PHH Corp. named Smriti Laxman Popenoe, executive vice president and chief risk officer at the firm, as interim president for PHH Mortgage.
Laxman Popenoe succeeds Luke Hayden, who has resigned to pursue other interests, the firm said today in a press release. PHH has started a search for a permanent replacement.
At the same time, PHH also named Richard Bradfield, senior vice president in capital markets at PHH Mortgage, as senior vice president and treasurer of PHH Corp.
The new appointee succeeds Mark Johnson, who has also resigned to pursue other interests. Both appointments are effective immediately.
Laxman Popenoe also serves as PHH Corp.'s chief risk officer who is responsible for the design and implementation of the firm's risk framework. She has a background in financial services and the mortgage industry.
Before PHH, she was a principal at TriSim, a financial advisory firm. She was also senior vice president in balance sheet management at Wachovia (currently Wells Fargo) where she oversaw the bank's mortgage investment portfolio of more than $100 billion and its securitization programs for its retail residential loan originations.
Bradfield is responsible for PHH Corp.'s funding needs, including the financing of its fleet leasing and mortgage warehousing requirements. He is also responsible for managing relations with banks, rating agencies and bondholders. Additionally, he is senior vice president in capital markets at PHH Mortgage and is responsible for pricing, pipeline and mortgage servicing right risk management, as well as all mortgage asset sales and securitizations.
"Smriti's experience and in-depth knowledge of PHH and our mortgage business will help us to continue our focus on disciplined growth in our mortgage franchise platforms, Private- label solutions and our realogy relationship," said Glen Messina, president and chief executive officer of PHH. "We will maintain our unwavering commitment to customer service and operational excellence throughout this transition."
He also said that "Rich is the right person to take the helm of our Treasury organization as we prioritize liquidity and cash flow generation to form a sound and stable financial foundation from which to execute our business strategies. I want to thank Luke and Mark for their service to PHH and wish them all the best in their future endeavors."
