May 2005
Oldest GSE takes the spotlight
Debt issuance from the 12 Federal Home Loan Banks could soon outstrip that from the better-known US housing agencies. At the FHLBanks' office of finance, they're taking it all in their stride. Mark Brown reports.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6 2005 could go down as a momentous day in the history of the US Government Sponsored Enterprises. Armando Falcon, Jr, the departing director of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), told a congressional hearing that Fannie Mae employees had falsified signatures on accounting transactions to help meet earnings targets. The previous day, Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan had told the Senate banking committee that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae's mortgage and MBS portfolios should be reduced. Agency-watchers in and around Washington, DC, sensed that the on-off assault on the two major housing GSEs was reaching its climax.
So you might expect the atmosphere at what, by volume of debt issued, is becoming the largest GSE, to be tense. But it's not. At the office of finance of the Federal Home Loan Banks in the Washington, DC, suburb of Reston, Virginia, all is calm.
"Regulatory reform...
This is archived content. Your current settings does not currently allow access to the archive. To gain access visit the subscription page or call our hotline on +44 (0)207 779 8999.
If you are a trialist or subscriber, please enter your username and password at the top right-hand side of euromoney.com
Subscribers to Euromoney benefit from:
Level 1:
- Online access to the past 12 months content
- Tailored RSS news feeds direct to your desktop
- News delivered directly to your mobile device or PC
- Personalised email newsfeed of 'Top stories' and 'Breaking news'
Level 2:
- Exclusive access to euromoney.com - Read the latest issue early online, search for specific developments by region or sector, interrogate the results of Euromoney's benchmark polls, and view the archive dating back to 2000
- 12 monthly issues of Euromoney magazine
- More than 30 specialist research guides free
- The results of Euromoney’s polls and surveys
- Tailored RSS news feeds direct to your desktop
- News delivered directly to your mobile device or PC
- Personalised email newsfeed of 'Top stories' and 'Breaking news'
Click here to subscribe