Statements
November 30, 2011 – Statement 4: M. Perry’s Responses to SEC’s First Set of Interrogatories
November 21, 2011 – Statement 3: SEC’s Responses to M. Perry’s First Set of Interrogatories
September 29, 2011 – Statement 2: M. Perry’s Motion to Dismiss FDIC Complaint
September 1,2011 – Statement 1: Initial Statement
“To sin by silence when they should protest makes cowards of men” -Abraham Lincoln
My name is Michael Perry. I am the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Indymac. I have kept silent for three years in the hope that I would be left alone and allowed to rebuild my professional life, but unfortunately that has not been the case. I have been forced to defend myself against unwarranted and false, public allegations.
On July 11, 2008, Indymac Bank was seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) after a U.S. Senator’s inappropriate public statements during the financial crisis caused a “run on the bank” that rapidly depleted the bank’s ample liquidity. As a result of this bank run and the fact that Indymac was deemed by banking regulators to be “Not Too Big To Fail”, it was not around just a few months later, at the height of the financial crisis, to receive any of the significant and unprecedented assistance the government provided to every “Too Big To Fail” financial institution and hundreds of smaller financial firms. Without this assistance, many, if not most would have suffered the same fate as Indymac, including some of the largest and oldest firms.
Since that time, I and others have been the subject of various government investigations and named as defendants in numerous civil lawsuits, including ones filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on February 11, 2011 (31 months after Indymac was seized), and the FDIC on July 6, 2011 (3 years after Indymac was seized).
The plaintiffs in these civil lawsuits apparently don’t care about the facts or the truth; these suits are filled with distortions and inaccuracies. They are primarily being pursued to gain access to potential settlement proceeds from directors and officers liability insurance, or in the case of the SEC to show politicians, the press, and the public that they are now tough enforcers of the securities laws. The FDIC, for its part, is seeking a significant share of D&O insurance proceeds, but it is also inappropriately seeking to blame former banking executives like me for the FDIC’s own failures. The private deposit insurance fund, for which the FDIC is responsible, became insolvent during this crisis and remains so; without the full faith and credit of the U.S. behind them, they like Indymac and many others, would have failed.
Importantly, Indymac decided in 2000 to carry out its business model through the acquisition of a depository institution whose deposits were insured by the FDIC. Because of this decision, Indymac – unlike government-sponsored mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (and others) — has not cost U.S. taxpayers one penny. And while the seizure of Indymac Bank has cost the FDIC’s insurance fund billions, industry experts and others (including me) believe that much of the insurance fund’s loss was avoidable, if only the FDIC had worked with us to save the bank when that was still possible or if the FDIC had made better decisions as conservator once it took over the bank.
Not one of the lawsuits against me has any merit.
I, and the management team and directors of Indymac Bank, made prudent and appropriate business decisions based on the facts available to us at the time and always with the primary goal being to keep Indymac Bank safe and sound, within the parameters of our regulatory-approved, mortgage lending business model. And importantly, we always acted with honesty, integrity and complete transparency and properly complied with all relevant regulations and laws.
The plaintiffs know this and as a result do not want these matters to go to trial where they will lose. This is what happens in America today. Frivolous lawsuits rarely go to trial and nearly always settle despite their lack of merit, because of the time and cost to defend against them (and perversely having a “pot” of liability insurance, or even better a deep-pocket, corporate indemnification, encourages more lawsuits and more settlements). It is particularly disheartening though, to have U.S. government agencies like the SEC and FDIC engaged in this type of behavior in order to further their own image without regard to the damage done to the reputation, career, and finances of honest individuals like myself and others. And it’s not just me and my family that is adversely affected. I believe these legal tactics have a long-term cost to our country’s economic potential and erode our standards. In regard to my latter assertion, I don’t think most Americans are aware (I wasn’t until recently), but there is an exemption in our defamation laws that “privileges” plaintiff’s lawyers and allows them to distort facts and make untrue statements and defame defendants like myself, without any consequence, even if the defendant proves so later in a court of law. This doesn’t seem right, does it?
In conclusion, this site’s purpose is to counter the allegations in these lawsuits (and regurgitated in the press as authoritative, when they are not) with the truth and the facts, for those who care to spend the time to read the documents on this site and understand them. I plan to start out slowly, focus on the government cases, and then if I have the time and it is warranted, expand the site to include my views based upon my experiences and post-crisis study of its true systemic and macroeconomic causes.
Site Visitors:
SEC looks into Deutsche Bank CDO shorted by Paulson
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Deutsche Bank is facing an SEC investigation for its role in structuring a synthetic CDO, according to a report by Der Spiegel. The German publication states that the bank’s actions in raising a CDO under its Start programme will come under question after it allegedly allowed hedge fund Paulson to select assets to go into the fund. The bank is then said to have neglected to have told investors about Paulson’s role in the transaction as well as concealing the fact that the hedge fund had taken a short position on the assets, allowing it to profit as the deal collapsed.
Chuck Schumer fund-raiser John Paulson is key figure in Goldman Sachs fraud case, records reveal
BY MICHAEL MCAULIFF
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Saturday, April 24, 2010
LA TIMES February 20, 2010|By E. Scott Reckard
In taking over IndyMac’s assets, the investor group, led by Steven Mnuchin of Dune Capital Management, put up $1.55 billion to revitalize the bank. Other investors included hedge-fund operators George Soros and John Paulson, bank buyout expert J. Christopher Flowers and computer mogul Michael S. Dell.
Just another example of the Potomac two step crushing honest businessmen while rewarding and bailing out the wall street firms that caused the liquidity crisis to begin with. I was one of your RVP’s and believe you have no guilt nor anything to be ashamed of.
I was a 10+ year employee at IndyMac Bank. Whether addressing employess at monthly meetings, addressing shareholders/investors at annual shareholders meetings or behind closed doors at senior management meetings, Mike was consistent and transparent. He was and continues to be a visionary – he taught us to take off our blinders and step out of each of our respective disciplines in order to better understand the mortgage industry in its entirety. MIke’s number one goal had always been to achieve long term growth and success for the bank and its shareholders . . . . . he never lost his way. I thank you Mike.
Settle and be done with it and move on with you life. Your mentor Mozilo did it. Your peers at Wamu just did it. This website is nice, but I don’t see how it will help you fight the lawsuits to your advantage. It only gives gossip mongers materials to, well, talk and gossip about you. In any case, I will always and forever wonder if you booted Scott Keyes (who was my boss’ boss) or if he left you at the last moment. Medical reasons…yeah, whatever.
Mike,
I am a former executive/owner of a family owned bank that was Too Small to Fight. It was the policy OTS management including Mr. Dochow, Michael Finn who preceeded Dochow and the rest of OTS Senior Management to promote Alt A mortgage lending and othe practices e.g. backdating capital injections for the sole purpose to keep their jobs. If Indy Mac were the only OTS regulated instittuition to have done this i may not believe that Dochow instructed you to do so, however this practice was not isolated to Indy Mac. My situation is different we didnt fail but were forced to sell for political expediency. We were involved in an OTS approved charter rental agreement with Decision One Mortgage a subsidiary of HSBC Bank originating $250mm of volume per month of ALT A mortgages. When the political winds changed and this type of lending fell out of favor we bacame an easy target. I applaud you for standing up. Keep it up!
Uh, you as the Chairman and the CEO too “close to home”; these functions and responsibilities should be separated; but, perhaps this would mean your remuneration would be reduced. Lastly, in that position, job you were responsible for the entity; for it’s success or failure.
Mr. Perry..
I hope all is well, . I am so glad you are getting the truth out for everyone to understand what really happened. I knew from day one that it is not your fault Mr. Perry. I was reading the blog with tears in my eyes. Mr. Perry you are a respectable , honest genuine Man. I know its been a while since my last email to you. It is not that I forgot what a great man and wonderful person you are, but I went thru some rough times as well,, I am OK now. I still live in pasadena and I totally avoid driving on lake avenue, for some reason I feel like my heart was pulled out when this happened. Mr. Perry, You have a special place in my heart and my family’s heart, We all wish you and your family the best always.
roula
I worked for IndyMac Bank since 1993 left in 2007. My kids had a dream to work for Indymac Bank and they did. Mr. Perry you made Indymac Bank the best place to work at. I Live in Pasadena and do not drive by Lake avenue anymore… You are a great man Mr. Perry . Wish you the best always and I have no doubt you will make a comeback.. Good Luck to you and your family..
We had no liquidity crisis and the capital raised through Goldman Sachs to meet our PCA. Notified the regulators and they seized us the next day. United Western Bank vs. OTS. I was shocked as the Chairman of the Board. Half the branches where closed and half the employees lost there jobs. How does this help rebuild our economy? Oh by the way, I’ve never been personally audited in my live, the minute I sued the government, guess who shows up? The IRS.
Mr. Gibson,
I have followed the UWB story, what a crime and a shame. You are right in asking the question; how does tis help rebuild the economy? I think it is pretty evident that the economy needs to be rebuilt from the bottom up. The top-down model is obviously flawed and broken. What drives the economy? Consumer participation. Financially weak consumers = a weak economy (too few participants). A financially strong consumer = a strong economy (many active participants). This economy needs willing and financially capable participants. The banking community itself can make that transition happen. They just need to open up their minds and see they have everthing needed to turn everything around. Unfortunately, decades of conventioanl practice has left banking institutions blinded.
I have ideas to discuss with visionary bankers. Proven models of profitability for both institution and consumer.
What are you doing today?
Mike,
I unfortunately only was able to work for Indy Mac for a short period of time before the events that eventually led to the closing of the company. In my short time there I really came to appreciate the culture and leadership of the company. Having to work through the chaos that began in 2007 it felt great to be at a company with the principles and foresight to change and succeed in our new financial world. I am also a person who personally bought a lot of the stock based on my confidence in the direction our company was going. I specifically remember the day Schumer had made his comments and the instant negative impact it had on our company and was/continue to be furious by the ability a politician has with reprucissions to cause the damage he did. I had looked forward to my future with Indy Mac and still regret that I didn’t get the opportunity to see where it could have gone. Though short, I am glad that I was part of company you created.
Dan
Hats off to you Mike. Right, wrong or indifferent, someone has to step up and expose the corrupt. This is the 1920′s all over again. Shurmer; what a snake. Unfortunately we are pretty much powerless to enforce justice against him, unless of course we bring back shackles in the town square and let the public take care of him.
There is one thing we can do as a consumer base though, as it relates to the “too big to fail” banks; quit doing business with them! You don’t need rumors to start a run on a bank. Just make a decision, collectively to not do business with any particular institution. Take your money and give it to a community bank or credit union in your own neighborhood. Do you want to get the big boys out of your town? Then don’t do business with them. It’s that simple. Don’t feed the cat if you don’t want it hanging around the back door.
The whole banking model has to change from the ground up, NOT the top down. Build a stronger consumer and you build a stronger bank. Build an insititution the regulators applaud (or ignore). Everybank has the tools to help consumers become much stronger financially, but NONE of them can provide the education on how to use what they sell. Most bankers don’t know how to use what they sell. The model has to change if we expect financial change in this country. It can work if you know how to work it.
Keep up the good fight!!!
I worked for Indymac for almost a year. We were hopeful this would be a great place to retire after 20 years working at Southern California’s biggest community bank. Big surprise a year later. Waht would have happened if IMB, WaMu and Lehman had been given life support to succeed? Wouldn’t we have been better off if we had wound down over a few years while other business lines increased revenues. What was holding that back? I see AHM, they didn’t have a sustainable capital base, but IMB had all those deposits. The BK only gave Government Support to the firesale buyers, and wiped the investors. Did that accomplish anything positive? Could it have worked out better?
Mr. Perry. While I worked for IMB, I was tasked with resolving disputes with the bank. I learned quickly that you were a “stand up guy” and when I presented facts that we screwed up, I saw you make it right. When there was a question on consumer reaction to options arms, I was tasked was presenting the truth with how they worked and not once was there anything asked but to present the truth. You impressed me the entire time. I never saw the Mike Perry they try to portray. I saw a tough but sound businessman who treated us like family at IMB.
Thanks,
David
Mike:
IndyMac was a great company and you were a great leader..But I’m personally over the entire nightmare, and have moved on with my life. I learned a lot from you during my 11 years at IndyMac, and hope carry it on to my new career.
Take Care friend,
Mark
Best of Luck, Mike. I enjoyed working with you and other senior leaders in my sphere. Tony, John, JK, Eric and many others are people I respect and still communicate with. I hope that all the other IMB associates were like me and able to take the values we gained under your leadership and use them in our post IMB careers
I too was a CEO of a failed Bank. Why does no one mention the rapid decline in Net Interest Margin? We were only six years old when our NIM went from 6.5% to 2.2%. That rapid 4.3% decline in NIM resulted in a reduction of interest income of $40 million per year! As a relatively small financial institution of $1 billion in assets we simply could not manage the $3 million per month charge to our capital position. Throw in a few bad loans (still less than 2% in the first depression in 80 years) as we were an SBA boutique lender, and the complete shutdown of the SBA secondary market and our liquidity was stressed.
We were audited annually by our wonderful CPA firm, a “special” SBA audit firm, as well as the combined State and FDIC regulators. Of course they nit picked as us on small issues but in the end they all rated us “experts in credit and documentation. In 2006 we were rated by Bauer Financial and the American Banker Association the number one performer in our asset class. Now however the FDIC in its “always wrong” stance has been threatening to sue the entire BOD on issues of poor performance, bad management, etc…
I guess what really gets my heart pounding are two facts:
First, no one not even our esteemed regulators had a chrystal ball. If the FDIC were blamless then they should have predicted the financial crisis themselves long befor the crash. But instead they want to point the finger at people who have been honest hard working men and women for 40 years, and say now they we are crooks. After spending our whole life in banking and always doing whats right even went it hurt….we’re crooks! The fact is 99% of us loved what we did, and loved banking. We had our whole personal and professional careers and most of our personal resources invested in our institutions. So why would we ever hurt them?
Second, we were strong in our community. We were the number one small business lender in our community for many years. Creating thousands of jobs! Yet we, as the american people were also, were deemed not too big to fail. The Federal government chose to bail out the “Big Boys” and let the small community banks and the american people fail. Now the “Big Boys” all still have their jobs and their stock has value. Yet they charge the american people $35 for and overdraft, 30% interest on credit cards, and foreclose on our homes using our own money to throw us out!
I guess I am bitter. I’m bitter because the regulators want to chase the D & O monies with attorneys who would be unemployed if not for this job. They have to discredit us to succeed. And I’m sorry for you Mr. Perry because they have to make an example of someone to hid their own fault. This time it is you. But for the rest of us…… There were only two insurance companies of any merrit which wrote the D & O coverage across the United States. The same people who own them are the same people who own the “too big to fail banks” . People not corporations. I’m sure they have contacted their congressmen and senators and after a few of the scapegoats are publically admonished all will fade away.
Mr. Perry you only have one life. You must for your own sake and the sake of your family get out of this asap. It is not your fault …it is like getting cancer. Find a nice consulting job with Accenture……they have been thru this before. Hug your kids …go to church….. stand up tall. Be proud of your accomplishments. You have a lot to be proud of. Unfortunately only a few of us will understand. I think there are about 400 of us CEO’s out there. CEO’s who were not too big to fail.
Mr. Harold,
Based on your comments above and other comments you have left at various locations across the internet it appears you are a bank executive that understands the fundamentals of a strong financial institution (or a country for that matter): the foundation is built upon the financial strength of the consumer. As the old saying goes: S&@t flows down hill and boy are we all sitting in it. It’s like the boys on the hill, the Fed, the Treeasury and the “too big to failers” all took a laxative on the same day back in 2008. Now they’re coming after guys like Mike Perry and blaming guys like you for the mess. It’s madness.
However, crisis delivers TWO elements; disaster and opporutnity. The disaster has already occurred. The opportunity is still present.
I would like to talk to you (or anyone of the 400 CEO’s you referenced) about an innovative business model. The pilot program of this model has deemed itself wildly successful from July 2007 to today. This model attracts an A+ consumer base and provides the ability to reach 100% SOW with that consumer. This business model has the makings to change the financial landscape of this country WITHOUT the need for big government and big business/banks.
Here’s one thing I don’t anyone truly understands in this country, expecially the citizens. Remember the “golden Rule’; He with the gold rules. Well, everyone thinks “He” is the government and big banks, but that’s not the case. “He” is “We”! We the people are the ones who earn and spend. We are the ones that hand over our income to deposit accounts, the same accounts that keep the banking machine running. What happens if We stop depositing our income? What would happen? Want to make the big boys (BofA, WF, USB) fall to their knees? Have 50% of their customers cash their paycheck instead of deposit it. Wow, could you imagine? You can ALWAYS take down a bully. You just need to know his weakness.
If you want to force change you need to act. To gain allegiance you need to lead. The country needs a financial revolution and it needs a leader to direct its purpose.
If there is a banking executive reading this who considers themselves a leader, a visionary and has the capacity to bring change to a failed business model? If you want to discuss the possible future in banking and borrowing then please contact me directly at bwestrom@ifsdg.net
Face it guys; the current banking model has proven itself to be outdated, antiquated and ineffective. It’s time for a change.
Mr. Perry:
You’re to be commended for having the courage and tenacity to work to clear your name. The system of justice in America is about as crisp as the regulatory regime that oversaw the mortgage industry. Sadly, you are suffering from both. I hope you’re successful. Get good help and post everything you can within the parameters of confidentiality. Sunshine has a great way of cleansing misconceptions.
Mike,
In my short tenure with IMB I always respected you as a leader and knew that youand the mangement team did every thing possible to save IMB. We were all hard working employees that had a goal. . to continue to make IMB the successful company it was for many years. As a former IMB employee and now OneWest Bank employee I truly miss working for you and would not hesitate to work for you again!
Hi Mike
I have been your corner since you were a “pup” and remain there now. I’m retired now for 4 years but if you need me just ask.
Tom Rafferty
Mr. Perry I had the best 10 years of my career at IndyMac, our leadership , our culture cannot be replicated!! I respected your decisions during that tenure and I respect them today. Keep your head held high. Thank you for all IndyMac has done for me as a person and more importantly my family.
Sincerely,
Ann M DiCola
Mike,
I have always known you to be a person of high integrity. I have seen how important your family is to you and I know you viewed your fellow employees at IndyMac as an extended family. Seeing so many of them post here on your behalf is a testament to that.
Your courage and fortitude through all of this is admirable. The easiest thing to do would be to roll over and make it go away. The fact that you did not take the easy road tells me you are a man of true conviction…something lacking in so many of our “leaders”.
All the best,
Tim
Mike: I bought stock in IndyMac in 2006 after listening to a couple of your quarterly earnings conference calls. I was totally blown away by your deep and broad understanding of the business, openness about the risks and clear thinking about the strategy. There are not too many CEO’s who could do what you did. I may have lost a little money when the bank was closed after Shumer’s comments caused a panic driven run, but I regret more that the industry lost you as a leader…at least until now.
Mike,
I too was an alt A lender who sold loans to IndyMac through your correspondent channel. MY company went from 150 hard working individuals to nothing in the span of 3 years. Eventually we were forced to close our doors due to the exact same issues. We were confronted with by plaintiffs attorneys exhausting our E and O insurance and then doing exactly as you describe filing countless frivolous lawsuit after frivolous lawsuit that we were having to spend hundred of thousands a dollars per year to fight just to get to a settlement. Eventually our net worth was exhausted and we felt it was not a fight worth fighting any more and we closed our doors in early 2010. In the 3 years since Indymac was shut down I have spoken to many of your former employees and I can tell you that so many people appreciated working for you. It truly seems as though it was a special time in their lives. I hope to one day soon rebuild my next company and follow in your foot steps of building a great company. The witch hunts and political posturing in the mortgage and banking industry has been a very hard lesson for me to learn and has opened my eyes to the unfairness of the powers that be. I appreciate you telling your story and I believe that the truth will prevail at some point.
Best of Luck,
DM
DM –
In the court of historic retrospect in too many cases ALT A = Shouldn’t have gotten a mortgage to begin with. Unfortunately, alot of what we perceived as an economic recovery during the early 2000s was an illusion fueled by easy money and easier cash out refinances which subsidized and inflated what appeared to be real economic growth. I am sorry for your 150 hard working employees who thought they had long term jobs that were not built on pillars of sand.
DB
Michael, although I briefly worked under your regime I found IndyMac — for the most — to have many intelligent forward thinking employees at all levels who worked extremely hard and brought forward a wealth of knowledge from other institutions. If you knew what is going on now you would vomit, scream, yell and hollar. Yes, IMB failed on your watch. But did the FDIC not give the Bank away rather than assist in repairing the damages created by Schumer’s allegations. Many former IMB folks understand the failure was not of your doing, nor was it your intent. And many former IMB / IMFB folks would work for you again in a heart beat. Keep this blog alive and let true facts be known. Many are curious to know why you are not an executive at OneWest Bank. It would be better to have you as an executive than the current executive vice president of 1st Federal Bank which failed as well. Wishing you the best!
A leader is only as good or bad as the information he or she receives. Not Too Big To Fail might be an appropriate title on many different levels. Thank you for your open candor. How our Country has been taken down with be something of discussion to debate for many years, where time and the rearview mirror will tell.
Once tarnished from accurate or inaccurate information, a reputation and a career can be something very strenuous to re-build.
Good luck salvaging your own.
Sincerely,
Hi Mike! It’s GREAT to hear you speak out. Well said! You have my 100% support. As long-term members of the Indymac Family, Ernie and I are happy to have our side of the story told. Chin up, fight the good fight. I’m honored to add my name to the list of your personal and professional supporters!
Sara
Hi Mike. I have tried many times to find and reach out to you.Thankfully, I stumbled onto this blog. We have a shared business relationship going back to the Commerce days. It had always been open and successful. Keep you bobber up, things WILL get better. Just be who you are and move forward with your integrity, as always.
Bob
I used to run a mortgage company with over 300 wonderful, hardworking employees. Unfortunately, I experienced first hand how a democracy works when times get tough. Every legislator, regulator and rule maker want scalps. They don’t care how they get them, it’s about quantity and perp walks. New laws, regulations and rules were coming at our company with such fervor, I knew that I had to get out fast or be one of those scalps. It’s a sad way for such a proud country to run and unfortunately most Americans have no idea what their federal and state governments have done to real estate in America.
RLee@1nmc.com
Could not agree with you more.
I worked for FInancial Freedom when this happened. Before that I watched the mortgage market from the inside. Before that I worked with IndyMac as an institutional customer. I am continuously disgusted by the ignorance and incompetence of our political population throughout this chain of events. Why is Schumer not under indictment or at least investigation? Why aren’t we watching trials of the management of the Federal agencies that were supposed to be doing their regulatory jobs – instead of watching Washington attempting to scapegoat and persecute executives like Perry?
Fred,
I share in your disgust. Why you ask? Why are we just watching everyone get robbed by the government? Dirty, greedy politics. In order to fully understand possible motives, we have to go back a little ways to 2007 when John Paulson invested $15 million into Center for Responsible Lending (CRL). Paulson also contibuted over 100k to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. 6 months later, on a Thursday, Schumer released his “concerns” for Indymac. 4 days later on Monday, for the first time ever, the CRL released their report on Indymac. They had never released a full research report on an individual company ever!
Fast forward another 6 months and you will find John Paulson and his buddy George Soros getting the coupon extreme of a deal on whats left of Indymac. Just for pennies on the dollar and getting some amazing kickbacks from the FDIC, One West has really landed the deal of a lifetime.
Oh, just to make sure that our Treasury Department is in line, Eric Stein who was a top executive of CRL is now in charge of the Proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency.
If this was a murder trial and we were searching for motive….that sounds like a good start. What can we do? I don’t know, but I do know that Mike Perry taught us all to scream like hell when something wasn’t right and to treat each other with candid respect.
I’ve learned to stop asking why and start asking what…what can I do? What can we do?
All of the big banks deserved to fail. They were made whole at huge expense to the American taxpayer and the US dollar. I don’t know if IndyMac was singled out as a scapegoat or not, buy the whole affair stinks to high hell.
I am the former CEO of a “failed” Bank. I feel for you and know what your going thought we were a 46 Million Dollar bank, but what the “regulators” but us thought is unbelievable. On one call with the regulators seem to be blaming me and our tiny little bank for the global economic crisis..I considered myself to be a patriotic person, and still do. But seeing what the government does is just unbelievable to me. People would not believe it.
Stay strong…..
You have a vision and you go for it; one of the reasons I enjoyed working for Indymac for 10 years. Hang in there Mike. Let the truth be told and you will win!!! Blessings to you and your family.
Helen
For those of you that missed it, here was the petition letter:
IndyMac Employees for Justice
July 15, 2008
Hon. Edmund G. Brown, Jr.
Attorney General
State of California
1300 “I” Street
P.O. Box 944255
Sacramento, CA 94244-2550
Re: FDIC Seizure of IndyMac Bank, FSB
Dear Attorney General Brown:
The individuals joining in this letter are all former employees of IndyMac Bank until it was closed by the FDIC on Friday, July 10, 2008. We have been hard working, dedicated staff (tellers, operations, compliance, lending staff) who strived to make IndyMac an excellent bank in difficult times. We provided for our families, paid our taxes, contributed to our communities and assisted our customers. In short we were living the American dream and doing our part to make this a better place to live.
That all ended on Friday. Because of a malicious, politically motivated act of Charles Schumer, our lives have been shattered. His deliberate publication of what should have been a confidential letter to bank regulators was the direct cause of the failure of IndyMac Bank. From the day his letter was made public on June 26 until the closure of the Bank, a run on the bank took place and the failure became inevitable. Mr. Schumer can’t hide behind legislative immunity for taking this deliberate step. He may have immunity for acts as a member of congress but not for his deliberate personal act in publishing the private letter.
We allege that Charles Schumer has violated the law of the State of California. Specifically, Section 3369 of the California Financial Code reads:
Any person who willfully and knowingly makes, circulates, or transmits to another or others, any statement or rumor, written, printed, or by word of mouth, which is untrue in fact and is directly or by inference derogatory to the financial condition or affects the solvency or financial standing of any bank doing business in this State, or who knowingly counsels, aids, procures, or induces another to start, transmit, or circulate any such statement or rumor, is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) or by imprisonment for not more than one year, or both.
We are angry and want you personally and your office to immediately and vigorously pursue justice under the laws of California. We are all citizens of California and are the very people who the laws of California are intended to protect. Moreover, we are not the only people who have been harmed by Mr. Schumer’s violation of our State’s laws. A lot of our customers lost their savings and have little hope of recovery.
We hereby demand that you immediately commence a California Department of Justice investigation into the crime of Charles Schumer and indict him when you have confirmed his malicious acts. We request that you keep us informed of the investigation and that it not be delayed. When Charles Keating caused the failure of a bank, he went to jail. Mr. Schumer deserves the same fate and we won’t rest until this job has been done.
Thank you for your expected cooperation.
Sincerely,
The Employees of IndyMac Bank, FSB
Jennifer Seely
[list names]
Mike,
I am thrilled to hear you speak out. These last 3+ years have been filled with sheer injustice and have been unsettling. I fought as hard as I personally could by writing the petition letter to have Schumer investigated. So many amazing employees stepped up to sign the petition and I had many customers write to me and share with me their stories. I didn’t expect anything going into it, but I have never been one to sit back on the sidelines and watch. Although unsuccessful, at it allowed people to know the truth about Schumer and the events leading to the bank run which directly caused the demise of Indymac.
You are so well respected by the thousands that worked for you. If there is anything we can do to support you, please let us know.
Kind Regards,
Jennifer Seely
Hi Mike,
I enjoyed the fact that in my short three years at Indymac as a review appraiser, I always felt able to carry out my job to the best of my ability according to corporate quidelines. No one pressured me to approve appraisals if I had concern about the value. I was also an Indymac customer and as a self employed business woman prior to working at Indymac, I was grateful for the opportunity to invest in real estate which had been unavailable to me in the past as it is once again due to credit tightening. That California loan was long ago paid in full. I had a great relationship with the bank and the appraisal department as a ” go to” California appraiser in the San Francisco Bay area.
What I really appreciated was that at any time I could communicate with you directly by email.
I do not think it fair that Indymac was singled out and Countrywide bailed out.
Good luck to you and your family- you will prevail and rebuild based on your strength of character and optomistic viewpoint.
God bless.
Susan Cheng
Weatherford, TX
Mike, being an Indymac Alum, I very much appreciate you putting the truth out there. I agree 100% with your statements. Hopefully “truth” will beat out “politics”, but given American history, I’m skeptical. You are one of the wisest and most brilliant business leaders that I’ve ever met – except for your temper:<)
Have courage and keep pushing forward!!!
Amen, Mike. You know I have given you my support in private, and I do so publicly here.
Jorge Mena, Jr.
As a former employee of Indy Mac who saw the organization grow, from the 6th Floor of 35 North Lake, I can tell you that many share your sentiments and feelings. Way to go Mike, you will make it happen. Best wishes and prayers are with you.
I worked for you at Indymac for 13 years. I am also in touch with many of the banking and non-banking business leaders both locally in LA and nationally that know you personally and or professionally. Every single person that I have spoken to believes that you are one of the smartest, most capable, honest and fair business leaders they have ever met, and that you have been singled out unfairly by a government that doesn’t care about the truth—A government that only cares about headlines and deflecting blame. This blog is the right vehicle for the truth and we are all proud that you had courage to create it.
You are a very brave man. Seems like this story should be told on Dateline, 60 Minutes, CNBC or Fox Business. Perhaps as you develop the story, they will pick it up. Jeff N.
Mike,
Thank you for your commentary. You were always very open, un-biased and communicative. I hope you and your family are doing well.
Lance Lemoine
You don’t get it. You failed to manage risks and your bank failed. All the banks should have failed. We need banks but not yours or any of TBTF. Banking is a utility company. Start over with new boring banking, low leverage.
Mike – I am glad that you have come forward like this. Life is certainly not fair in matters such as this one. i look forward to catching up on what the future might hold for you.
My heart goes out to you. As an orthopaedic surgeon, I have been sued frivollously on a few occasions, and regardless of the merit of the suit, it exacts its toll from your soul. Goldman Sacs, GE, Fannie and Freddie, et al get the bennies, because lf the greased skids of politics, and those like you remain sacrificial lambs. Time for the Judas Goat to get his due……
Amen Mike,
Your blog is excellent . You should go on a speaking tour that funds taking these siuts to court. If they new you had the will and the resources to fight, they will probably cower.
Mike,
While in hindsight we (and the rest of the financial world) may have made different business decisions, in the 5 years I worked at IndyMac I always admired your candor, transparency & integrity. I still do, and would now add resiliancy to that list as well. Hang in there – I’m confident those qualities will see you through this as well, however long that may take. In the meantime, all the best to you and your family.
Ted Tekippe
Thanks Mike,
Appreciate your courage and willingness to finish the story…..Schummer’s irresponsible comments incited panic and put a target on your back. The consequences are unconscionable. Let’s not forget the recognition and respect you earned from peers and industry leaders for your innovation, leadership, character and integrity that drove one of the consistently most competitive platforms of its day. Your leadership inspired thousands, including myself. You instilled a performance accountability discipline and invested into cutting edge technology that helped reshape the business.
“You can’t keep a good man down.”
Rick Glass
Way to go, Mike. I suspect like so many others, you and Indy Mac became Schummer’s target to raise his political profile (along with Dodd, Polousi and Reid, not to mention their mandate (Ted Kennedy) to force lenders to make loans to unqualified consumers.
Like all of us, I am disheartened not only by the behavior of our elected officials (regardless of party) but of their focus on re-election, not problem solving.
Hang in there.
Brad Ball
Mike,
As a former IndyMac employee, I have to say that in my years of services at the organization, I have always seen the type of integrity and due-diligence that my colleagues had practiced matching those considered socially and ethically responsible. Although I may not be exposed to all the details of every move made by the organization, I did see many hard working people on projects that benefited people and communities. I sincerely wish you all the best of luck. Many ex-colleagues and I very much look forward to be able to work with you again.
Mike,
As a former IndyMac employee, too, I share John’s sentiments. A lot of good people did a lot of good things there. I truly miss the company and appreciate you providing this information.
Glad to see your your telling the “back story”. Your courage is admirable. Hopefully others who are in a similar situation will follow your example. Mark K.
A great characteristic of a leader is to take risk, Mike you had great courage, and still do evident in your blog. When leaders inevitably come to a place where a tough decision is required, it is their personal courage that enables them to stand firm and get through difficult situations.
I stand firm on my belief, that if it was not for the run on the bank, caused by the senators public comment, today Indymac will still be a player as a financial institution in the market.
Best of luck Mike – too often the “victor” writes the history.
Good luck Mike.
Mike,
This story needs to be told. It doesn’t surprise me that you have the courage to do so. From what I have read so far, this blog is “vintage” Mike Perry…Honest, straight forward, with no holds barred.
John
It is great to see you sharing this information. This obviously took not only a deal of time, it also took a great deal of courage. As you know, the internet is a vey public place and may not always be kind. Thanks for sharing, and keep it up! You were always open and honest in your communications, and this is just another great example. Thanks, Gary
Mike, thank you for coming forward to inform the public. In case you are not already aware of the private investigations presently proceeding by Mark Mitchell at DeepCapture.com, I recommend particularly that you see Chapter 21 of his reports at http://www.deepcapture.com/the-miscreants-global-bust-out-chapter-21-how-a-small-gang-of-organized-criminals-wrecked-the-world/
Good for you, Mr. Perry. I do not understand the banking industry well enough to be a judge of whatever documents you post, but in other areas I am certainly aware of malicious, unfounded, and prejudicial statements by government agents and of the hopeless feeling as one considers the cost and improbability of getting justice. If you still have the bucks to do so, go out and make it a big deal.