Ronald Schmidt has been named Executive Vice President/Chief Credit Officer at Desert Commercial Bank. Mr. Schmidt has served almost 17 years as a chief credit officer in coastal Southern California banks, beginning in 1992 with Palos Verdes National Bank and later, at Peninsula National Bank. He took the chief credit officer reins at Bay Cities National Bank in 1995 and stayed until April of 2009, when he had the opportunity to be reunited with long-time colleague Tony Swartz, current President and CEO of Desert Commercial Bank. The two executives worked together for several years in Alaska. Mr. Schmidt spent 17 years there as a commercial loan officer and manager at National Bank of Alaska. At Desert Commercial Bank, Mr. Schmidt assumes responsibility for managing all aspects of credit risk and loan administration.

Desert Commercial Bank reported earnings results for the year ended Dec. 31, 2008. For the period, the company reported a net loss of $215,000 compared to the $860,000 for the same period a year ago. Total assets decreased to $148,416,000 from $152,238,000 for the same period a year ago. Total deposits increased to $133,016,000 from $130,770,000 for the same period a year ago.

Desert Commercial Bank announced the appointment of Harry Gooding, a 17-year Imperial and Coachella Valley banking veteran, as Chief Financial Officer. He will be based in the business bank's executive offices in Palm Desert. In his new post Mr. Gooding assumes responsibility for managing all aspects of accounting and investment operations throughout Desert Commercial Bank's two-county market. It is the only locally owned community bank headquartered in the region that maintains locations in both Riverside and Imperial County. The bank's new CFO brings over thirty two years of financial expertise in corporate financial management, business and budget planning, as well as mergers and acquisitions. He maintains a deep understanding of the complex regulatory environment in which banks operate, in addition to newly established accounting guidelines.