SilverLeaf Financial: Acquisition of Distressed Debt Approaching $500 M

SALT LAKE CITY, March 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- SilverLeaf Financial announced today the purchase of three additional loans in March. The first is a $9.2 M loan secured by a 264-unit, multi-family community known as Bay Meadows located in Ridgeland, Mississippi. The company also purchased a $13.2 M loan secured by 70 residential condominiums in Orlando, Florida. Their most recent purchase is a $5.1 M loan secured by an 89,000 sq. ft. retail center located in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.

SilverLeaf Financial has acquired over $450 M of performing and non-performing loans since the company was founded in 2008, and has its sights on reaching the same milestone in 2011. Shane Baldwin, SilverLeaf Financial's CEO, said, "We have seen a number of active sellers this quarter. Currently there is over 2 billion dollars of notes on the market expecting to be sold by quarter end. We expect to be very active this quarter."

Today banks are moving aggressively to dispose of loans. More banks failed in 2010 than any other year since the 1992 savings and loan crisis. The FDIC recently reported that its "Problem List" of banks has reached 884 institutions, and commercial loans (CRE) make up the majority of the banks' troubled loans. Benjamin Smith, VP of Acquisitions, observed, "We are seeing a large volume of non-performing loans out there that still need to be dealt with by the banks. There are literally billions of dollars of loans poised to be sold in the coming months."

Baldwin comments, "A large part of our track record and proven success can be attributed to being particularly selective in regards to the loans we acquire. Our experienced acquisition team devotes a large amount of time and effort to identifying, examining and evaluating each loan prior to purchase." SilverLeaf is now positioned to become one of the most active purchasers of distressed debt in 2011.

About SilverLeaf Financial

Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, SilverLeaf Financial focuses on acquiring non-performing commercial loans secured by first position trust deeds. These assets are acquired from the FDIC, regional banks, special servicers and other financial institutions to be monetized in the future. For more information, visit the SilverLeaf Financial website, http://SilverLeaf-Financial.com

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SOURCE SilverLeaf Financial