Treasury Dept. selects Native-owned investment firm as agent

Native American Owned Investment Firm Selected by US Department of Treasury as Financial Agent for Emergency Economic Stabilization Act


OKLAHOMA CITY (December 28, 2009) – The U.S. Department of the Treasury recently announced that Oklahoma-based Avondale Investments, LLC, is one of the selected six firms from more than 200 submissions nationwide to help manage its portfolio of assets in the wind-down phase of the Capital Purchase Program (CPP) and other programs under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act (EESA) commonly known as the “bank bailout bill.”  CPP, which is currently only open to small banks, will effectively close at the end of the year. These assets include preferred shares, senior debt, equity warrants, and other equity and debt obligations.

Avondale Investments was founded by Don Dillingham (Muscogee-Creek), who serves as President, and earlier this year, J.D. Colbert (Muscogee-Creek/Chickasaw) joined Avondale as a Senior Advisor.  Avondale Investments, LLC is a Native American-owned asset management firm with a special expertise in working with community banks.  The firm has specific geographic expertise of financial institutions in the Mountain West and South West regions of the country.

“This is a big honor for Avondale and we will execute our duties to the highest degree of fiduciary standards and with the highest standards of performance excellence,” said Dillingham. 

Dillingham founded Avondale Investments in 2001. With more than 25 years in investment experience, Dillingham’s financial background includes managing portfolios that contain growth and domestic large cap equities. He has also served as an MBA Program Adjunct Professor in Finance at OU.  He is a Certified Public Accountant, Chartered Financial Analyst and Certified Financial Planner.  He serves on the Native American Education and Cultural Authority Board, and also on the Board of Directors for Gulfport Exploration, Inc, The Beard Companies, Geohedral LLC, and Adair’s Inc.  He is an enrolled member of the Muscogee-Creek Nation.

Prior to joining Avondale, Colbert served as President and CEO of Native American Bank, N.A., in Denver where he engineered the bank’s turnaround that lead to profitability and more than doubled the bank’s total assets. In 2006, Colbert was appointed by The White House to the Community Development Advisory Board of the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, a division of the U.S. Treasury. He serves on the Board of Directors of First Nations Oweesta Corporation; the National Advisory Board of Native American Capital, LP; and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society Foundation.  He is an enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Oklahomans to play a major role to help stabilize our nation’s economy,” said Colbert.  “Don and I are proud to be representing Native Americans as the only two who were selected.  This is a huge honor for Oklahoma and Native Americans as a whole.”
Avondale Investments will begin work immediately by providing ongoing valuations of the equity and debt securities issued by public and private financial institutions in the Capital Purchase Program and other programs, including many of Treasury's investments in small and community banks. In addition, Avondale will provide Treasury with analysis of the financial condition, capital structure, and risks of financial institutions, and will assist in executing transactions consistent with the Treasury’s investment policy for the management and disposition of its assets.

In response to a public solicitation for asset managers on November 7, 2008, (http://financialstability.gov/about/solicitations.html), Treasury received more than 200 submissions from interested firms. To promote diverse participation and ideas and to identify the best asset management talent throughout the industry, the solicitation indicated the Treasury's interest in receiving responses from qualified small and minority- and women-owned or controlled firms.

On April 22, 2009, Treasury announced the selection of three asset managers from the pool of applicants that had $2 billion or more in assets under management. Following an extensive evaluation process, Treasury announced last Wednesday that it has designated six additional asset managers from the pool of applicants with less than $2 billion in asset under management, including:

·         Avondale Investments, LLC

·         Bell Rock Capital, LLC

·         Howe Barnes Hoefer & Arnett, Inc.

·         KBW Asset Management, Inc.

·         Lombardia Capital Partners, LLC, and

·         Paradigm Asset Management, LLC.


By leveraging the professional experience, unique knowledge, and specific expertise of these firms, Treasury will ensure that taxpayers' assets are managed in a prudent and transparent manner. These six firms will begin work immediately by providing ongoing valuations of the equity and debt securities issued by public and private financial institutions in the Capital Purchase Program and other programs, including many of Treasury's investments in small and community banks. In addition, these asset managers will provide Treasury with analysis of the financial condition, capital structure, and risks of financial institutions, and will assist in executing transactions


Treasury entered into agreements with these six firms pursuant to the authority to designate financial agents under EESA