Private Bancorp of America, Inc. Reports Record 2015 Financial Results With 95% Increase in Earnings

Fiscal Year 2015 Highlights:

• Pre-tax profit and net profit rose 93% and 95%, respectively, over 2014
• Net loans increased to $355 million
• Deposits grew by 11% over 2014
• Return on equity increased to 9.14% in 2015 from 5.04% in 2014
• Return on assets increased to 1.10% in 2015 from 0.73% in 2014
• Private Bancorp of America, Inc. formed as holding company
• Completed repurchase of 9.9% of outstanding common stock in late November 2015

LA JOLLA, Calif., Jan. 27, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Private Bancorp of America, Inc. (OTCQB:PBAM) (“the Company”), the holding company for San Diego Private Bank (“the Bank”), today announced record financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

Thomas V. Wornham, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company and the Bank stated, “We are exceptionally proud of our team for leading the Bank to record results for both the quarter and year.  During the year we made a number of important investments to provide our customers with unparalleled service and our shareholders with high-quality returns.  We look forward to further building on these investments in technology, systems and people in 2016.”

Discussing the Bank’s loan portfolio, Mr. Wornham commented, “Consistent with our previously announced growth strategy; our commercial and industrial (C & I) loan portfolio grew 38% and now represents 20% of our total loan portfolio versus 15% in 2014.  The quality of our overall loan portfolio remains outstanding with no charge-offs in 2015.”

Company Achieves Record Financial Results

For the quarter ended December 31, 2015, interest income rose 37% to $5,462,000 from $3,986,000 in the year-earlier period.  Interest income increased as a result of growth in the Bank’s loan portfolio as well as continued strong net interest margin of 4.64%.  Net income during the quarter increased by 59% to a record $1,164,000 from net income of $734,000 during the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2014.  On a per share basis, fourth quarter earnings rose to $0.34 per share from $0.18 per share.  The increase in earnings per share is a reflection of both the increased earnings as well as the Company’s share buyback program, which was completed in late November 2015.

Net income for 2015 totaled a record $4,928,000, up 95% from $2,524,000 in 2014. On a per share basis, earnings rose to $1.21 from $0.62, a reflection of both the increased earnings during the year and the Company’s share buyback program.

San Diego Private Bank Achieves Record Fiscal-Year 2015 Results

San Diego Private Bank, the Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, achieved record fiscal year 2015 results.  For the year ended December 31, 2015, net interest income rose 38% to a record $18,993,000 from $13,765,000 in the year-earlier period.  In the fourth quarter, interest income increased as a result of growth in the Bank’s loan portfolio as well as an increase in net interest margin.  Net income for the Bank in 2015 totaled a record $5,010,000, up 99% from $2,524,000 in 2014.

At December 31, 2015, total assets of the Bank rose to a record $455 million, an increase of 7% over the prior year. Net loans ended the quarter at $355 million. Total deposits were $342 million, up 12% over the prior year. Bank equity grew to $57.6 million, up 12% from the prior year. The Bank maintained very strong capital ratios, with a Tier 1 Leverage Capital Ratio of 11.85% and a Total Risk Weighted Capital Ratio of 15.48% at December 31, 2015.

Wornham stated, “Our business model, great customer-centric people and disciplined credit culture position us well for 2016 and beyond.   There will be unforeseen opportunities and challenges ahead. I am confident we have the right Team and technology to be successful in meeting our customers’ needs and exceeding their expectations.”

“Bank credit quality remained excellent and capital ratios remained well above all regulatory well-capitalized measures. We maintained a 5- Star rating for the 28^th consecutive quarter according to BauerFinancial and were awarded an A+ Health and Stability rating by DepositAccounts.com,”

About Private Bancorp of America, Inc.

Private Bancorp of America, Inc. (OTCQB:PBAM) is the holding company for San Diego Private Bank.  The Bank provides a Distinctly Different banking experience through unparalleled service and creative funding solutions to high net worth individuals, professionals, locally-owned businesses and real estate entrepreneurs.  Services are provided through offices in Coronado, San Diego, La Jolla and Newport Beach as well as efficient electronic banking offerings. The Bank also offers various portfolio and government guaranteed lending programs, including SBA and cross-border Export-Import Bank programs. San Diego Private Bank is a SBA Preferred Lender.

Safe Harbor Paragraph

This press release may include forward-looking statements that involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Private Bancorp of America, Inc. cautions readers that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward‐looking statements. These factors include economic conditions and competition in the geographic and business areas in which Private Bancorp of America, Inc. operates, our ability to successfully integrate the operations of merged banks, inflation, fluctuations in interest rates, legislation and governmental regulation. You should not place undue reliance on forward‐looking statements and we undertake no obligation to update those statements whether as a result of changes in underlying factors, new information, future events or otherwise.

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