Investor Group Acquires Founders Federal Savings : Thrifts: The new L.A. firm may be the largest black-owned commercial bank in the West.

A Los Angeles-based thrift that was once one of the nation’s largest black-owned savings and loans has been acquired by an investment group in a government-assisted transaction, federal regulators said Monday.

Founders Federal Savings & Loan, seized by regulators in 1989, becomes Founders National Bank today. The new institution is now believed to be the largest black-owned commercial bank on the West Coast. Founders Federal Savings had $95.4 million in assets and $79.1 million in deposits in 8,100 accounts.

Under terms made final late last week, the Resolution Trust Corp., a federal agency cleaning up the nation’s thrift mess, will advance the investment group $77.1 million.

A separate $2-million loan will be made to the bank that must be repaid in nine months. RTC officials said they expect the failure of Founders Federal Savings to cost taxpayers $64.2 million. The investment group is paying $10,000 for the right to take over the deposits, and the government will keep $93.4 million of the institution’s loans and other assets.

The investment group includes Los Angeles developer Leon T. Garr and his grandson, banker Carlton Jenkins, along with Los Angeles real estate investor William Galloway and two investors from Washington, Lee Foley and Robert Landmann. Jenkins said John Kelly, a Washington-based banker, has been hired as chief executive.

In a statement, RTC Executive Director David C. Cooke said the investment group made the only acceptable bid. A total of 320 potential purchasers had been invited to submit offers.

Day-to-day operations are expected to be unaffected by the deal. Virtually all of the money that customers have on deposit is insured by the federal government.

Black Enterprise magazine ranked Founders Savings as the nation’s fourth-largest black-owned thrift in 1989.