ABS

Passing regulatory reform legislation, a grueling effort that has taken more than a year of debate, is just a warm-up for an even tougher fight over the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

More than three years after the mortgage crisis began, some lenders are still selling loans to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac without properly verifying borrowers' ability to pay.

Like a shark swimming near a crowded beach, the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill is causing a lot of anxiety for bank loan market participants, especially those who have anything to do with CLOs.

Pending financial regulation — including updated standards for risk retention, increased disclosure requirements, and the creation of a Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP) — will affect consumer ABS in various ways, according to Barclays Capital analysts in a recent report.

Quantifi XL has been selected by OFI Asset Management for the pricing and analysis of its structured products and distressed market portfolios.

In reforming the financial system, authorities face a basic trade-off: girding institutions against another cataclysmic breakdown through tougher capital and liquidity requirements on the one hand, and helping the flow of credit amid a fragile recovery on the other.

After the financial crisis forced them to retrench, credit card issuers are again on the hunt for new customers.

Nixon Peabody named Charles Dietzgen as partner in the firm’s corporate trust and global finance practices.

Barclays Capital named Brian Wiele as managing director and head of American securitizations syndicate, according to an internal memo that StructuredFinanceNews.com has obtained.

Nomura Holdings has appointed Kuwait Finance House (Malaysia) Berhad (KFHMB) as mandated lead arranger for its proposed Sukuk issuance of $100 million in two-year trust certificates.

Dechert has named James Waddington a partner in the firm’s London office.

Knight Capital Group has purchased Urban Financial Group, a Tulsa, Okla.-based originator of reverse mortgage loans, making it an origination through securitization player in the sector.

GE Capital appointed Ryan Zanin as its new chief risk officer, the firm announced Wednesday. Zanin takes the place of Jim Colica, who is retiring after serving GE Capital for 27 years.

PHH Corp. could have to write down the value of its mortgage servicing rights by between $150 million and $200 million in the second quarter of 2010, according to an analyst's report from FBR Capital Markets.

Moody's Investors Service assigned ratings to the cash securitization of auto loans issued by Spanish bank Santander.

CIT Group announced a package of refinancings and asset sales on Thursday, a step that CEO John Thain billed as a sign of its more stable footing.

While passing a bill that would create a consumer protection agency has proved challenging enough, that task may pale in comparison to actually setting up the new regulator.

Sen. Maria Cantwell announced late Thursday that she intends to support regulatory reform, giving a boost to the bill's prospects in the Senate, which plans to take up the legislation later this month when Congress returns from a Fourth of July recess.

The CRE Finance Council filed a comment letter with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) responding to the government agency's proposed Safe Harbor rule.

The delinquency rate for commercial real estate loans backing CMBS deals showed signs of moderating in June, according to the latest report from Trepp.