ABS

Citigroup is reporting a higher redefault rate on home loans it has modified and signs of heightened risk in its servicing portfolio.

The U.S. government insurance fund — used to safeguard bank deposits — dropped to a balance of negative $8.2 billion in the third quarter, according to market reports.

The DDR deal's pricing at better-than-expected spreads is undoubtedly a positive for the CMBS market, but it might have resulted in some misplaced market optimism, said Malay Bansal, managing director at NewOak Capital.

Bank of New York Mellon's BNY ConvergEx Group, a provider of investment and execution technology, will buy NorthPoint Trading Partners, a prime brokerage services boutique, ConvergEx announced Monday.

The new credit card law, enacted in the depths of a recession, cracks down on issuers' longstanding practices, but could also indirectly benefit the companies in an economic recovery.

CIT Group, which filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 1, said 88% of investors solicited in a recent vote supported its prepackaged reorganization plan.

Adverse economic conditions are continuing to weigh on asset performance in Spanish securitizations backed by loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SME ABS), Moody’s Investors Service said in a report.

Harley Davidson is in the market with an ABS deal backed by motorcycle loans. The offering, which is eligible under the Term ABS Loan Facility or TALF, is lead by JPMorgan Securities, BNP Paribas, RBS Securities and Citigroup Global Markets.

Despite the different negative indicators, U.S. auto ABS delinquency and annualized net losses (ANL) improved at a time of the year when performance usually starts to deteriorate, Fitch Ratings said.

The Mortgage Bankers Association is in the midst of reshaping its government affairs duties, and plans to hire a new senior vice president to oversee what it calls "advocacy."

The Federal Reserve should continue its MBS purchase program past the March 31 cutoff date, according to James Bullard, president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank.

Sales of single-family existing homes jumped 9.7% in October following an 8.7% jump in September, as first-time buyers rushed to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

Morgan Stanley hired David Moffitt to lead the securitization effort within the company’s capital markets division, according to a report from Bloomberg.

While investors might be tempted to hedge mortgages short in duration, JPMorgan Securities MBS analysts warned that the Federal Reserve might have inadvertently aggravated extension risk.

The analytics and research unit of Standard & Poor's, called S&P Fixed Income Risk Management Services (FIRMS), and information services firm Experian are forming a strategic alliance to improve transparency in the securitized loan market.

A U.S. district court judge in California has denied a motion by JPMorgan Chase Bank to dismiss a lawsuit that alleges the bank illegally reduced a couple's home equity line of credit.

The American Securitization Forum (ASF) said that George Miller, executive director of the associaton since 2004, will resign his position as of Dec. 16. At that time, Deputy Executive Director Tom Deutsch, who has also been with the ASF since 2004, will become acting executive director.

The sale of $11.5 billion in Jumbo servicing rights belonging to the bankrupt Thornburg Mortgage of Santa Fe has cleared another hurdle but it's still unclear when bids will be taken.

Goldman Sachs’ co-head of U.S. leveraged finance is being transferred to Europe to over see the firm’s bank loan, high-yield capital markets and restructuring group.

Tourmalet Advisors, a Connecticut-based hedge fund, is in the process of raising $500 million to invest in nonperforming mortgages, according to an offering circular provided to National Mortgage News.