 As real estate values in New York dropped in the following years, Franklin National Bank was stressed with millions of dollars of questionable loans.The directors from a merger with the Federation Bank were persuaded by Gleason not to nominate Roth for another term as director, and Roth left the bank in 1970.Gleason then became chairman and chief executive officer, inviting Laurence Tisch to join as vice chairman as he was a 22% shareholder.