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Inside MBS & ABS

November 21, 2014

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Banks Report Modest Increase in MBS Holdings During 3Q14, Biggest Jump in Non-Agency MBS

Banks and thrifts held a combined $1.535 trillion of residential MBS at the end of September, a modest 0.6 percent increase from the previous quarter, according to a new Inside MBS & ABS analysis of bank call reports. Bank MBS holdings had spiked higher in the first quarter of this year, only to fall back in the following period. Compared to a year ago, the industry’s aggregate MBS portfolio was up 1.4 percent. Bank and thrift MBS holdings first crossed...[Includes two data charts] Read More

RMBS Market Optimists See Some Key Positives, But Pessimists Cite Shriveled Levels of Issuance

Top mortgage finance professionals and government officials gathered in New York City last week to discuss the prospects for the non-agency MBS market, and their assessments were all over the board, a sign of the uncertainty many participants have about trying to resuscitate a stagnant sector. “It’s been seven years since the financial crisis, and certainly a lot of things have changed,” said Rui Pereira, managing director at Fitch Ratings, during a panel at the non-agency MBS reform symposium sponsored by the Structured Finance Industry Group and Information Management Network. He then cited... Read More

GSE Guaranty Fee Hikes in 2013 Hit Purchase Business, Marginal Credit Borrowers Harder

Average MBS guaranty fees charged by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac jumped from 36 basis points in 2012 to 51 bps last year, according to an annual study by the Federal Housing Finance Agency that was released late this week. But the impact of the fee hikes was not spread uniformly across the government-sponsored enterprises’ business. The report shows that the estimated average g-fee on purchase mortgages climbed from 40 bps in 2012 to 55 bps last year. The average fee for refinances rose slightly less, by 14 bps, for both rate-term deals (48 bps in 2013) and cash-out refinances (53 bps last year). According to the FHFA study sample, the purchase business rose... Read More

Watt: GSE G-Fees Not ‘Most Important Factor’ to Bring Back Private Capital; CSP, Single Security Progresses

The head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency told Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee members this week that a decision on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guaranty fees will come soon after the New Year. In his first oversight hearing since taking the reins of the agency in January, FHFA Director Mel Watt stated during questioning that the regulator of the government-sponsored enterprises will make its move on g-fees during the first quarter of 2015. In one of his first acts as FHFA director, Watt postponed... Read More

Three Smaller Firms Set to Participate in NY Fed’s Pilot Program for Agency MBS Sales

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York announced this week that it selected three firms to participate in a pilot project to expand agency MBS sellers beyond the large primary dealers that work with the NY Fed. The pilot will last for about one year and the firms will participate as counterparties on the Open Market Trading Desk along with primary dealers in the Desk’s agency MBS operations. Brean Capital, Loop Capital Markets and Mischler Financial Group were selected to participate in the Mortgage Operations Counterparty Pilot Program, which was announced in August. The NY Fed didn’t disclose the number of firms that applied for the pilot but noted that the intent was always to work with a small number of firms to speed the pilot and keep costs low for the NY Fed. The pilot program participants are set... Read More

MBS Pioneer Ranieri Active in the Single-Family Rental Space, But With a Twist; Can an MBS Deal Be at Hand?

Home Partners of America, a single-family rental company affiliated with MBS veteran Lewis Ranieri, has been quietly gobbling up homes across the U.S., and may have its eye on tapping the securitization market. “They are very active,” said one associate close to Ranieri, who spoke under the condition his name not be used. Moreover, Home Partners – formerly known as Hyperion Homes LLC – recently received... Read More

SG Americas’ Non-Agency MBS Trader Fired, Sanctioned by FINRA For Pre-Arranged Trading

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority revealed recently that a non-agency MBS trader at SG Americas Securities was fired by the firm and sanctioned by FINRA for pre-arranged trading. The self-regulatory organization said that on multiple occasions from 2001 through 2013, Yimin Ge entered into an agreement with counterparties at other institutions to engage in pre-arranged trading. FINRA said such deals violate the Securities Exchange Act as well as FINRA’s rules. The pre-arranged trades involved... Read More

Regulatory, Homeland Pressures Prompt RBS to Exit US Mortgage-Backed Securities Market

The Royal Bank of Scotland is shutting down its U.S. mortgage trading desk as it proceeds with a new plan to reposition its U.S. business. The announcement came after RBS reconsidered its initial plan disclosed five months ago to pare the mortgage trading unit by two-thirds over the next two years, cutting hundreds of jobs in the process. The plan also included an initial public offering of RBS’ Citizens Financial Group unit. The plan changed... Read More

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