ABS

Securitization data provider Lewtan Technologies opened a new office in New York City. This new location will allow the company to better serve its client base in New York and the surrounding area.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway and Leucadia National Corp. have teamed up to buy Capmark Financial Group's struggling commercial mortgage servicing and production units for a reported $490 million.

Barclays has repackaged part of a $1 billion CLO portfolio that was downgraded two months ago into new triple-A-rated securities. The CLO is managed by Highland Capital Management.

Manager Activity: Autos Book Runner Amount (US$ Mil) Rank Mkt.

The Russian bear still has an unmistakable limp. A fragile economy, spooked consumers and the absence of foreign investors are undermining the return of RMBS, but, given the brutal conditions, the performance of deals has held up relatively well.

Mexico's Metrofinanciera filed for a prepackaged bankruptcy with a court in Monterrey, Mexico, in mid-August and is waiting for approval. The originator has stopped making payment on a range of obligations.

Loan modifications aren't just important to the revival of the U.S. mortgage market. The U.K. too recognizes the importance of keeping borrowers in their homes and has devised several initiatives to push loan modifications through, although with less success.

With the GSEs solely supporting most of the MBS market, Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's future takes on added significance in saving the mortgage market from a total collapse.

After a steady stream of issuance in the consumer ABS market for the Term ABS Loan Facility's (TALF) past two subscription dates, industry pundits touted the success of the program for not only luring back investors but also bringing new issuers into the market. This includes a $940 auto loan ABS from first-time issuer GMAC's Ally Bank and a $703 million auto-lease deal for the August subscription date from Wheels, its second public U.S. securitization.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are seeking significant revisions to a regulatory rule that forces them to submit all new products and activities for review, arguing it is too restrictive and goes against congressional intent.

Some U.S. states and cities have reportedly considered securitizations as a possible funding solution for budget shortfalls.

The summer months have brought a more positive sentiment to the European securitization market. However, market sources believe that the winter could bring some discontent, adding that Europe has yet to make some lasting moves that would indicate the market's true revival.

The ABS market has seen a flurry of transactions over the summer - a departure from the season's historical doldrums.

The recent contraction in the spread between Jumbo- and conforming-balance mortgage loans has obscured continued problems in the market for non-agency loans. The lack of a securities market outlet for loan production means that virtually all loans ineligible for agency execution must be held in portfolio by the lender. In addition to requiring LTVs of 75% or lower, the pricing of non-agency loans is dependent on each lender's balance sheet and capital position, along with their appetite for credit and interest rate risk. Ultimately, the banking system's collective balance sheet is not large or strong enough to indefinitely support the upper tier of the housing market on its own.

While some days in August lived up to its "dog days of summer" moniker, the stats suggested anything but. The month reported several stronger-than-expected key economic releases beginning with the July employment report that showed a loss of just 247,000 jobs compared with a projected loss of 320,000, with the unemployment rate slipping to 9.4% from 9.5%, and concluding with a better-than-expected Chicago PMI for August at 50 versus a consensus call of 48, and up from 43.4 in July.

Lending through the Federal Reserve Board's discount window grew 2.6% during the past week, to $108.6 billion on Wednesday.

Treasury Department Secretary Tim Geithner called Thursday for an agreement on comprehensive new international capital standards for banks by the end of 2010, with implementation by the end of 2012.

Nearly a year after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were seized by the federal government, the fate of the government-sponsored enterprises seems less certain than ever.

Standard & Poor's took credit rating actions on 453 European synthetic CDO tranches.

BlueMountain Capital Management added to its fundamental credit research team by hiring four credit research analysts.