Cal. FIN § 21304

(a) As a condition precedent to the issuing of a pawnbroker’s license, the applicant shall file with the issuing authority a financial statement confirming that the applicant has at least one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) in the form of liquid assets readily available for use in each licensed business for which the application is made, not including real property, or, in the absence of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), an applicant may post a nonrevocable surety bond in the amount of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) or the applicant may, in lieu of posting a surety bond, deposit money, certificates, accounts, bonds, or notes, as provided in Section 995.710 of the Code of Civil Procedure. The financial statement shall be filed by the applicant under penalty of perjury and signed by a California certified public accountant verifying that he or she has reviewed the financial statement.

(b) This section does not apply to any person holding a secondhand dealer’s license pursuant to Section 21641 or 21642 of the Business and Professions Code who is actively engaged as a pawnbroker on the effective date of this section.