Here’s an informative  account of Sandy Weill’s creation of the first full-service superbank, Citigroup, and the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act that stood in his way .

This is from a report by Frontline that discusses the end of Glass Steagal and  interviews of former SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt, former Federal Reserve Board member Alan Blinder, New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, financial historian Charles Geisst, the Precusor Group’s Scott Cleland, and Kenneth Guenther of the Independent Community Bankers of America.

Excerpt: Arthur Levitt,  SEC chairman  from 1993 to 2001:

 “It was apparent to me that the protections of Glass-Steagall had already largely eroded. But Congress, at several times, nearly passed a bill to do away with Glass-Steagall. It was clear that it was a question not of whether but when Glass-Steagall would go. Millions of dollars were pouring in the campaign coffers of senators…

Here, here.. And I concur…

You may remember my recent column on Richard Bowen, the Dallas banker who blew the whistle on Citigroup and is considered by many to be an unsung American hero.

The 68-year-old senior lecturer of accounting was once a top executive with Citigroup’s mortgage lending organization. When his warnings of internal malfeasance got him sacked, Bowen filed a complaint under Sarbanes-Oxley and later testified before Congress.

He has nothing to show for his efforts.

Well, he’s not done.

On Friday morning, Bowen appeared on Bloomberg Television’s Market Makers hosted by Stephanie Ruhle. He announced that he’s requested a congressional investigation into possible cover-ups he says he witnessed at the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission.

But time is running out for charges to be filed.

Read on.

The trial of the century—a long-awaited determination of the damage perpetrated by Wall Street institutions in the financial crisis—began Monday in New York. But it’s only happening because one bank—unlike Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Citigroup, and Bank of America—refused to settle out of court. The Japanese firm Nomura stands accused of lying to mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac about the quality of mortgages pooled into securities during the housing bubble. The case will finally reveal hard data on just how much money Nomura, and the rest of the industry, made through fraud.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, sued 18 of the biggest banks in the world in 2011. As an investor, Fannie and Freddie purchased $196 billion in mortgage-backed securities from 2005 to 2007, filled with loans that did not meet specific underwriting guidelines. Sixteen of the 18 banks

On a side note: Green Tree is part of the Walter Investment Management group. Green Tree’s sister companies are ditech, Security 1 Lending, and Reverse Mortgage Solutions.

Ocwen Loan Servicing, a subsidiary of Ocwen Financial Corporation, and Green Tree Loan Servicing, for the sale by Ocwen of an Agency mortgage servicing rights portfolio with a total principal balance of $9.6 billion, according to an announcement from Ocwen on Wednesdaymorning.

According to Ocwen, the portfolio consists of approximately 55,000 performing loans owned by Freddie Mac. The transaction is subject to approval by Freddie Mac and its conservator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), as well as other customary conditions. Ocwen reported that it expects the transaction to close by April 30, 2015, and expects the loan servicing to transfer in May 2015.

“We are pleased with the progress we are making on executing our plan,” Ocwen CEO…

BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., AND THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT, HOMEFOCUS SERVICES, LLC,
Appellants,
v.
PHILLIP V. PATE AND BARBARA PATE, ROBERT L. POHLMAN AND MARCIA L. CROOM,
Appellees.
IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL
FIRST DISTRICT, STATE OF FLORIDA
NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE MOTION FOR REHEARING AND DISPOSITION THEREOF IF FILED
CASE NO. 1D14-251
_____________________________/

In this civil foreclosure case, the trial court found that Appellant Bank of America (the Bank) engaged in egregious and intentional misconduct in Appellee Pates’ (Pate) purchase of a residential home. Thus, based on the trial court’s finding that the Bank had unclean hands in this equity action, it did not reversibly err in denying theforeclosure action and granting a deed in lieu of foreclosure. In addition, the trial court did not err in ruling in favor of the Pates in their counterclaims for breach of contract and fraud, and awarding them $250,000 in…

The new report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Office of Inspector General says that whileFannie Mae and Freddie Mac returned to profitability in 2012, but that profitability is not a sure thing going forward.

The report notes that the mortgage industry is complex, cyclical, and sensitive to changes in economic conditions, mortgage rates, house prices, and other factors. “The enterprises have acknowledged in their public disclosures that adverse market and other changes could lead to additional losses and that their financial results are subject to significant variability from period to period,” the OIG says.

As noted by the Urban Institute, Freddie Mac’s profits are not pulling in the same results as its counterpart Fannie Mae, in addition to results being drastically lower than a couple years ago.

The significant drop has caused industry concern that it may be headed for another draw on Treasury, something both enterprises have avoided…

March 16, 2015

The documents below might be useful as evidence to support fraud allegations if trying to stop foreclosure by denial of modification of a mortgage.

• Declaration of William E. Wilson Jr HAMP Mass 2013-06-07 (PDF)
• Declaration of Bert Sheeks(PDF)
• Declaration of Steven Cupples (PDF)
• Declaration of Theresa Terrelonge (PDF)
• Declaration of Erika Brown (PDF)
• Declaration of Recorda Simon (PDF)
• Declaration of Simone Gordon (PDF)

Source: Certified Forensic Loan Auditors

RICHMOND, Va. –

People in Virginia who lost their homes because SunTrust Bank foreclosed on them could be eligible for payment, under a $550 million SunTrust national mortgage foreclosure settlement.

There are approximately 3,050 qualified borrowers who lost their homes between January 1, 2008 and December 31, 2013.

They’re urged to respond and get a packet from Attorney General Mark Herring that includes a one-page claim form. That form must be returned by June 4th.

The AG’s office says SunTrust agreed to a $550 million national settlement with the federal government, Commonwealth of Virginia, 48 other states, and the District of Columbia after investigations alleging numerous violations in its servicing of mortgages and its foreclosure practices.

Read on.

Lincoln homeowner Pat Freeland told a House committee Thursday that when Bank of America officials said they were modifying her mortgage to avoid foreclosure, they lied — and that lawmakers shouldn’t vote for a pair of bills protecting the banks from liability.

 “I’m telling you right now, as long as our hometown banks are selling these loans to megabanks, we are at risk as homeowners,” she said. “What we had was not free-flowing communication with our banker, but free-flowing lies.”

Freeland joined several homeowners and attorneys testifying against Senate bills 280 and 281, which would narrow the liability of banks for their lending practices and forbid the award of punitive damages in consumer-protection lawsuits.

They said if the two bills had been in effect, many Montana homeowners who sued Bank of America and other lenders for misleading them on the status of their distressed mortgage would have had no legal…