Category Archives: hedge funds

Guest Post: The Migratory Patterns of Yield-Hungry Investors

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Isaac Gradman

Editor’s Note: in this guest post, former bond insurance insider Steve Ruterman discusses important considerations for investing in private label MBS beyond credit risk analysis, including how investors can benefit from understanding the differences in servicer behavior and business models.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Attorneys General, bondholder actions, conflicts of interest, firing servicers, foreclosure rate, guest posts, hedge funds, incentives, investors, junior liens, loan modifications, loan seasoning, MBIA, MBS, moral hazard, mortgage market, pre-investment due diligence, private label MBS, projecting risk adjusted returns, putbacks, regulation, Regulators, servicer defaults, servicer reports, servicers, subprime | Leave a comment

New York Judge Strikes Blow to Investor Putback Claims

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Isaac Gradman

Update: it appears that Walnut Place has already filed an appeal of the dismissal of its lawsuit against BofA and Countrywide – IMG. Investors in Countrywide mortgage backed securities (MBS) were dealt a setback last Wednesday in their efforts to … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Frankel, appeals, Bank of New York, banks, BofA, bondholder actions, conflicts of interest, contract rights, Countrywide, derivative lawsuits, Event of Default, global settlement, Greenwich Financial Services, hedge funds, incentives, investors, irresponsible lending, Judge Barbara Kapnick, Judicial Opinions, lawsuits, lending guidelines, litigation, MBS, motions to dismiss, pooling agreements, private label MBS, procedural hurdles, putbacks, rep and warranty, repurchase, research, RMBS, securitization, settlements, standing, Trustees, underwriting guidelines, underwriting practices, Walnut Place | 5 Comments

BlackRock Attorney to Face Stiffer Challenges to Next Set of MBS Settlements

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Isaac Gradman

(Updated version, including new 6th paragraph on subsequent announcement of larger probe into Morgan Stanley bonds) Having received copious kudos for engineering an $8.5 billion investor settlement with Bank of America over soured Countrywide residential mortgage backed securities (RMBS), “pitbull” … Continue reading →

Posted in Allstate, appeals, Attorneys General, Bank of New York, banks, BlackRock, BofA, bondholder actions, conflicts of interest, contract rights, Countrywide, emc, Event of Default, Federal Home Loan Banks, FHFA, global settlement, hedge funds, Investor Syndicate, investors, JPMorgan, jurisdiction, Kathy Patrick, lawsuits, lenders, liabilities, litigation, MBIA, MBS, Morgan Stanley, Philippe Selendy, press, private label MBS, putbacks, quinn emanuel, Regulators, remand, removability, rep and warranty, repurchase, RMBS, securities, securitization, settlements, standing, toxic assets, Wall St., Wells Fargo | 7 Comments

Book Tour Day 1: Pessimism, Hope and Note Cards

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Isaac Gradman

My first day in New York City to promote the release of Way Too Big to Fail was a whirlwind, as expected.  I arrived into JFK at 6:00 AM and headed into Manhattan for my first stop at the Cornell … Continue reading →

Posted in Attorneys General, bailout, Dan Rather, due diligence firms, Government bailout, hedge funds, mortgage market, Neil Barofsky, putbacks, re-underwriting, Regulators, RMBS, securities, securities laws, securitization, TARP, The Subprime Shakeout, Timothy Geithner, too big to fail, Treasury, Wall St., Way Too Big to Fail, William Frey | Leave a comment

Geithner Plan’s Use of Wall Street Firms to Value “Toxic” Securities No Panacea

Posted on April 3, 2009 by Isaac Gradman

Several commentators have recently praised Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner’s plan to use Wall Street firms to help value “toxic” assets, such as mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), because it draws on these firms’ supposed expertise in valuing … Continue reading →

Posted in Countrywide, due diligence firms, hedge funds, legislation, loan modifications, re-underwriting, Richard Posner, Servicer Safe Harbor, Timothy Geithner, toxic assets, valuation, Wall St. | Leave a comment

Countrywide Attorney Sends Letter to Greenwich Financial’s Counsel Urging Hedge Fund to Withdraw Lawsuit

Posted on December 23, 2008 by Isaac Gradman

In a peculiar turn of events, Countrywide Financial has attempted to address the recently-filed lawsuit against it by Greenwich Financial Services with an age-old strategy of conflict resolution: just ask nicely. As reported by Reuters, Countrywide attorney John Beisner, from … Continue reading →

Posted in Attorneys General, BofA, class actions, Countrywide, Greenwich Financial Services, hedge funds, lawsuits, litigation, loan modifications, motions to dismiss, press, repurchase, settlements, workouts | Leave a comment

Under Countrywide Stipulated Judgment, Investors Must Be Consulted

Posted on December 9, 2008 by Isaac Gradman

After reviewing the Complaint filed by hedge fund Greenwich Financial Services against Countrywide and BofA and listening to the comments made last week by Greenwich CEO William Frey and his attorney regarding the case, I decided to take a closer … Continue reading →

Posted in Attorneys General, BofA, Countrywide, Greenwich Financial Services, hedge funds, investors, Jerry Brown, lawsuits, litigation, loan modifications, settlements, stipulated judgments, William Frey | Leave a comment

Hedge Fund Greenwich Financial Files Lawsuit Against Countrywide (BofA) Over Loan Modifications

Posted on December 2, 2008 by Isaac Gradman

As anticipated and previously discussed (see last week’s post), a hedge fund has indeed sued Countrywide Financial Corporation (now a part of Bank of America) over loan modifications Countrywide agreed to make under the terms of a settlement reached with … Continue reading →

Posted in Attorneys General, BofA, Complaints, Countrywide, Greenwich Financial Services, hedge funds, investors, lawsuits, loan modifications, repurchase, securitization, subprime, underwriting practices | Leave a comment

Not-So-Free Market: Group of Large Hedge Funds Expected to Sue FSA Over Short-Selling Ban

Posted on September 26, 2008 by Isaac Gradman

Thanks to Bryan Carter and the Tuscan Group for passing along this article on the litigation expected to arise from the U.K. regulator’s decision to ban short-selling for financial company stocks. On September 18, England’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) announced … Continue reading →

Posted in FSA, hedge funds, investors, liquidity, litigation, SEC, short-selling, volatility | Leave a comment