Angelo R. Mozilo: Co-founder of Countrywide builds company around passion and generosityGary Simpson and Ralph LoVuolo Sr., CRMSAngelo R. Mozilo,Countrywide
Angelo R. Mozilo is co-founder, chairman and chief executive
officer of Countrywide Financial Corporation. In 1969, Mozilo and
his business partner, the late David Loeb, joined forces to build
on their vision of a mortgage company that would be founded on the
principle that all Americans should have access to the dream of
homeownership. The partners launched their mortgage company and
named it Countrywide to reflect their ambitions for a mortgage
company that would offer home loans nationwide, at a time when
there were no national lenders. Today, the mortgage company Mozilo
co-founded has evolved into Countrywide Financial Corporation, a
diversified financial services company, offering home loans,
insurance, banking and other financial products and services to
consumers and businesses. A member of the S&P 500 and Fortune
500, Countrywide has a workforce of more than 50,000 individuals at
more than 800 locations across the United States, United Kingdom
and Asia.
For Mozilo, success has always gone hand-in-hand with supporting
the dream of homeownership through Countrywide and through his
other professional efforts. For more than three decades,
Countrywide has assisted hundreds of thousands of lower-income and
minority families and individuals in achieving homeownership.
According to Todd Dal Porto, senior managing director of
Countrywide, America's Wholesale Lender, "In my experience, Angelo
has been the industry spokesman for financing the American dream.
He's very passionate about it. It has been one of Countrywide's
founding principles, and he has personally ensured that his team
has delivered."
Making a positive difference in the lives of others in many
additional ways, Mozilo has championed a variety of philanthropic
causes. In appreciation for his support, he has received the
National Italian American Foundation's Special Achievement Award
for Humanitarian Service, the Albert Schweitzer Award for his work
with the youth of America, the Jane Wyman Humanitarian Service
Award from the Arthritis Foundation and the James E. West
Fellowship Award from the Boy Scouts of America. He is the
recipient of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and the Horatio Alger
Association of Distinguished Americans Award and is also a member
of the National Association of Home Builders Hall of Fame.
In 2003, Mozilo celebrated his 50th year in mortgage banking
and, a year later, the 35th anniversary of Countrywide Financial
Corporation. The company has overcome so many obstacles to grow
from a single office home loan shop to a diversified financial
services powerhouse. Countrywide has a corporate history that
mirrors the life and passion of its founder.
For more information, visit www.countrywide.com.
