PHH Corp. has named Smriti Laxman Popenoe as executive vice president and chief risk officer effective Sep. 13. Popenoe will be responsible for the design and implementation of an enterprise-wide risk framework and will work with the firm’s business units to identify, effectively manage and mitigate credit, market and operational risks.
The new hire joins the company from TriSim where she was a principal. Before joining TriSim, she was a senior vice president for balance sheet management at Wachovia for three years, where she led a team responsible for all aspects of the firm’s investment portfolio, including agency and non-agency RMBS, ABS, CMBS, and whole loans.
Previously, Popenoe spent nine years with Freddie Mac, with portfolio management oversight across the $400 billion fixed rate MBS and whole loan portfolio. She began her career in 1993 at the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD/NASDAQ), which is now the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
"Smriti is a highly skilled quantitative and qualitative risk manager with a diverse portfolio of experience," said Jerry Selitto, president and CEO of PHH. "Her extensive market risk and portfolio analysis skills, combined with her expertise in mortgage and real estate, will be invaluable to PHH as we evaluate and pursue opportunities to prudently grow our business and enhance shareholder value. I am confident that her skill set is an ideal complement to our existing management team, and she will play an important role in helping us achieve our transformation objectives."
Headquartered in Mount Laurel, N.J., PHH Corp. is an outsource provider of mortgage and vehicle fleet management services.
