Securitization

Fitch Ratings has placed on all the notes of Eurohome Mortgages 2007-1 plc, a pan-European RMBS backed by German and Italian loans, on Rating Watch Negative.

After announcing net losses of $330.5 million for the second quarter of 2008 and $752.1 million for the first half, Financial Security Assurance (FSA) announced that it is exiting the ABS business and will focus primarily on public finance.

Stung by rising loan delinquencies, Freddie Mac has reported an $821 million loss for the second quarter, compared with a $729 million profit for the same period a year ago.

Ambac Financial Group posted second quarter earnings of $823.1 million, thanks in large part to mark-to-market gains on credit derivatives, the company announced this morning. Ambac Financial, the parent of bond insurer Ambac Assurance Corp., said it had mark-to-market gains of $961.6 million in the second quarter, helping it record a net income equivalent of $2.80 per diluted share. Net income in the second quarter last year was $173 million, or $1.67 per share.

Ginnie Mae today announced recent enhancements to its risk management strategy.

The U.S. Treasury Department has hired Morgan Stanley to provide market analysis and financial expertise in connection with a government rescue of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Issuance of securities backed by commercial mortgages is in the longest lull in more than 10 years, according to Chris Lau, an analyst at Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC's RBC Greenwich Capital.

Baker & McKenzie announced the formation of its new covered bond group, which will be headed by Richard Rudder, the law firm’s global co-head of securitization and partner.

Investors sued Wachovia Corp. and its affiliates on Monday, charging them with causing losses by incorrectly valuing shares of a now-defunct bond fund and making risky investments in the fund.

Fannie Mae yesterday releaseda statement (Announcement 08-18) detailing another change in its calculation of upfront guarantee fees and the adverse delivery charge.

Triad Guaranty, Winston-Salem, N.C., has reported a net loss of $198.2 million ($13.36 per share) for the second quarter, compared with net income of $12.0 million ($0.80 per share) a year earlier.

Deutsche Bank has combined its ABS and its capital management divisions, according to published reports.

HSBC Holdings announced further cuts in its U.S. consumer finance business and said a steep loss from North American operations again undermined strong performance elsewhere in the first half.

The board of directors of the European Securitization Forum (ESF) has elected its new leadership for 2008 and 2009.

Lehman Brothers and JPMorgan Securities analysts reviewed the outlook for net issuance for the remainder of the year in this week's research.

Deutsche Bank AG took 2.3 billion euros ($3.6 billion) in residential mortgage-backed securities writedowns during the second quarter but generated a net profit of 645 million euros.

IndyMac Bancorp, the holding company for the failed thrift, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection last week.

The American Securitization Forum (ASF) warned that the scope of proposed rules the prohibit certain existing practices regarding consumer credit card accounts will have the negative and unintended consequences of decreasing investment in credit card ABS.

President George W. Bush signed the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 last week. The event is remarkable in many ways.

Having spent years without seeing a dime for certain services rendered, Brazil's Construtora Andrade Gutierrez (AG) has gone ahead and securitized those payment flows.