CMBS

ING Group, the Dutch-based financial services institution, said today that it has decided to sell the “majority” of its ING Real Estate Investment Management (ING REIM) businesses in two separate transactions worth more than $1 billion.

The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is preparing its latest offering of corporate bailout bonds, this one $840 million worth of so-called NCUA Guaranteed Notes backed by CMBS.

There continued to be some mixed signals in CMBS and RMBS markets last week but these still netted out to cautiously optimistic views of the sectors in some respects.

After a strong 2010 in Colombian structured finance — issuance grew more than 50% from 2009 — Fitch Ratings sees reasons for a repeat performance in 2011. Placements hit $7.8 billion last year, from a variety of companies in the corporate and financial sectors. The country’s Fannie Mae-esque Titularizadora Colombiana accounted for 28% of all issuance in 2010, turning out three peso-denominated RMBS and three inflation-indexed RMBS. The withdrawal of a tax credit for RMBS buyers should cut into volumes this year, but other asset classes are primed to pick up the slack, the agency said. Titularizadora itself may be involved in some of these as the agency has set up an offshoot to securitize non-housing ABS, such as auto loans, and expects to start issuing this year. Government-backed deals to fund infrastructure are also on the horizon, Fitch said.

In Brazil, talk of a more substantial RMBS market might be a step closer to reality, as banks will be able to use a portion of their securitized portfolios to meet a regulatory requirement that has been an impediment to RMBS issuance in the country, said Fitch Ratings in a report today. Under the rule, banks must keep 65% of savings deposits in real estate-related financings. With the change, “Fitch expects some large retail banks to debut new RMBS securitization platforms in 2011.”

A pickup in CMBS issuance is giving the market a much-needed liquidity boost, but underwriting standards are slipping as sponsors scramble to find enough collateral for deals, which are drawing investors looking for extra yields.

Deustche Bank filed an S-3 with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to issue a CMBS.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) appointed Scott Eichel has been appointed global head of securitized products and head of U.S. credit for its markets franchise within its global banking and markets unit.

A rising number of secondary assets are achieving lower loss severities upon dispositions of troubled loans, which could lead to a decline in overall REO loss severity by the end of 2011, a Barclays Capital report said.

The Royal Bank of Scotland and Wells Fargo have begun marketing a $1.3 billion CMBS expected to be placed via the 144A market.