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Lewis S. Ranieri quits, Alan E. Master become new Franklin Bank CEO

By Amarendra Bhushan for CEOWORLD Magazine Updated:August 29, 2008

Lewis Ranieri said he is resigning as interim chief executive of Franklin Bank Corp but will remain chairman, allowing him to focus on raising operating capital for the struggling Texas bank.

Alan Master, President and a director of Franklin, was named chief executive. Master has been a director of Franklin and Franklin’s wholly owned subsidiary, Franklin Bank, S.S.B., since April 2002, and was appointed President of Franklin in May 2008.

Ranieri is a former Salomon Brothers Inc vice chairman. Whereas Master has more than 40 years of experience in the financial services industry, including, among other positions, as President and Chief Executive Officer of The Master Group, which specializes in financial services consulting, from 1991 to present.

In May, Franklin disclosed a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry into its lending practices. A previous internal probe found the company failed to properly account for some loan modification programs, charge off uncollectable home equity loans, write down some properties in foreclosure, and record write-downs on loans in its investment portfolio.

Last month, the Nasdaq Stock Market found that Franklin no longer met its listing requirements, but that it had until Jan. 20, 2009, to regain compliance without being delisted. Ranieri said “I am pleased that Alan Master has become Chief Executive Officer of Franklin. Alan’s appointment permits me, as Chairman, to devote my time to Franklin’s continuing efforts to raise additional capital for use in the Bank’s operations.”

Lewis S. Ranieri

Mr. Ranieri is our Chairman and has been a director since we were founded in 2001. He is the prime originator and a founder of Hyperion Partners L.P. and Hyperion Partners II L.P. (“Hyperion”) and chairman and/or director of various other entities owned directly and indirectly by Hyperion. Mr. Ranieri also serves as Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Ranieri & Co., Inc., a private investment advisor and management corporation, and is Chairman and a member of the Board of Directors of Hyperion Capital Management, Inc., a registered investment advisor.

Prior to forming Hyperion Partners L.P., Mr. Ranieri had been Vice Chairman of Salomon Brothers, Inc. (“Salomon”). He is generally considered to be the “father” of the securitized mortgage market. Mr. Ranieri helped develop the capital markets as a source of funds for housing and commercial real estate, established Salomon’s leadership position in the mortgage-backed securities area, and also led the effort to obtain federal legislation to support and build the market. At Salomon, Mr. Ranieri had responsibility for the firm’s activities in the mortgage, real estate and government-guaranteed areas.

Regarded as an expert and innovator in both the mortgage and capital markets, Mr. Ranieri has served on the National Association of Home Builders Mortgage Roundtable continuously since 1989. In recognition of his dedication and lifelong achievements in the housing industry, Mr. Ranieri was inducted into the National Housing Hall of Fame. He is also a recipient of the lifetime achievement award given by the Fixed Income Analysts Society, Inc. and was subsequently inducted into the FIASI Hall of Fame for outstanding practitioners in the advancement of the analysis of fixed-income securities and portfolios.

Mr. Ranieri also serves on the Board of Directors of Reckson Associates Realty Corp., and is Chairman of American Financial Realty Trust, Capital Lease Funding, Inc., Computer Associates International, Inc. and Franklin Bank Corp. He is also the Chairman of Five Mile Capital Partners LLC, a private sponsor and manager of private investment funds. In addition, Mr. Ranieri acts as a trustee or director of Environmental Defense and The Metropolitan Opera Association and is Chairman of the Board of the American Ballet Theatre.

Alan E. Master

Mr. Master, a director of Franklin since April 2002, is a financial consultant, corporate director and a private investor. He began his career with Chemical Bank in 1961 as a commercial lending officer, became a regional Office Head and later served as President or senior executive in banks in Miami, Florida. In 1973, he joined Barnett Banks of Florida, Inc. as President and CEO of a major subsidiary and subsequently led the merger of five subsidiaries of Barnett. Other career positions have included President, CEO, Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer of United Americas Bank of New York, 1977 to 1979; Executive Vice President and Director of The Merchants Bank of New York, 1979 to 1983; President and CEO, Ensign Bank FSB, New York City, 1983 to 1990; President and CEO, The Master Group, specializing in financial services consulting, 1991 to present.

Assignments from 1996 to 2001 included Director of Private Banking — USA, Bank Hapoalim, New York City and the Private Clients Group of UBS Paine Webber, Inc., New York City. Mr. Master is a former Advisory Director of Beyond Guide, Inc., was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Hyperion Government Mortgage Trust II and is a former member of the Advisory Boards of Hyperion Partners, Hyperion Partners II and the Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell University. Mr. Master received a B.A. from Cornell University and completed all course work in finance and accounting in the M.B.A. program at the New York University Graduate School of Business Administration.

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