Asset Securitization Report articles from September 2005

Asset Securitization Report archives from September 2005

Whispers.
September 12, 2005... Dominion Bond Rating Service appointed Darren Davies as a senior vice president in the agency's North American structured finance marketing team, where he will focus on developing relationships in the RMBS and ABS sectors in the U.S., covering...

ABS East returns: Bigger, earlier and featuring karaoke and Star Wars.(asset backed securities)
September 12, 2005... Information Management Network's 11th annual ABS East conference kicks off this week, nearly one month earlier than usual, and is expected to be even bigger than last year with over 2,800 delegates and 128 sponsors were registered to...

Making payments pays off for Salta.
September 12, 2005... While scores of Argentine issuers queued up before investors to restructure their debt after the catastrophic devaluation of December 2001, the province of Salta kept making payments on its $234 million, 11.5% 14-year securitization of oil and...

Malaysian ABS growth continues.
September 12, 2005... This year is comfortably turning out to be the most robust year for Malaysian securitization since the Securities Commission introduced ABS guidelines in 2001. And while overall volumes remain small compared to more established Asian markets,...

Rising rates main hurdle for positive RMBS ratings run.
September 12, 2005... The past 15 years have seen total RMBS rating upgrades outpace downgrades by a two to one ratio, and in each of the past 10 years more deals have been upgraded than downgraded, according to an historical study by Moody's Investors Service. The...

U.S. ABS primary prices $17 billion as industry preps for ABS East.
September 12, 2005... In spite of the shortened holiday week, the ABS primary market managed to generate $17 billion as issuers and managers rushed to get deals done before the upcoming ABS East conference in Boca Raton, Fla. GE Finance brought its long-awaited...

Katrina-related damage to ABS market should be limited.
September 12, 2005... In the wake of the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina, the question on most people's minds in the ABS market is how deals in some of the non-mortgage related ABS sectors will respond, and how badly the damage will affect deals in those...

Hurricane Katrina to have little effect on RMBS performance.
September 12, 2005... As the breadth of damage inflicted by Hurricane Katrina remains largely unknown to both those on scene and those within the financial sector, ABS industry analysts are thus far projecting a relatively modest impact on mortgage and home equity...

MBS volume picks up on return of market participants.
September 12, 2005... As the summer draws to a close, normal trading activity resumed last week with active two-way flows. There was profit taking following Hurricane Katrina while the market sold-off from the previous week's rally. However, flows turned to better...

Morgan Stanley looks at recent MBS supply trends.
September 12, 2005... The recent spike in discount coupon issuance and the corresponding composition shift in 30-year conventionals could significantly redefine what is TBA deliverable and dramatically alter the convexity profile of the mortgage universe, analysts...

Ginnie Mae announces increased disclosures.
September 12, 2005... Last week Ginnie Mae announced enhancements to its MBS disclosures making it easier to determine the actual cause for relatively accelerated prepayments in its securities. Starting in December, the agency will start reporting the number of...

Accredited's Konrath talks strategy in bubble environment.
September 12, 2005... As talk of the housing bubble bursting looms and affordability mortgage products proliferate, ASR chatted with Accredited Home Lenders Inc. Chairman and CEO Jim Konrath to discuss his company's future prospects. ASR: Accredited Home...

Guatemala and Turkey launch fall season.
September 12, 2005... While many emerging market bankers took a holiday break in August, at least a few spent the month fashioning cross-border deals to kick off the fall season. So far, what's in store for future flow investors is a first-time opportunity to try on...

Petrobras funds local construction via lease deal.
September 12, 2005... Oil producer Petroleos Brasileiros is preparing to finance local buildings through a structure typically used by Brazilian construction companies. The R$200 million ($89 million) 10-year securitization is backed by lease payments owed by...

China Unicom closes surprise deal.
September 12, 2005... The news that China's second-largest mobile-phone service provider, China United Telecommunications, was set to issue Rmb3.2 billion ($395.5 million) of short-term ABS seemingly came out of nowhere. In fact, when asked their thoughts on the...

Whispers.
September 19, 2005... GMAC-RFC Senior Vice President of Securitization Management Diane Wold will be moving over to General Motors Acceptance Corp. sister unit Residential Capital Corp. as head of investor relations and corporate finance, reporting to CFO Louise...

Jedi Counsel unable to agree on state of ABS, housing markets.(Asset backed securities)
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. -The opening panel discussion moderated by Moody's Investors Service Team Managing Director Gus Harris was an oftentimes rambling, though thoroughly substantive, Star Wars-themed discussion on the current state of the ABS...

Who's playing who in subprime?
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - As more and more citizens - and non-citizens for that matter - have achieved the American dream of homeownership, the subprime lenders have been played like a fiddle, according to some panelists at Information Management...

Zoomp to show market its assets.
September 19, 2005... It's never been more stylish to securitize your assets in Brazil. Local clothing label Zoomp is ready to thread its way into the capital market through a receivable investment fund (FIDC), the vehicle of choice for non-real estate issuers....

ABS volume hinges on interest rates, gas prices, Katrina fallout.(Asset backed securities)
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - Predictions for 2006 ABS volume were all over the map at the ABS East conference last week, as evidenced by the panel entitled "What Lurks Around The Corner?" moderated by Fitch Ratings Managing Director Kevin Duignan. The...

ABCP conference panelists show little fear of pending regulation.(Asset backed commercial paper)
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - If the pending regulatory and accounting changes have ABCP market participants worried, they did not show their concern at the opening panel of Information Management Network's ABCP and SIVs conference held last Tuesday....

Single-seller conduits would not erode multi-seller popularity.
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - Issuance out of single-seller ABCP conduits is expected to continue to rise this year, in large part due to the increase in extendible note issuance out of single-seller conduits. There was $15.9 billion in U.S. ABCP...

Portfolio growth to slow for large credit card issuers.
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - Credit card ABS market participants speaking at Information Management Network's ABS East conference held here last week forecast continued diminishing supply in the sector, with smaller issuers becoming more and more...

Market participants alter policies in response to Katrina.
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - At last week's Information Management Network ABS East conference held here, issuers and at least one rating agency discussed the ways they have changed their policies or deal structures in response to Hurricane Katrina. ...

As carriers flounder, pooled lease ABS heats up.
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - Despite the negative headlines surrounding the commercial airline industry, the pooled aircraft lease ABS sector is heating up, as evidenced by the pricing of recent transactions as well as one transaction scheduled for later...

ABS researchers chop up autos, cards and student loans.
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - A crack team of leading ABS research analysts gathered last week at Information Management Network's ABS East conference to discuss the picture in the auto, credit card and student loan sectors. Consistent with the themes...

Experts predict areas to be hardest hit by housing bubble.
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - Those that take the view that there is a bubble in the U.S. housing market - within pockets therein or otherwise - have one burning question: will the fall be hard or soft? Most answer with the safe question, that there will...

Some CDO investors can't get enough equity.(Collateralized debt obligations)(Brief Article)
September 19, 2005... BOCA RATON, FLA. - CDO equity investors are asking for larger chunks than ever before, Banc of America Securities Managing Director Dik Blewitt said during a panel discussion at this year's Information Management Network ABS East conference...

Supportive tone for mortgages despite negatives.
September 19, 2005... While flows were seen as choppy, mortgages held up better than expected last week even given all the negatives. Flows were two-way, with active participation from asset managers and fast money taking advantage of dips and profit taking on...

Slowing housing market to hurt MBS pricing, analysts say.
September 19, 2005... Even with the recent positive home price acceleration data from the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, the rise of fixed mortgage rates has fueled discussion on the Street about a slowing housing market and its effect on MBS...

Demand picture brightens with less GSE shedding.
September 19, 2005... With Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R., Ala.)'s GSE Bill currently on the back burner, the pace of Fannie Mae's portfolio contraction expected to slow in coming months and the anticipated removal of the 30% Freddie Mac...

August Mega and Giant creation remains well below first quarter.(Brief Article)
September 19, 2005... After a flurry of Mega and Giant pools came into the market earlier in the year, issuance has dropped noticeably in the third quarter, mainly caused by diminishing MBS bank holdings. Credit Suisse First Boston reported that August 30-year...

European pipeline still flowing strong.
September 19, 2005... The week set off with an excess of 14 billion ($17.1 billion) circulating in the European pipeline. The strong supply is still maintained by a hearty appetite from investors, with the most liquid deals being well-subscribed and tightening...

Fitch explores quantitative impact of Basel II.
September 19, 2005... Under Basel II, banks could lower capital charges by investing in rated securitization structures rather than by directly holding a comparable pool of unsecuritized assets, said Fitch Ratings in a new report exploring the quantitative impact of...

Banco Industrial tacks on unwrapped piece in debut DPR.(diversified payments rights )
September 19, 2005... Guatemala made its first foray into future flows Sept. 9, when Banco Industrial priced a two tranche, $200 million deal backed by diversified payments rights (DPRs). Wachovia Securities was sole lead on the transaction, which broke down into a...

Malaysia, Singapore lead Asian activity.(Benta Plantations Bhd. acquires Multi Vest Resources )
September 19, 2005... Malaysian palm oil plantation business Multi Vest Resources last week completed its debut M$160 million ($42.4 million) sale and leaseback deal. Deutsche Bank arranged the 10-year transaction, which sees Benta Plantations - a Multi Vest...

Samsung Card and LG Card plan further deals.(Asset backed securities)(LG Electronics Inc.)
September 19, 2005... Two of Korea's biggest credit card originators, Samsung Card and LG Card, are planning another raid on the cross-border ABS market, sources told ASR last week. Samsung Card is working with Royal Bank of Scotland on its deal, with launch likely...

Whispers.(Citigroup Global Markets moves Glen McDermott)(Maxim Advisory appoints Tony Huang)(Bear Stearns Companies Inc. promotes Steve Abrahams)
September 26, 2005... Citigroup Global Markets has moved Managing Director Glen McDermott to its structured credit sales team, with the responsibility of selling both cash and synthetic credit derivatives, reporting to Saul Kattan. Ratul Roy will assume McDermott's...

West Penn Power prices first RRB "accretion" structure.(Real Return Bonds)
September 26, 2005... West Penn Power Co. priced a $115 million Rule 144A stranded cost ABS last week with a structure never before used in the sector. The deal is structured so that bondholders are not paid interest or principal for three years, allowing West Penn...

CDB takes new deal on the road.(China. Development Bank)
September 26, 2005... Momentum continues building in China's ABS market after news emerged last week that China Development Bank has met with investors to educate them on the technical aspects of its Rmb5.3 billion ($654 million) infrastructure loan ABS. China...

Reverse mortgages set for U.K. growth.(United Kingdom)
September 26, 2005... U.K. senior citizens aren't putting all of their eggs in the pension's basket. According to Fitch Ratings, demand for reverse-mortgage schemes from the over 65 population - financial products that allow homeowners to make use of any equity they...

ASF readies conference topics.(American Securitization Forum)
September 26, 2005... The American Securitization Forum last week selected the co-chairs of its program advisory committees for its ASF 2006 conference to be held this winter in Las Vegas. The six committees are in charge of planning the conference's agenda and...

U.S. ABS primary prices $17 billion as market returns from break.(Asset Backed Securitization )
September 26, 2005... Last week, as market participants returned full-force after the ABS East conference, the primary market generated a healthy $17 billion of new issuance. The board was populated with a fair mix of deals, including a stranded cost deal, in the...

Slowdown of prepayments, delinquencies likely in Katrina aftermath.
September 26, 2005... In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, home equity ABS may go through a short-term decrease in prepayments and delinquencies, according to researchers with Morgan Stanley. The researchers, using hurricane-ravaged Florida in 2004 as a...

DBRS releases new synthetic CDO modeling tool.(Dominion Bond Rating Service)(Collateralized debt obligations)
September 26, 2005... Dominion Bond Rating Service just released the final beta version of an advanced modeling tool designed to evaluate the future performance of synthetic CDO structures. DBRS unveiled the tool at IMN's ABS East conference the preceding week in...

Delta, Northwest bankruptcies to have little impact on CDOs.
September 26, 2005... CDOs are not expected to take a substantial hit from the preceding week's dual bankruptcy filings of Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines, according to a report by Fitch Ratings. At least through exposure to unsecured debt from the...

Long-awaited ABSX gears up for first trades.(Asset backed securities)
September 26, 2005... Rules for the first tradable ABS index, released Sept. 14 by Markit, which serves as the administrator of the index, will include 20 RMBS issuers and have five sub-indexes consisting of one security from each issuer. The sub-indexes will...

Industry anxious about Reg AB.
September 26, 2005... With the deadline for compliance with the Securities & Exchange Commission's Regulation AB now less than four months away, speakers at IMN's recent ABS East conference voiced varied concerns about whether most issuers will be ready to comply by...

S&P finds positive results from bubble scenario stress test.
September 26, 2005... While prime, Alt-A and even some subprime mortgage loans look like they'd be able to weather as much as a 30% home price decline on the coasts and a 10% decline in the middle of the country - the swaps used in this year's vintages to hedge...

Mortgages struggle on bull flattening.
September 26, 2005... The unchanged Federal Open Market Committee stance and the entry of Hurricane Rita into the picture made last week interesting for the MBS market, particularly with long rates rallying strongly and the curve flattening significantly. Ahead of...

Relative value begins in 20-year paper.
September 26, 2005... Street analysts are noting the attractiveness of the 20-year sector that results from rolls currently trading near carry and some of the recent cheapening. In a recent report from Bear Stearns, analysts state that the ability to buy cheaper...

Short-term benefits seen post Fed.
September 26, 2005... The curve flattening and volatility decline that followed the Federal Open Market Committee raising interest rates to 3.75% last Tuesday has made many in the Street ambivalent about MBS. In its statement, the FOMC also indicated that it views...

Freddie's new disclosures to adversely impact TBA market.
September 26, 2005... Though it would take awhile to build historical data based on the new loan level information that Freddie Mac will be releasing on its fixed- and adjustable-rate PC Gold securities, the changes would have an immediate negative impact on the...

Research highlights potential for German trade receivable ABS.
September 26, 2005... Securitization specialists Demica plc completed a new research report focusing on trade receivables securitization and the role it can play for the German small-to-mid sized companies (or Mittelstand) and banks in a changing banking...

Volkswagen takes the TSI platform out for a second spin.(True Sale Initiative)(Brief Article)
September 26, 2005... Volkswagen AG issued its second securitization via the new True Sale Initiative securitization platform established by 13 banks and the True Sale International GmbH (see ASR 12/6/04). The 1 billion ($1.2 billion) Driver 2 transaction led by BNP...

Euro market as busy as ever, set for another record year.
September 26, 2005... With more deals lining up, 2005 is as busy as ever and is set to be another record year for the European securitization market. Market focus remains firmly on new issue activity. Little prospect for competing corporate debt issuance is holding...

Uruguayan bus sector fund to hop into new vehicle.
September 26, 2005... A government-sponsored fund for Uruguay's bus companies has found a new kind of vehicle. Set up to refinance debt owed by the sector, the Fund for Financing Urban Transport in Montevideo is using a securitization SPV to raise the local currency...

Cuscatlan dropped into conduit, Garanti up this week.
September 26, 2005... The cross-border Latin American market witnessed the close of one deal last week, a $100 million, seven-year securitization of diversified payment rights by El Salvador's Banco Cuscatlan. Sole lead Citigroup Global Markets was understood to...

Chihuahua barks up a different tree.
September 26, 2005... The Mexican state of Chihuahua securitized toll road receipts in two deals in 2002 and returned last year to tap the excess flows from those structures. Now it's setting its sights on a different asset class: federal co-participation revenue,...

New deals sprout throughout Asia.
September 26, 2005... Construction is due to begin next week on the Singapore Flyer, which at 170 meters tall will be the world's biggest observation wheel. The project, located within the Marina South precinct, hopes to attract 2.5 million visitors per year....