Fortress Investment Group, a global investment manager, has announced that Daniel Mudd, former CEO of Fannie Mae, is taking a leave of absence from his role as chief executive officer of the company and member of its Board of Directors. Randal A. Nardone, Fortress principal and co-founder, will serve as interim CEO.Click to continue

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged three former senior executives at IndyMac Bancorp with securities fraud for misleading investors about the mortgage lender’s deteriorating financial condition. The SEC alleges that former Chief Executive Officer Michael W. Perry and former CFOs A. Scott Keys and S. Blair Abernathy participated in the filing of false and misleading disclosures about the financial stability of IndyMac and its main subsidiary, IndyMac Bank FSB.Click to continue

The Federal Reserve Board has requested comment on a proposed rule to implement provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that give banking firms a defined period of time to conform their activities and investments to the so-called Volcker Rule. The Volcker Rule generally prohibits banking entities from engaging in proprietary trading in securities, derivatives, or certain other financial instruments, and from investing in, sponsoring, or having certain relationships with a hedge fund or private equity fund.Click to continue

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced that it has fined Goldman Sachs & Company a total of $650,000 for failing to disclose that two of its registered representatives, including Fabrice Tourre, a Goldman vice president, had received formal notices from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that they were the subjects of investigations. Tourre's "Wells Notice" was issued in connection with the SEC's investigation of an offering of a synthetic collateralized debt obligation (CDO) called ABACUS 2007-ACI (Abacus).Click to continue

Angelo Mozilo, co-founder of Countrywide, and two former Countrywide executives have agreed to pay out $67.5 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to avoid a trial on insider trading and civil fraud. Mozilo's trial was set to begin in federal court in Los Angeles this coming Tuesday.Click to continue

Janet Tavakoli Blames the SEC as a "Failed Regulator"...The SEC is a failed regulator.

Checking documents to make sure the paperwork is in order is not an optional step when securities are created and underwritten, and underwriters should be held accountable.

Unfortunately, flawed paperwork is far from the only problem with the securitization process.

The preponderance of evidence indicates a massive, widespread, interconnected Ponzi scheme with various types of concurrent fraud...Click to continue

U.S. regulators will vote next week on rules that may make it harder for companies to mask debt after Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. was accused of misleading investors by temporarily moving assets off its books.Click to continue

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has released its first Conservator’s Report on the Enterprises’ Financial Condition. The Conservator’s Report provides an overview of key aspects of the financial condition of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the government-sponsored enterprises) during conservatorship. The report will be released on a quarterly basis following the filing of the Enterprises’ financial results with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).Click to continue

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Goldman Sachs & Company and one of its vice presidents for defrauding investors by misstating and omitting key facts about a financial product tied to sub-prime mortgages as the U.S. housing market was beginning to falter. The SEC alleges that Goldman Sachs structured and marketed a synthetic collateralized debt obligation (CDO) that hinged on the performance of sub-prime residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS).Click to continue

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged Boston-based State Street Bank and Trust Company with misleading its investors about their exposure to sub-prime investments while selectively disclosing more complete information to specific investors. State Street has agreed to settle the SEC's charges by paying more than $300 million that will be distributed to investors who lost money during the sub-prime market meltdown in 2007.Click to continue