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☆ The US could give homeowners a $980 billion stimulus at no additional cost, 'Oracle of Wall Street' says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. That's if Freddie Mac secures approval from its regulator to operate in the market for secondary mortgages, also commonly known as home equity loans. If greenlighted, the scheme would be equivalent to a huge stimulus injection, but without a cent added to the national deficit, the "Oracle of Wall Street" explained. As Freddie Mac is a massive provider of mortgage market liquidity, the move could encourage more banks to extend this financing to customers. The proposal noted that options are limited for homeowners who want to tap their equity, meaning that few are benefiting from the housing market's appreciation.

Persons: —, Meredith Whitney, Whitney, Freddie Mac, Freddie Mac's, Freddie, Fannie Mae, Ginnie Mae Organizations: Service, Business

☆ China sees foreign threats ‘everywhere’ as powerful spy agency takes center stage
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

But among the crowds you and I together are protecting national security,” the narrator concludes. Chinese soldiers look at a poster promoting national security in the southwestern city of Beihai on National Security Education Day on April 15, 2024. CFOTO/Future Publishing/Getty ImagesAccording to the MSS, foreign spies are omnipresent and infiltrating everything – from mapping apps to weather stations. But China’s spy agency has gradually stepped out of the shadows as Xi makes national security a key priority. “Shenyin Special Investigation Squad” is a comic series based on real-life counterespionage operations, according to China's spy agency.

Persons: –, “, ”, Xi, Xuezhi Guo, Sheena Chestnut Greitens, Xi Jinping, Greg Baker, Mao Zedong, Greitens, Chen Yixin, Chen, “ Chen, ” Greitens, Xi –, denigrate, Bain, Alex Plavevski, Guo, influencers, China’s, can’t, James Zimmerman, Perkins Coie, Zimmerman, ” Zimmerman Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, National Security Education, “, Ministry of State Security, National Security, Publishing, CIA, National, Education, Capitol, Guilford College, Asia, University of Texas, Getty, Communist Party, FBI, National Security Propaganda, CCTV, Ministry of State, China’s National Security Commission, Group, China Development Forum, Perkins Coie LLP, ”, MSS Locations: China, Hong Kong, Beihai, British, American, Beijing, Austin, AFP, Zhejiang province, Shanghai, New York, overreaching

☆ Steve Cohen says he owns a 'little bit' of bitcoin because of his son
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Hedge fund billionaire and New York Mets owner Steve Cohen said he owns "very little" bitcoin, though he didn't specify its value. "My son is really into it, and he had me play around and try to figure out how to transact on Coinbase," Cohen told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Wednesday. Still, he appears to be following along with investors across the world who have been trying to understand how to value bitcoin and whether it belongs in a portfolio. BTC.CM= 1Y mountain Bitcoin (BTC) over the past year Cohen also made the point that bitcoin represents just a slice of the broader market of cryptocurrencies and the opportunities for their underlying blockchain technology. "Bitcoin is separate from crypto ... ultimately, it's about use case – will crypto develop use cases?"

Persons: Steve Cohen, Cohen, CNBC's, it's, There's Organizations: New York Mets, Point72 Asset Management, Point72 Ventures, SEC Locations: cryptocurrencies

☆ The Evergrande collapse is not China's 'Lehman moment,' but it does complicate an economic recovery, think tank says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Aruni Soni | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Evergrande collapse is not China's 'Lehman moment,' but it does complicate an economic recovery, CFR expert said. "Unlike Lehman, Evergrande's insolvency is due to its excessive borrowing and aggressive use of leverage, not over-securitization." This has spurred on the question: is the Evergrande collapse China's "Lehman moment?" One famed hedge-fund boss said China's property crash was like the Great Financial Crisis from 2008 "on steroids." "Unlike Lehman, Evergrande's insolvency is due to its excessive borrowing and aggressive use of leverage, not over-securitization."

Persons: Lehman, —, Evergrande, Zoe Liu, Liu Organizations: Service, of Foreign Relations, Lehman Brothers Locations: Hong Kong

☆ Wall St regulator adopts Dodd Frank rule against trader conflicts
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The seal of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2021. The SEC move is mandated by the Dodd Frank law, aimed at eradicating behavior seen in the 2008 global financial crisis. The rule is among the last to be adopted under 2010's Dodd Frank Wall Street reform legislation and faced a winding road to completion. Parties covered by the rule include underwriters, placement agents and sponsors for asset-backed securities. The SEC says it will require compliance with the rule for asset-backed securities with closing dates falling 18 months after the rule appears in the Federal Register.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Dodd Frank, Dodd Frank Wall, Gary Gensler, Hester Peirce, Goldman Sachs, Douglas Gillison, David Gregorio, Marguerita Choy Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Washington , D.C, REUTERS, SEC, Republican, Senate, Federal Register, Thomson Locations: Washington ,

☆ Warren Buffett's deputy isn't in 'The Big Short' like Michael Burry - but he also bet against the housing bubble and spoke to Michael Lewis
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( Theron Mohamed | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

"The Big Short" starred Michael Burry and others who bet the mid-2000s housing bubble would burst. Author Michael Lewis phoned Combs to talk about his housing wager while researching "The Big Short." AdvertisementAdvertisementMichael Burry and the other stars of "The Big Short" weren't the only investors to uncover the toxic assets underpinning the mid-2000s housing bubble, and place bets on its spectacular collapse. Lewis said he was working on a book about the whole situation that would become "The Big Short." AdvertisementAdvertisementCombs finished the story by saying he enjoys being "one small little piece" of the fascinating backstory behind "The Big Short."

Persons: Michael Burry, Todd Combs, Warren Buffett's, Michael Lewis, Combs, —, Warren, Ted Weschler, Baupost Group's Seth Klarman, Klarman, Bear Stearns, Lewis, Steve Eisman, Danny Moses, Greg Lippmann, Buffett, it's Organizations: Service, Berkshire Hathaway's, Countrywide, Washington, Long, Mortgage, Street, Securities and Exchange Commission Locations: Berkshire, Bear Stearns

By doing so, if they get capital relief, they would reduce the capital they need to keep against them for regulatory capital purposes, according to banking industry sources. “There has certainly been growing interest in these transactions as banks seek regulatory capital relief," said Missy Dolski, global head of capital markets at alternative investment firm Varde Partners, an active investor in such products. "This guidance makes it more clear what structures would need affirmative approval for capital relief and what is required to comply," she added. Directly issued credit-linked notes could also qualify but would need to be approved by the Fed, said the Q&A. These clarifications come after growing calls for clarity on which of these bespoke trades issued by U.S. banks would qualify for capital relief, the banking industry sources said.

Persons: Missy Dolski, Michael Bright, ”, Shankar Ramakrishnan, Megan Davies, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Federal Reserve, Varde Partners, Fed, SPV, Structured Finance Association, European Central Bank, Reuters, Thomson Locations: U.S, Major U.S

☆ Here's why some economists are concerned student loans may cause the next big bubble
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( Juhohn Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Billions of dollars worth of student loans are packed and sold as assets known as student loan asset-backed securities to some of the biggest investors in America. But as student loans continue to balloon, experts have expressed growing concerns surrounding the SLABS market. She continued, "I think one of the key ways to uncover the similarities between student loans and mortgages is to look at the affordability issue." But the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau estimates that one in five student loan borrowers have risk factors that could cause them to struggle when federal student loan payments resume in October. Watch the video to learn more about why experts are concerned about the state of the SLABS market.

Persons: Louis, Allison Pyburn, Eleanor Xu, Elen Callahan, Xu Organizations: U.S, Federal Reserve Bank of St, U.S . Department of Education, Financial, Seton Hall University, Structured Finance Locations: America

☆ Fact Check-Photo shows China’s Nansha bridge, not Nigeria
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A photo of a bridge in Guangdong, China is circulating on social media with a false caption that it shows a new bridge in Nigeria called Anioma. One post sharing the image here wrote: “The Anioma bridge in Delta State opened June 2023. Cost: $700m, raised from securitization of 10% gas pipeline revenues to a 75 year bond.”The photo, however, shows the Nansha bridge in China’s Guangdong Province. Articles about the bridge, opened in 2019 and previously called The Second Humen Bridge, can be seen here, here and here . The photo shows the Nansha Bridge in Guangdong, China, not a bridge in Nigeria.

Persons: Read Organizations: Delta State, Reuters Locations: Guangdong, China, Nigeria, Delta, securitization, China’s Guangdong Province, ”

☆ Yellen's China trip yields long meetings, 'cordial' tone, but no consensus
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"The accomplishment of the meeting was the meeting itself, not specific issues," said Scott Kennedy, a China economics expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. A senior U.S. Treasury official accompanying Yellen on her first trip to China as secretary described it as "respectful, frank and constructive," adding: "She was warmly received." Her meeting on Saturday with He, China's new economic czar, was scheduled for two hours but lasted five, followed by a "cordial" dinner, the official said. In the meantime, Yellen said the talks set the stage for more frequent U.S.-China communications at the staff level about economic issues, including areas of disagreement. A possible venue for this would be the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco in November.

Persons: Janet Yellen, Yellen, Lifeng, Scott Kennedy, Premier Li Qiang, Pan Gongsheng, Joe Biden's, Jake Colvin, Hong Hao, Hong, Colvin, Biden, John Kerry, Gina Raimondo, Xi Jinping, Wang Yiwei, David Lawder, Andrea Shalal, Ryan Woo, Ellen Zhang, Qiaoyi Li, Stephen Coates Organizations: . Treasury, U.S, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Global Times, Treasury, Premier, People's Bank of China, National Foreign Trade Council, Grow Investment, . Commerce, Renmin University, Economic Cooperation, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Washington, China's, U.S, United States, Hong Kong, Asia, San Francisco, Anchorage , Alaska

☆ When Buying Now and Actually Paying Later Isn’t Enough
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Telis Demos | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Affirm has weathered rocky capital markets and increased its funding capacity from the prior quarter. Photo: Gabby Jones/Bloomberg NewsMore people are buying now and—despite what many have feared—also paying later. Buy now, pay later provider Affirm on Tuesday reported some reassuring things related to common concerns about the installment-payment business. Plus, Affirm has weathered rocky capital markets and increased its funding capacity from the prior quarter. In April, it closed a $400 million securitization deal that had been upsized from $250 million.

Companies UBS Group AG FollowMay 1 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine how difficult it should be for financial whistleblowers to win retaliation lawsuits against their employers as the justices took up a long-running case involving Switzerland's UBS Group AG (UBSG.S). A Supreme Court ruling in favor of UBS could significantly curtail financial whistleblower lawsuits because it is often difficult for plaintiffs to prove a defendant's motives. Robert Herbst, a lawyer for Murray, said the 2nd Circuit decision ignored the text of the whistleblower law, adding that he looked forward to arguing the case before the Supreme Court. A UBS spokesperson said, "We expect the court will uphold the 2nd Circuit's decision." The Supreme Court is due to hear the case in its next term, which begins in October.

☆ Subway comes up with $5 billion debt plan to clinch $10 billion-plus sale, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

This is weighing on how much the private equity firms are offering to buy companies. So far, bids for Subway have ranged between $8.5 billion and $10 billion, one of the sources said. Barclays, a major player in the market for WBS financing, is one of the banks in discussions about long-term financing, the sources said. JPMorgan's financing package also offers the option of a preferred equity component with a roughly 15% interest rate, the sources said. This is a more expensive route that private equity firms may not opt for, three of the sources added.

This is weighing on how much the private equity firms are offering to buy companies. So far, bids for Subway have ranged between $8.5 billion and $10 billion, one of the sources said. This is a more expensive route that private equity firms may not opt for, three of the sources added. To be sure, Subway is allowing bidders to use any financing route they want, as long as they can show they can secure committed financing. TPG and Bain were part of a group that owned Burger King when John Chidsey, who is now Subway's CEO, headed that burger fast-food restaurant chain.

☆ Solar firm Sunnova gets $3 billion loan guarantee from US energy department
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 20 (Reuters) - Sunnova Energy International (NOVA.N) said on Thursday the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will provide the solar company up to $3 billion in a partial loan guarantee to expand clean energy access. The company last month said it was in discussion with the DOE regarding the potential issuance of an indirect guarantee of 90% for up to $3.3 billion in solar loans. The DOE's Loan Program Office aims to speed development of the clean energy sector with loans to automakers, miners, recyclers and others, many of which would struggle to obtain private financing given their large capital needs. "The DOE financing would accelerate the adoption of solar and storage, decrease greenhouse gas emissions, and expand the availability of reliable, clean, and affordable energy to those communities who benefit the most from low-cost energy," Sunnova CEO William Berger said in a statement. Sunnova also expects the DOE loan guarantee to support up to $4 billion - $5 billion in the company's loan originations, reduce its weighted average cost of capital and generate interest savings.

☆ Single-family rentals were stars of real estate during the pandemic. Now the sector faces its biggest challenges yet.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The SFR sector is facing fresh challenges this year, however, two KBRA analysts said. If you were an institutional investor looking to invest in real estate during the height of the pandemic, single-family rental properties were probably on your list. Home prices were rising quickly, and borrowing costs were low, underpinning the fundamentals of residential real estate. What's more, real estate research and investment-banking firm Zelman & Associates has estimated there's $110 billion in investor capital waiting to be spent on homes. Labor and supply costs have risen consistently, and massive home price appreciation is resulting in higher real estate taxes.

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"Not only are these big banks not sitting around and waiting for the phone to ring, they are also being proactive." Amid the nation's most troubling turmoil in banking since the global financial crisis nearly 15 years ago, the big banks are flexing their collective muscle. The 2008 financial crisis humbled the banking behemoths; the 2023 crisis of regional banks has now only cemented their power. For an increasingly stretched financial system, the big banks provide a needed stability. The flight to safety that is benefiting the big banks will have a cost, however.

☆ LendingClub’s New CFO Tasked With Preparing Its Balance Sheet for a Downturn
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Kristin Broughton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Drew LaBenne, LendingClub’s chief financial officer since September, is tasked with managing the San Francisco-based company’s balance sheet as it faces a downturn and an industry pullback in demand for loans from investors. We use the marketplace, which is essentially whole loan sales to buyers, or we use the balance sheet. We make on average close to three times as much by putting a loan on the balance sheet versus selling it. Why not just keep all of them on your balance sheet? A lot of that was driven by the upfront CECL [charge] of the loans that we put on the balance sheet.

Dec 20 (Reuters) - Private U.S. oil and gas companies are increasingly turning to a niche financing structure that securitizes their production, providing a funding avenue for producers and owners as traditional sources become more expensive or simply dry up. With banks pressured by stakeholders to restrict loans to the oil and gas sector over its environmental impact, private energy producers - more reliant on bank lines than listed peers - are able to maintain access to outside finance through this niche product. While the first rated PDP securitization was completed in September 2019 by Raisa Energy, volatile commodity prices and a wave of producer bankruptcies in 2020 stymied its initial application. The investment bank helped arrange, among others, a $750 million ABS sold by Jonah Energy in October - currently the largest PDP securitization completed. GROWING APPEALAs well as financing day-to-day operations, private equity firms that own energy producers are exploring using PDP securitizations as an investor pay-day.

☆ An influx of natural disasters and rising storm-recovery costs means Americans will have to pay pricier utility bills for decades
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Jordan Hart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Utility bills are costing Americans more than ever, thanks to natural disasters rocking power grids. Companies have taken on billions in debt to strengthen their grids against storms, according to WSJ. One in six US households are behind on their utility bills, the National Energy Assistance Directors' Association reported. According to a November release from the National Energy Assistance Directors' Association, one in six households in the US are behind on their utility bills. The families owe a total of $16.1 billion as of August 2022, an $8 billion increase from December 2019.

☆ Credit Suisse sells most of its securitized products business to Apollo as it speeds up restructure
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The bank said the move represented an "important step towards a managed exit from the Securitized Products business, which is expected to significantly de-risk the investment bank and release capital to invest in Credit Suisse's core business." Credit Suisse said the transaction, along with the potential sale of other assets to third-party investors, is expected to reduce SPG assets from around $75 billion to $20 billion. Credit Suisse on Tuesday announced that it would accelerate the restructure of its investment bank by selling a significant portion of its securitized products group (SPG) to Apollo Global Management. Credit Suisse will hold an extraordinary general meeting next week to seek the green light from shareholders on several key elements of the restructure. These include the planned 1.5 billion Swiss franc ($1.6 billion) investment from the Saudi National Bank in exchange for a 9.9% shareholding, part of a 4 billion Swiss franc capital raise.

☆ Société Générale Names New Chief Risk Officer
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Mengqi Sun | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

Société Générale SA promoted a veteran banker to be its new group chief risk officer, as the French bank continues to navigate geopolitical uncertainties in Europe and a possible economic slowdown. Stéphane Landon, who has been Société Générale’s deputy chief risk officer since October 2020, will become the chief risk officer on Dec. 1, the bank said Thursday. He will succeed Sadia Ricke, who is leaving the bank at the end of this month to become the chief risk officer at Standard Chartered PLC in London. He served as Société Générale Americas’ chief financial officer in New York between 2018 and 2020, before taking the risk-officer position. He previously led the bank’s Americas business and worked on key market functions for Société Générale, including securitization and leveraged finance.

☆ Even Barry Sternlicht is getting hammered by rising rates. A recent deal his $6 billion firm backed out of shows how.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Daniel Geiger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The scuttled deal shows how rising rates have hit Starwood CEO Barry Sternlicht's bottom line. It has canceled its plans to purchase the Stamford, Connecticut, mortgage originator Luxury Mortgage Corp., according to a person with direct knowledge of the deal. The situation with Luxury Mortgage, however, shows how rising rates have also affected Starwood's bottom line. A budding partnership was upended by rising ratesIn recent years, Starwood has become one of Luxury Mortgage's biggest customers. Luxury Mortgage's business has also been strained in recent months.

☆ Data Centers Face Higher Costs, Weaker Demand for Debt That Fueled Sector’s Rise
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Kristin Broughton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

The decline in issuance of data-center debt comes as chief financial officers across industries evaluate their funding options amid the Fed’s rate-hike campaign. Within the data-center sector in particular, that calculus for some companies involves assessing whether the timing is right to tap the securitization market despite the higher costs. What’s more, while the data-center sector is much bigger now than it was during the 2007-09 recession, it hasn’t been tested. The securitization market has historically provided Vantage with more money than it has needed to pay down its loans, Mr. Metwalli said. Digital Realty Trust Inc., a publicly traded company in the sector with an investment-grade rating, has avoided the securitization market.

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