Mentor Capital Marks Recovery of $15 Million for Shareholders

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A Long Gradual Mentor Victory for 1,200 Old-Timers in Our Investor Family

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Mentor Capital, Inc. (OTCQB: MNTR) is now closing a long chapter in its history and estimates that has completely recovered $15 million for those 1,200 shareholders that Mentor uncovered had been defrauded by private syndicators before they became Mentor shareholders. “We brought in the FBI and SEC, eventually sending the kingpin to jail for 7 years. Because I had planned on going into investment banking and turning over the Mentor reins, the only assets moved into Mentor Capital, Inc. at that time were the $15 million in fraudulent investments. However, 97.5% of those monies were being pocketed as the 1,200 investors signed their checks. Their actual investment was sold by the court on careful auction for $260,000. When the outside fraud was first discovered, I agreed to sign on for the handful of months it would take to clean up this mess. That was 19 years ago,” recalls CEO and part-time FBI forensic informant, Chet Billingsley.

The Company clarifies that the primary tool the bankruptcy court provided for investors to get a recovery was to place discounted warrants into the hands of the 1,200 investors. As the market capitalization of Mentor Capital rose over the years from approximately $260,000 to $50 million the 1,200 investors have been able to cash out or obtain share value of approximately the $15 million they lost, in Mentor’s best estimate. However, some investors passed away, don’t have a brokerage account, or don’t have the financial capability to take advantage of their warrants even though the strike price is $1.60 per share. The court wanted all claimants to be able to participate and provided under the Section 1145 court order that other shareholders could be designated to redeem these unexercised warrants for 10 cents each and then immediately exercise them into freely trading shares at $1.60 per share. The collected 10 cent redemption fees were paid out electronically through DTCC directly into brokerage accounts for holders of the remaining Series A & C warrants in 2014, will be paid out for the remaining Series B warrants in approximately 45 days, and may be paid out for the still currently active $1.60 Series D warrants in approximately nine months. Series D warrants may be exercised within any brokerage account where they are held, or if in paper form, directly through Mentor. There is no cashless exercise. Unexercised warrants in brokerage accounts are paid off electronically when scheduled through DTCC without election and without any further warrant holder action needed. Warrant holders with physical certificates who do not wish to exercise should send them in to the Company if they would rather be paid 10 cents per warrant whenever that payment later occurs. Shareholders who wish to be designees should contact the Company.

About Mentor Capital: The Company seeks to come alongside and assist private medical marijuana and cannabis companies and their founders in meeting their liquidity and financial objectives, to add protection for investors and to help incubate private cannabis companies. Additional important information for investors is presented at: www.MentorCapital.com.

This press release is neither an offer to sell, nor a solicitation of offers to purchase, securities.

Forward Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including statements concerning financial projections, financing activities, corporate combinations, product development activities and sales and licensing activities. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results or performance, are sometimes identified by words of condition such as “should,” “could,” “expects,” “may,” “intends,” “seeks,” “looks,” “moves,” or “plans” and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, known and unknown, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those intended or anticipated. Such risks include, without limitation: nonperformance of investments, partner and portfolio difficulties, potential delays in marketing and sales, problems securing the necessary financing to continue operations, problems involving continued illegality of cannabis products, potential of competitive products, services, and technologies, difficulties experienced in product development, in recruiting knowledgeable personnel, in collecting judgments and in protecting intellectual property. Further information concerning these and other risks is included in the Company’s Form 10-K and 10-Q filings which, along with other very important information about the Company, can be found here:

http://mentorcapital.com/disclosures/

The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.

Mentor Capital, Inc.
Chet Billingsley, CEO
760-788-4700

Source: Mentor Capital, Inc.

Released March 22, 2017