Ratings Firms Defend Assessment of Loan Securities
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For months, securities backed by risky mortgage loans have been in trouble. Now, the credit-rating agencies that once blessed those securities as safe investments are in trouble, too.
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Rating companies began a new wave of rating cuts Thursday as they reassessed the fallout from deteriorating subprime loans, drawing increased scrutiny from investors who are questioning why the agencies failed to act earlier.
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Fannie Mae executives defended  themselves on Wednesday against government allegations they  manipulated accounting to hide earnings swings, saying they and  their auditors believed they were properly applying complex  standards that can be interpreted differently.
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The firm has rated the flaw as moderately critical. It demonstrated the flaw on its site, with options for both users who use pop-up blockers and those who don&#39;t.
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Freddie Mac (FRE.N), the No. 2 U.S. mortgage finance company, on Wednesday said it may face civil action from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for possible violations of securities laws.
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The practice is compared to redlining in the mortgage industry, but some bankers defend it as a way to assess young borrowers with little credit history.
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Credit rating agencies drew  more fire on Wednesday as a powerful U.S. regulator said it was  investigating if their judgment had been colored by money from  customers selling subprime mortgages.
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Fourteen firms are under scrutiny for possible accounting fraud, insider trading or other violations tied to loans made to borrowers with weak, or subprime, credit.
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Accredited Home Lenders, a top  subprime mortgage loan company in 2007 whose risky practices  forced it to stop lending and slash its staff, is again  reaching out to borrowers with sketchy credit even as the  housing downturn deepens.
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Banking regulators on Tuesday urged servicers of securitized mortgages to proactively contact borrowers at risk of default to help them avoid foreclosure and keep their homes.
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Fear of bond insurers losing their  investment-grade credit ratings is rattling investors as  estimates mount for the cost of paying for the latest chapter  in the widening U.S. credit crisis.
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Expressing impatience with the Securities and Exchange Commission, lawmakers said in a hearing yesterday that they will act to force stronger oversight of the influential credit rating business if the agency doesn&#39;t soon move on its own.
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MARSH &amp; McLENNAN, the worldâs biggest insurance broker, was last night facing a potentially crippling downgrade of its credit rating by Standard &amp; Poorâs, after its borrowing power was all but frozen by its bankers.
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The pressure on bond insurers increased on Wednesday after Fitch Ratings downgraded FGIC Corp's credit rating and Standard &amp; Poor's reviewed the ratings on $529 billion worth of U.S. mortgage-backed securities and collateralized debt obligations.
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Investors may think so, but this Fool disagrees.
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Standard &amp; Poor&#39;s Equity Research reiterated a &quot;hold&quot; rating on Marsh &amp; McLennan (nyse: MMC - news - people ), saying the Securities and Exchange Commission has requested information regarding transactions with parties in which company insiders or major
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UBS Securities, the investment-banking division of the Swiss-based UBS, was accused by Massachusetts regulators of dishonest and unethical practices in dealings with hedge-fund advisers. The subsidiary, based in Stamford, Conn., gave hedge-fund managers below-market rent, low-interest personal loans and other benefits to retain and increase business, according to a complaint from the office of William Galvin, the secretary of the commonwealth and its top securities regulator. The complaint also accuses UBS of failing to supervise gifts and gratuities. The action, filed with the stateâs Securities Division, seeks a cease-and-desist order, a censure and an undisclosed administrative fine, the statement said. Doug Morris, a UBS spokesman in New York, declined to comment.