Finance

In April, Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. came to market with its debut new-issue CMBS transaction that was backed by loans originated by Cantor Commercial Real Estate (CCRE), a real estate financing business formed by Cantor Fitzgerald and CIM Group in August 2010.

Mortgage lenders and consumer advocates — two lobbies usually busy opposing each other — have joined forces to urge regulators to ease up on proposed risk retention requirements, arguing they will result in a credit crunch.

Sharjah Islamic Bank returned to the international Sukuk market for the first time since its 2006 inaugural issuance. The transaction was oversubscribed by more than nine times.The $400 million, fixed-rate Sukuk certificates, which are due in 2016 yielded 4.715% annually. The structure comprises the sale and purchase of non-real-estate-based ijara assets by the trustee, which are then managed by Sharjah Islamic as the trustee's agent and the certificateholders.The Sukuk certificates were assigned a rating of 'BBB+' by Fitch Ratings and 'BBB+' by Standard & Poor’s and were globally distributed with demand from investors in the Middle East, Asia and Europe.Th offering's joint lead managers were HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank and Liquidity House. The co-lead managers were Qatar Islamic Bank, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Qatar First Investment Bank, Dubai Islamic Bank and Al Hilal Bank PJSC. Clifford Chance was the issuing bank's adviser on the deal.

Refinancing waves sparked by falling interest rates have long been a mixed blessing for all involved. The consumer lowers his/her monthly payment, but often pays fees and signs mounds of paperwork. Banks reap profits from originating the new loans, and their salespeople rake in commissions. But banks and mortgage servicers also lose customers in a refi wave. And the investors in mortgage-backed securities get their principal back sooner than expected, and must redeploy it in a lower-rate environment.

Walter Investment Management Corp. closed the private placement of around $81 million of its Class B secured notes issued last Nov. 22 in a deal called Mid-State Capital Trust 2010-1.

The first investor meeting for the largest German multifamily CMBS was held last week.

Daryl Schwartz, the acquisition chief for G8 Capital, a private equity fund that invests in real estate and nonperforming mortgages, left the company last week.

Sometimes in Washington, even bad public relations can be good politics.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is expected to release its long-awaited proposal on changing servicing compensation by July with three main options being offered to the industry, according to servicing advisors close to the issue.

An eminent domain action this year that a recent Barclays Capital report indicated might hurt certain investors in one CMBS deal was a one-off event that could have been worse. But it is nevertheless is worth noting as it serves as a reminder that this known but rare risk can crop up occasionally.

Home prices in March fell for the eighth consecutive month and reached a new low for this housing recession, according to a new reading on the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller house price index.

Manager Activity: Autos Book Runner Amount (US$ Mil) Rank Mkt.

Increased supply, both in the primary and secondary markets via BWICs, and weaker market sentiment have pushed spreads wider.

ING closed a CLO for more than $400 million, according to sources. Almost $2 billion in new CLOs have priced in May.

Babson Capital has joined a growing list of money management firms starting closed-end loan funds. In Babson’s case, the fund will invest in leverage loans and high yield bonds in both North America and Western Europe.

A significant sector of the housing market is still being driven by sales of bank-owned homes and those in some stage of foreclosure, according to a report out Thursday from Realtytrac.

Fannie Mae issued $34.5 billion of MBS in April, a 36% plunge from the prior month, according to figures released by the GSE Friday morning. In April its MBS issuance rose 4.2%.

The coming change in the conforming loan limit will have a much larger impact on loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) than on those purchased or securitized by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

Interactive Mortgage Advisors (IMA) is selling a $481 million Fannie Mae bulk residential servicing portfolio that has just five months of seasoning and no delinquencies or foreclosures.

Zipcar has renewed its ABS program led by Credit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank (Credit Agricole CIB).