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

OKLAHOMA CITY (December 29, 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.

Advisory