It all boils down to a simple question. Can a corporation simultaneously operate under two (2) separate and distinct Federal Tax Identification Numbers ("Tax IDs")?
According to publicly-traded Home Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: HOMB), the answer is yes.
According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the answer is no.
According to publicly-traded Home Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: HOMB), the answer is yes.
According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the answer is no.
HOMB's Shell Game: Which Entity Are You Dealing With?
Regulated Bank Centennial Bank (Tax ID, 71-0009885), a subsidiary of Home Bancshares, Inc., is an Arkansas state-chartered bank. |
Off Balance Sheet Entity A Mystery Entity (Tax ID 71-0854939) uses the fictitious name "Centennial Bank" to obscure legal form/identity. |
According to HOMB, its Arkansas state-chartered banking subsidiary, Centennial Bank, has two (2) Tax IDs, one for Centennial Bank itself and the other for its "Trust Department".
Yet HOMB refuses to disclose the legal form, ownership and officers of its stealth, off balance sheet trust entity, which serves as a Trustee. Scary.
Yet HOMB refuses to disclose the legal form, ownership and officers of its stealth, off balance sheet trust entity, which serves as a Trustee. Scary.
"The story of an invisible hand controlling assets from a protected distance might seem like an imaginative leap."
"Are Millions Missing? Some Relatives Want To Know. Others Don't."
New York Times (Publish Date March 22, 2018)
"Are Millions Missing? Some Relatives Want To Know. Others Don't."
New York Times (Publish Date March 22, 2018)
HOMB's Stonewall
A certified IRS Form W-9 for HOMB's off balance sheet, stealth entity, "Centennial Bank Trust Department", indicates its legal name is "Centennial Bank Tr Account". Even though it has its own Tax ID, HOMB's position is that "Centennial Bank Tr Account" is not a separate entity but merely a department of Centennial Bank. HOMB has backed itself into a corner, putting forth an illogical and untruthful position, and at this point is in full blown stonewall mode. Don't believe Johnny Allison's folksy rhetoric that HOMB is known for "telling it like it is" - that's just more of HOMB's "false news". |