Carter to Leave Great American Bank
Thomas F. Carter, who as senior vice president and chief lending officer at Great American Bank led a committee that significantly whittled down the savings and loan’s portfolio of non-performing assets, announced his resignation from the S&L; effective at the end of this month.
Carter, 49, said he is leaving the job he has held since December, 1987, to pursue “entrepreneurial opportunities” although he said he has not yet decided what line of work he will follow. He will be replaced by F. Raymond Silliman, executive vice president and a Great American executive since 1984. Both Carter and Great American insisted that Carter’s decision to resign was his alone.
When Carter returned to Great American in 1987--he had previously worked for the S&L; from 1964 to 1981--after a six-year stint as a real estate developer, there was speculation that the San Diego native was in line to become the S&L;’s chief executive. But Carter said Tuesday that he decided over the last month that helping manage a mammoth S&L; with $16.4 billion in assets was not his cup of tea.
When Carter rejoined Great American in December, 1987, Great American’s bad loans totaled $495 million, or 3.27% of assets, a relatively high percentage. About half of those loans were in Arizona, where overbuilding and falling land values led to problems for several S&Ls.;
Carter was named to head a team charged specifically with reduce the bad assets. After nearly two years of massive write-downs and foreclosure sales, he helped Great American reduce its non-performing loans to $321 million, or 1.95% of assets, as of Sept. 30.
On Tuesday, Carter said Great American’s bad loans should be reduced further, to about $260 million by the of this year, but that the reduction will be accomplished without the massive loan loss provisions taken by Great American in recent quarters. During the quarter ending Dec. 31, Great American will sell up to $40 million worth of foreclosed properties and bring current up to $50 million in now-delinquent loans, he said.
