Investments

Fannie Mae's first-quarter profits were enough for it to rebuild its minimum capital buffer and pay the Treasury Department dividend after being forced to take a draw during the previous fiscal period.

“We’re comforted by the fact our position in the market is so strong, and our ability to gain [loan] allocation is quite important," co-CEO Kewsong Lee says.

If Freddie Mac's credit-risk transfer activities continue to grow, mortgage lenders could eventually see a reduction in the guarantee fees they pay to the government-sponsored enterprise, according to CEO Donald Layton.

Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP (formerly Hunton & Williams and Andrews Kurth Kenyon) has named Robert A. Davis Jr. as special counsel in its tax and ERISA practice.

Nearly four in five expect spreads to widen this summer, which is not good news for spec-grade U.S. companies that binged on borrowing levels over the last two years.

After the second-busiest quarter for primary European CLO issuance to start 2018, a two-week April lull in the market was ended with deal pricings by Intermediate Capital and Investcorp.

Jay Huang, a longtime Citigroup veteran who joined in January, is developing a high-tech trading-desk operation to enhance the company's portfolio of CLO investments.

The total volume of CLO refinancings for the month to date has reachd $11.3 billion, as managers continue to take advantage of the repeal of skin-in-the-game rules for this asset class.

With no more concerns about triggering risk retention on its large pile of older deals, Blackstone is dusting off CLO portfolios that have long been eligible for a refi makeover.

The future secondary mortgage market entities will receive high investment grade ratings, even as there is no clarity on their scope or form, Fitch Ratings said.