A Message from Our CEO David R. Misch Nobody Asked Me But… This commentary is part of a periodic series appearing on our website. It represents my impressions, thoughts and opinions about what we see in the business world around us as it affects our industry and our clients. For my prior commentary, please click here. 2010 Training Camp Update August 16, 2010 Well, it’s the height of the summer. And in Pittsburgh, where I come from, that can only mean one thing. Football season. This is because the hockey season is far away, the Pirates are well on their way to their 16th, 17th, 18th (it’s hard to keep track) losing season, it’s a football mad town and spring camp begins in Latrobe. (Also home to Rolling Rock [the drink] and Arnold Palmer [not the drink]). In that spirit, I thought I’d update you on The Private Bank of California’s 2010 Camp: The Scoreboard. The Private Bank had another good season in Q2 of 2010. Net income totaled $142,000 despite a healthy provision for credit losses. More importantly, total assets hit $350 million for the first time in our Bank’s history. In addition, total deposits were $300 million (another first!) and our Bank continues to be very well-capitalized. (For a full recap of our Q2 results, click here.) While one quarter does not a game (no less a season) make, we are quite pleased with our continued progress. Game Plan. The Private Bank has updated its five-year strategic plan, putting on some finishing touches and beginning to implement key components. We suspect the competition will be taping our practice sessions but we are not intimidated. (Smile for the camera, team.) If we execute correctly and have the right players, we anticipate successfully running our plays even if our “opponents” know what’s coming. (I think Vince Lombardi said something about that. Or Woody Hayes.) The Players. As mentioned in my prior post-game conference calls, The Private Bank intends to beef-up its squad. In the second and third quarters, we’ve added skill players on both sides of the ball. From an operations perspective, we’ve acquired banking veteran Ben Loveless as our new Chief Operations Officer. We’ve also added Tippie Manske, Jean Lauder and Ghazal Martin from various other teams. These “athletes” will provide strong support for our growth in upcoming quarters. On the offensive side of the ball, we’ve added the triple threat of Ed Meyer, Debbie Bordeaux and Ofelia Hovsepian who will focus on the markets they know so well from their days as key players of the Hollywood office of their former team. Well-respected banker Bill Upchurch has joined us to provide additional coverage and depth for several of our key target markets. Coach (that would be me) is also delighted to have reunited with several of his former teammates from Mellon 1st Business Bank. Lynn Ziven joined the club in July and will focus on developing business on the Westside she knows so well. Perennial all-stars Nick Zappia and Sergio Sepulveda just joined the team this month to focus on servicing the Downtown Los Angeles market and environs. One of the key ingredients in our game plan is to have a balanced attack and be strong on both sides of the ball and these key player moves will go a long way towards achieving that goal. Award and Recognition. The Private Bank’s success and performance has not gone unnoticed. The team recently received the coveted (and highest) Five-Star Superior rating for strength and stability from BauerFinancial. The independent “Bauer rating” is well-known and widely used by many depositors to review the safety and soundness of the banks they do business with. The Private Bank has been included in BauerFinancial’s Report as a Five-Star Superior or Four-Star Excellent rated bank for six consecutive quarters. In addition, The Private Bank is a “Four Star” bank in www.bankrate.com’s Safe & Sound® ratings. Lastly, the team is featured in the current issue of The Bankers’ Edge (click here). The publication, which highlights community-based financial institutions partnering with subsidiaries of Pacific Coast Bankers’ Bancshares, did an in-depth interview with team management and will give readers good insight into what The Private Bank is all about. Outlook for the 2010 Season and Beyond. I’d love to tell you but we are a public company and a regulated entity. It’s where the football analogy ends. That said, we are very optimistic we have the right team, the right owners (read “shareholders”), the right strategy and the right fans (read “customers”). You can place your own bets. As you know, I’ve already placed mine. FINAL NOTES. I wrote a “blog” that I was going to publish shortly after my “economy half-full” one. It basically outlined all the things that could go wrong with the nascent recovery. I never published it because other inconveniences got in the way…like earnings releases, financial regulation, the oil spill, etc. Well, seems like a lot of those “fears” came to pass. Bruce Munster, a friend of the Bank, a senior executive of the MPF Family Wealth Group and an all-around good advisor summed up my feelings very succinctly in his most recent newsletter. He wrote in June: “Looking ahead we all know Europe has severe “issues”; China is slowing and might have a property bubble (we think not); California and Illinois have serious budgetary concerns; unemployment is still high; there has been a catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf; Japan’s economic situation is getting worse; mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures are hitting new high and legislative responses aren’t helping. As such, staying nimble, liquid and informed has been the focus.” I couldn’t have said it better myself. (By the way, against this good news and weak equity performance, Bruce managed to achieve a modest positive return for his clients. Not bad.)

Our Bank is growing and strong. Our capital ratios significantly exceed all required ratios for a well-capitalized bank and we are participating in the FDIC's Transaction Account Guarantee Program which provides you with 100% FDIC insurance on all noninterest-bearing deposits through December 31, 2010. For our most recent earnings press release, click here>>>