“Mortgage securities with U.S.-backed guarantees climbed to a record for a second day even as prices of benchmark Treasuries fell, pushing yields on 10-year government notes to the highest since July 15.”
Go to Source

“You think I’m making this up, don’t you? Well, I’m not”
Go to Source

“Deutsche Bank AG, Germany’s largest lender, is dismantling a group that advises companies on commercial real estate transactions, according to people with knowledge of the matter.”
Go to Source

“Tuesday, July 27th, 2010, 3:09 pm
Each of the “big-four” banks, Bank of America (BAC: 14.19 0.00%), Wells Fargo (WFC: 28.39 0.00%), JPMorgan Chase (JPM: 40.69 0.00%) and Citigroup (C: 4.16 0.00%) released quarterly earnings reports for Q210 in July, reporting a total increase of $9.5bn in nonperforming or foreclosed properties from the same quarter last year.”
Go to Source

“The case, formally known as The City of Cleveland v. Ameriquest Mortgage Securities Inc, inspired a documentary called Cleveland vs. Wall Street that took shape in early 2010 and premiered at Cannes Film Festival in May.”
Go to Source

SEC Hedge Fund Comments

SEC Asking Hedge Funds for Comments on Regulations

The Securities and Exchange Commission has asked hedge funds for comments on regulations.  The SEC wants to get a sense of what hedge fund managers think about the provisions in the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill.

SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro said in a speech Thursday to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that hedge funds “have flown under the regulatory radar for far too long.”

“The lack of a comprehensive database for private funds has made it virtually impossible to monitor them for systemic risk and investor protection concerns,” she said.

Last week, however, in Congressional testimony, Schapiro said she wasn’t sure if hedge fund firms posed a systemic risk to financial systems.

Schapiro also said in her speech that the SEC had been working closely with the U.K.’s Financial Services Authority on hedge fund reporting requirements.

Whatever the position the U.S. regulator may take on the systemic risk issue, the public is being encouraged to go to the SEC Web site and fill out a comment form even before the official regulation comment periods are opened.   Source

Related to: Hedge Funds SEC Comments

• Hedge Fund Tracker Tool
• Fund Marketing and Sales Advice
• Top Hedge Fund Managers
• Free Online Hedge Fund Videos
• Careers & Employment Guide
• Hedge Fund Holdings & Securities Analysis
• Hedge Fund Terminology
• Geographical Guides
• Hedge Fund Startup Tools

Tags: hedge funds, hedge funds SEC, Securities and Exchange Commission hedge funds, hedge funds response, comments

Go to Source

Hedge Funds Talent Shift

Hedge Funds Talent Shift Before Regulatory Changes

Anticipation of regulatory changes has driven a new hedge fund hiring and talent shift. The Volcker Rule especially has had an impact on hedge funds’ and banks’ abilities to hire and retain talent.

“Huge anticipation around regulations including the Volcker Rule will have ramifications for the rest of 2010 and beyond,” says Mr. Edwards, Global Head of Financial Services and U.S. Hedge Fund Sector Leader with Heidrick & Struggles.

The report examines hedge fund talent trends as the sector recovers from 2008, even as current market instabilities threaten some of the growth. The report’s authors also identify industry-changing factors, such as the Volcker Rule, that will affect hiring not only over the coming months, but for years to come.

“The first half of 2010 saw a much healthier hiring market than last year, but there remain a lot of fresh wounds from 2008 that have re-opened during the recent bearish trends,” says Chad Astmann, the head of Heidrick & Struggles’ North American Asset Management Practice and a co-author of the report. “Money is flowing into funds — but cautiously. We are already seeing a shift in where talent is needed, and where it is landing.” Source

Related to: Hedge Funds Talent Shift

• Hedge Fund Tracker Tool
• Fund Marketing and Sales Advice
• Top Hedge Fund Managers
• Free Online Hedge Fund Videos
• Careers & Employment Guide
• Hedge Fund Holdings & Securities Analysis
• Hedge Fund Terminology
• Geographical Guides
• Hedge Fund Startup Tools

Tags: hedge funds, talent shift, hiring, hedge funds hiring, hiring talent

Go to Source

“Americans might be counting on the day when home and retirement-fund values start to rise again, but anyone expecting to benefit from a future boom in prices should take note: Economic policymakers around the world are looking for ways to make sure that doesn’t happen, or at least not with such intensity that it risks the kind of bust that usually follows.”
Go to Source

“”Despite Republican objections, congressional Democrats did not include reforms of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac or of the broader mortgage market in the Dodd-Frank financial regulatory reform bill — now law. The administration has promised comprehensive reform but thus far has not named any objectives, costs or goals.”
Go to Source

” Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shares jumped Tuesday as a push to reform the U.S. housing-finance system got underway.”
Go to Source