One of the Tri-Counties’ smallest banks has made a sizeable rebound in the 10 months since a team of Santa Barbara investors purchased it from its former Michigan parent.
The Bank of Santa Barbara, which came under local ownership in November 2009, has seen deposits jump 80 percent year-over-year as assets climbed more than 54 percent. Its tier-one capital has increased by more than $4.5 million, providing liquidity that CEO Eloy Ortega said will fuel organic growth and new lending.
Ortega led a team of investors — including Kinko’s founder Paul Orfalea, Hutton Foundation President Thomas Parker and Tim Marquez of oil company Venoco — to purchase the then-$62 million bank from its struggling parent firm, Michigan-based Capitol Bancorp.
The full version of this article is only available in the print edition. To view everything the Business Times offers, see this week’s print version or SUBSCRIBE to the print edition for $49.99 today.