Ambac Announces Completion of Equity Offering at ASF

Ambac has completed its $1.5 billion equity offering and is working to restore market confidence, said John Uhlein, executive vice president at Ambac Financial Group. Uhlein, was among the panelists from the bond insurance industry who spoke at the American Securitization Forum's sunset seminar on financial guarantors yesterday. In what seemed to be a remarkably upbeat discussion, Uhlein noted that many of Ambac's previous stock holders, 20 investors owned approximately 80% of Ambac's stock prior to the offering, invested in the offering and were supportive of the capitalization plan. Cerberus Capital Management has also been publicly identified as an investor in the offering. While Uhlein acknowledged that a prior deal to split the company had been discussed, ultimately Ambac decided that it would remain a single entity, primarily out of fear that a separated structured finance unit might not be able to generate enough capital to sustain a triple-A rating. "If you want to be a triple-A company, you have got to make that decision," Uhlein said. He noted that a 'AA'-rated monoline is much more niche.