Citigroup analysts in their Consumer ABS Weekly published today examined the near-term impact of the interchange settlement on credit card master trusts and determined it was marginal.

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) has reached a consensus on the issue of cities using their power of eminent domain to refinance underwater mortgages (using reducing principal reductions) that reside in private-label MBS, saying it will foul up the securitization process.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's (CFPB) first-ever enforcement action Wednesday — hitting Capital One over card marketing practices — carried a pair of messages for the industry as a whole.

Spain’s Royal Decree Law 20/2012, which became effective on July 14, allows covered bonds to be backed by loans that finance export as well the as international expansion of Spanish firms. The new law offers further proof that the country’s banks have much fewer options in terms of traditional assets to support these bonds.

Thanks to continued, ultra-low interest rates, Freddie Mac is feeling quite bullish about loan production for the remainder of 2012, hiking its origination forecast by $200 billion to $1.65 trillion for the year.

The Prestwick Mortgage Group is marketing a $58 million package of mortgage servicing rights backed by mostly multifamily commercial mortgages held by private investors.

Freddie Mac reported new record lows along 30- and 15-year fixed mortgage rates as well as 5/1 hybrid ARMs for the week ending July 19. Both 30- and 15-year rates declined three basis points to 3.53% (no -point rate at 3.71%) and 2.83%, respectively. Meanwhile, 5/1 hybrids fell five basis points to a 2.69% average which matches this week's one-year ARM rate.

Western Asset Mortgage Defined Opportunity Fund’s public-private investment fund or Master Fund was terminated on July 15.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will now be accepting applications for qualified entities to purchase severely troubled loans that were formerly insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) through the Distressed Asset Stabilization Program.

The slow down in consumer spending seen recently can mean that credit card balances remain flat for the foreseeable future, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts.

Jeremiah Norton, one of the newest directors at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC), warned of more profit squeezing and regulatory "headwinds" during his first public speech since joining the agency.