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Securitization

ABS East Panel: Developments in Loan Origination and Underwriting Standards

Last week, at the ABS East conference in Miami, I moderated a panel on originations and underwriting. My panel included:


Darius Bozorgi, President and CEO of Veros  Real Estate Solutions, a company that provides valuations and predictive analytics. Qunicy Tang, SVP of DBRS, and Kathy Kelbaugh, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody’s. Eric Kaplan, Managing Director with Shellpoint Partners and Bill Rayburn, Chairman and CEO of FNC, Inc., a data and analytics company.

ABS East--The Bear Crawl

I just attended the ABS East conference, in Miami Beach.  This is an annual conference for the securitization market.  All of the banks and issuers attend, as well as firms like mine.  Even though we're a small company, we send a lot of people to this conference, because every meeting we have while there is one that we would otherwise have to fly out to, separately, with all the costs and time it takes to travel across the country.  It's a great opportunity for everyone in our industry, large and small, to get in a lot of meetings, to save some money, and to also to come

Rating Agencies Under Fire- Again

The New Republic has posted an article by Alex Klein this week on failed (so far) efforts to enact a more rational regulatory framework for the rating agencies, which are in the news again as the threat of a downgrade for America’s AAA credit rating looms.

Bank of America Settlement: Turning Point for RMBS Investors

Bank of America’s $8.5 billion settlement with 22 mortgage-bond investors this week marks an important turning point for our industry, erasing some of the uncertainty that continues to drag down the RMBS sector.

It is the largest settlement with investors of its kind since the housing collapse and promises to pave the way for others. That is welcome news to investors who have for years now been pressing to be repaid for losses they believe they should not have taken.

SEC Underwhelms with ABS Review Rules

The Securities and Exchange Commission last week largely punted on an opportunity to bring about meaningful change to the way residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) are reviewed.

The rules imposing minimum standards for the review of asset-backed securities (ABS) are underwhelming and disappointing for two chief reasons.
First, they do not require independent, third-party reviews of RMBS.

Due Diligence Firms as Experts

Should due diligence firms be viewed as experts on mortgage securitizations, in much the same way accounting firms are viewed as experts on audited financial statements?  Some in our industry say no.  I say yes.  Here's why.

RMBS Fallout: Were Investors Duped?

One positive outcome from the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission so far is the increased attention to the mortgage due diligence process for residential mortgage-backed securities.

Repurchases, Accountability and the Return of a Healthy Securitization Market

Repurchases have been getting lots of attention lately, as investors pursue them on seasoned MBS and issuers defend against them. The numbers can be large, even on an individual loan. The rules have always been poorly defined and there are many complications: how much should be paid out, who gets it, how the different bond classes are affected, and so on.

Loan Repurchase Requests a Reality for Foreseeable Future

TheStreet's Laura Kulikowski this week examined the rising tide of mortgage repurchases (also called put-backs) in one of the best reports on the issue I've seen to date.

A New Way Forward on Securitizations

For months we have worked with ratings agencies, investors, broker/dealers, servicers and other industry participants to design a new approach to third-party reviews of securitizations that meets today's market demands.