Finance

A federal judge this week ruled that the court-appointed trustee overseeing the liquidation of Thornburg Mortgage, Santa Fe, can move forward with a lawsuit against Barclays Capital alleging the investment banker made improper margin calls that helped drive the jumbo lender/servicer into bankruptcy.

Guatemala’s Banco Industrial has closed a three-tranche $160 million structured deal, an upsize from the $100 million initially proposed, according to sources close to the deal.

After heavy criticism from investors, analysts and bond insurers over Standard & Poor’s new bond insurance rating criteria, the agency is firing back in self-defense.

Clopton Capital will expand its capital lending base available for commercial real estate (CRE), CMBS, and SBA loans for income-producing U.S. CRE.

PERILS , the Zurich-based firm offering industrywide European catastrophe insurance data, today reported that the total limits placed based on the PERILS industry loss index since the start of 2010 is now over $2.5 billion.

Roughly 9.43% of CRE loans – including multifamily product – that have been securitized are now 30-days or more late, a record, according to new figures compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).

Bank of New York Mellon has pulled the sale of its Alcentra unit, which manages $17 billion in CLOs and other vehicles that contain leveraged loans and high yield bonds, according to a Bloomberg report.

The securitization pike is filling up with deals from the various assets classes, including autos and equipment ABS.

CLO issuance could return this month after volatility slammed the breaks on activity in August, Standard & Poor's said in a research report Monday. The pipeline is backed up to the tune of about $5 billion, spread among 13 deals.

The American Securitization Forum (ASF) is opposing the creation of a board by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that would choose which rating agency is allowed to new-issue securitizations.

CarMax filed a prospectus supplement to issue a deal backed by a pool of motor vehicle retail installment sale contracts.

Goldman Sachs and Citigroup plan to reignite their CMBS offering, according to a Dow Jones report.

Obama administration officials have identified several constraints on the HARP program – including mortgage buyback risk – that are keeping Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac seller/servicers from refinancing underwater borrowers.

MGIC is in discussions to sell its eMagic unit as well as its Myers Internet business, a company spokeswoman confirmed.

Although President Obama Thursday night made a slight reference to a government-backed refi plan for troubled mortgagors, the effort appears to be temporarily stalled over concerns about what effect it would have on both MBS investors and the megabanks, according to advisors and trade group sources who claim to have knowledge of the program.

Fitch Ratings submitted its comment letter in response to the Securities and Exchange Commission's Solicitation of Comment to Assist in Study on Assigned Credit Ratings, which is required by Section 939F of the Dodd-Frank Act.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last week issued a concept release that reexamines the ability of REITs to use an exclusion under the Investment Company Act of 1940.

Bond insurer Assured Guaranty has a bone to pick with Standard & Poor's over the rating agency's new bond insurance rating criteria.

The massive lawsuits that the federal government brought last week against many of the largest U.S. and global banks underscore the deepening tension within the executive branch with regard to housing.