Republic Financial Corporation
On Tuesday, November 18, Lights Academy traveled to Republic Financial. We were treated to lunch and a great presentation on what Republic Financial is, and what different aspects there are to each section of the company.
Republic Financial Corporation has two locations, in Denver, Colorado, and Dublin, Ireland. They are a opportunistic value investment company, which means that they look for opportunities to take companies that are struggling, and try to help them turn their business around. It was founded in 1971 and is family owned. They have four business lines: GMT Global, Special Assets, Portfolio Companies, and Clean Coal Solutions. Their company values are as follows.
Some talents that the company looks for in their employees:
Edmun Todder spoke to us briefly about the GMT Aviation branch of Republic Financial. It was very interesting and I learned a lot about the leasing of airplanes and what happens when leases are over. What the GMT Aviation branch of Republic Financial does is they buy planes from airlines that no longer need their aircrafts or from other airplane sale deals. They then take the planes and they lease them out to different airlines, companies, or groups that want or need their aircrafts. It takes a lot to know how to make money from these deals, but when a lease is up, often the planes can be leased out again, depending on the length of the lease and the age of the aircraft. When the aircraft has been used to its fullest extent, it is scrapped and all of the pieces are resold for profit.
Chuck Singleton talked to us about the Special Assets branch of Republic Financial. An asset is an economic resource. So, this branch works with companies of all kinds. They have worked with a yacht company, as well as many other special resource companies. What happened with the yacht company is that the market for buying boats went down quite a bit and Republic Financial stepped in and wanted to help Lazzara Yachts get their business back on track. Although they tried, in the end it didn’t work out. The market for buying boats never came back after it dropped when people started to struggle financially. They decided to settle and the company was foreclosed and sold even before all loans and bills were paid off.
Tom McCarthy spoke to us about the Clean Coal Solutions branch of Republic Financial. This is a branch of Republic Financial that interested me a lot. Republic Financial found a way through chemical engineering that they could take the pollution of coal after it is burned and make it cleaner. They apply a chemical to the coal before it is burned so that when it is burned, it will produce a cleaner product. Since most of the energy we have is produced from coal, and will continue to be produced from coal, this is a great industry that they have got themselves into.
Altogether, our trip to republic financial was really informative. I learned a lot about businesses that I hadn’t really even thought about before. I thought one of the most interesting things is that almost everyone that spoke to us said that everyday when they go to work, they are using the things that they studied and learned, but they are doing it in a way that they never thought they would before! It was very cool to be able to learn about this company and all of the stuff that goes into it.
Republic Financial Corporation has two locations, in Denver, Colorado, and Dublin, Ireland. They are a opportunistic value investment company, which means that they look for opportunities to take companies that are struggling, and try to help them turn their business around. It was founded in 1971 and is family owned. They have four business lines: GMT Global, Special Assets, Portfolio Companies, and Clean Coal Solutions. Their company values are as follows.
- Do the right thing - Republic Financial wants to make sure that their company not only does the right thing for their company, but also for the companies that they are investing in.
- Long term results - Although short term results are important as well, Republic Financial likes to look at the big picture and make sure that they are considering what their actions will do for them in the future, not just what the immediate outcome is.
- Creativity - In order for Republic Financial to be able to help other companies bring their businesses back, it takes creative thinking.
- Constantly under construction - Republic Financial strives to constantly be developing and evolving. They want to make sure that their employees are constantly contributing and helping the company along.
- Caring - Republic Financial must care about the people and businesses they work or else it is hard to get the job done. They want to show that they care.
- Teamstorming - Teamstorming is a term Republic Financial made up where they have meetings with everyone in the company and make big decisions. This is so that they get input from everybody, not just the people who are deemed ‘important’.
- Tenacity - Determination is a must in the company. Employees must be determined and ready to get things done!
Some talents that the company looks for in their employees:
- Curiousity
- Tenacious
- Hardworking
- Positive attitude
- Diligent
- Detail oriented
Edmun Todder spoke to us briefly about the GMT Aviation branch of Republic Financial. It was very interesting and I learned a lot about the leasing of airplanes and what happens when leases are over. What the GMT Aviation branch of Republic Financial does is they buy planes from airlines that no longer need their aircrafts or from other airplane sale deals. They then take the planes and they lease them out to different airlines, companies, or groups that want or need their aircrafts. It takes a lot to know how to make money from these deals, but when a lease is up, often the planes can be leased out again, depending on the length of the lease and the age of the aircraft. When the aircraft has been used to its fullest extent, it is scrapped and all of the pieces are resold for profit.
Chuck Singleton talked to us about the Special Assets branch of Republic Financial. An asset is an economic resource. So, this branch works with companies of all kinds. They have worked with a yacht company, as well as many other special resource companies. What happened with the yacht company is that the market for buying boats went down quite a bit and Republic Financial stepped in and wanted to help Lazzara Yachts get their business back on track. Although they tried, in the end it didn’t work out. The market for buying boats never came back after it dropped when people started to struggle financially. They decided to settle and the company was foreclosed and sold even before all loans and bills were paid off.
Tom McCarthy spoke to us about the Clean Coal Solutions branch of Republic Financial. This is a branch of Republic Financial that interested me a lot. Republic Financial found a way through chemical engineering that they could take the pollution of coal after it is burned and make it cleaner. They apply a chemical to the coal before it is burned so that when it is burned, it will produce a cleaner product. Since most of the energy we have is produced from coal, and will continue to be produced from coal, this is a great industry that they have got themselves into.
Altogether, our trip to republic financial was really informative. I learned a lot about businesses that I hadn’t really even thought about before. I thought one of the most interesting things is that almost everyone that spoke to us said that everyday when they go to work, they are using the things that they studied and learned, but they are doing it in a way that they never thought they would before! It was very cool to be able to learn about this company and all of the stuff that goes into it.