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🇺🇸CALIFORNIA FIRST LEASING CORPCFNB
USDUSD
SectorFinancialsIndustryConsumer Finance
Management
Patrick E. Paddon
CEO

Company information

Ticker
CFNB
Country
United States
Sector
Financials
Industry
Consumer Finance

CALIFORNIA FIRST LEASING Business Summary

California First Leasing Corp (CFNB) operates as a non-diversified, closed-end investment company that primarily generates revenue through a dual-engine model of commercial lease financing and strategic equity investment. The company provides specialized capital asset financing, including direct leases and loans, across four primary segments: UniversityLease (higher education), K-12 Education, Healthcare, and Commercial Finance. Following its 2021 transition from a national bank to a leasing corporation and its 2022 registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, CFNB has increasingly functioned as a de facto family office, allocating a significant portion of its balance sheet to a concentrated portfolio of liquid, large-cap technology equities and investment-grade securities. Within the diversified financial services landscape, CFNB competes with firms such as Acacia Research Corporation, SWK Holdings, and Burford Capital, positioning itself as a niche, high-margin player that trades at a significant discount to its net asset value (NAV) due to its high insider ownership and illiquid float. The company is led by founder Patrick Paddon, who has served as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman since the firm’s inception in 1977 and maintains a controlling interest of approximately 62% of the outstanding shares. The executive leadership team includes David L. Dayton as Chief Financial Officer, Jim Hackbarth as Chief Credit Officer, and Susan Wahba as Chief Risk Officer, all of whom possess extensive tenures in asset-based lending and credit risk management. S. Leslie Jewett, a long-time executive and former CFO, continues to play a key role in investor relations and corporate strategy. The Board of Directors is characterized by extreme stability, with an average tenure exceeding 29 years, reflecting a management philosophy focused on long-term capital preservation and tax-efficient earnings compounding. This insider-heavy structure, with total management and board ownership approaching 90%, aligns leadership closely with shareholder interests but has historically led to a strategy of aggressive share buybacks and a potential path toward privatization.

Updated 2026-03-16 · US SEC company filings
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