pioneer President Tim Peralta said.
Most of the investors are “hunting and fishing buddies,” some of whom had invested together in other projects, Ring said.
He did not know if the changes will affect Pioneer’s operations. “Once we’re approved and we’re elected to the board of directors, we’ll have to consider any changes,” he said. “But we’re not planning any changes.”
Pioneer, which opened as South Coast S&L; and changed its name in April, 1985, for marketing purposes, posted a net loss of $454,000 last year. But its net worth and other financial indicators appeared strong at the end of the year. Its assets were $15 million then and its ratio of net worth to assets, a common indicator of an S&L;’s health, then stood at 10.8%. State regulators require new S&Ls; to maintain a 7% ratio.
According to the application, five of the investors--Ring, Robert J. Lucas of Newport Beach, Sheldon E. Medall of San Diego, James C. Gianulias of Corona del Mar and his brother, Dr. Gus C. Gianulias of Sacramento--will each own about 13% of the S&L.; The other two investors--David V. Whiting of Tustin and Dr. Jack Sioukas of Sacramento--will own about 2% each. Sioukas, who was entitled to a greater share, is selling the rest of his interest, about 5%, to five other parties who are not required to seek regulatory approval as owners because they were not part of the original financing agreement. Deane owns the remaining shares.
