Clayton Holdings Forms New Securitization Group

SHELTON, Conn., Oct. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Clayton Holdings LLC, a leader in providing customized risk analysis, loss mitigation, operational solutions and staffing services to the mortgage and fixed income industries, today announced the formation of a new Securitization Group dedicated to helping the private market prepare for the return of non-agency Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities (RMBS).

The Securitization Group will have two primary roles. The first will be to provide a wide range of high-level consultative services to help issuers, investors and aggregators align their programs and procedures with new rules that will govern the issuance and ratings of RMBS. The second is to deliver operationally excellent loan review and diligence that will assure transparency, quality and compliance, not only for new issues, but also for re-securitizations and pre-securitization readiness. Ron Castro has been appointed Managing Director of Securitization and will report directly to Paul Bossidy, President and CEO of Clayton.

"Based on our own observations and our ongoing dialogue with clients and other key players in the non-agency market, we believe the market is poised to return," said Bossidy. "In preparation, we've created a dedicated team who are well-versed in all aspects of the new rules governing future securitizations and who have the skills that issuers, conduits and whole loan investors and warehouse lenders need now."

Prior to being named head of the new group, Castro headed up Clayton's expansion into the United Kingdom where he was responsible for operational and IT integrations. An 18-year veteran of Clayton, he has been responsible for the development and implementation of Clayton's core due diligence and reporting systems within the RMBS market.

Castro said, "Essentially, what we have assembled is a 'securitization SWAT team', made up of senior leaders who are intimately familiar with the new rules, the current economics and the market's changing expectations for RMBS. Our group can answer specific questions about loan reviews, sampling, ratings requirements, compliance, fraud, credit or evaluations. At the same time, they can deliver any or all of these services on a programmatic basis for our clients."

Bossidy added, "Ron's group will work closely with our Denver-based servicer surveillance business allowing us to offer industry-leading, fully integrated customer solutions in both the due diligence and surveillance areas. This will be especially important to our customers when the RMBS market comes back."

Other members of Clayton's new Securitization Group include:

• Vicki Beal, who joined Clayton in 1993, has more than 35 years of experience in the mortgage banking industry. She is considered an industry leader in transaction and credit risk management and is an active participant in several ASF, SIFMA and MBA committees and working groups.
• Jeff DeMaso, who joined Clayton in 2005, serves as Senior Regulatory Compliance Counsel, interpreting new laws, driving changes to Clayton's scope of review and testing system, and explaining Clayton's stance to internal and external clients. At one time, Jeff served as compliance counsel for Clayton's servicing subsidiary, Quantum Servicing Corporation.
• Grant Beal, who joined Clayton in 1996, during his 15-year tenure, he has served as Vice President of Compliance Operations and developed a rare expertise in the universe of Federal, State and Local high-cost and anti-predatory lending law.
• Brad Bradley, who joined Clayton in 2003, has held various positions throughout the company in due diligence underwriting, client service delivery, corporate quality assurance and product management.
• Derick Greene, who joined Clayton in 2004, has more than 15 years of mortgage industry experience. Derick has been involved in the development, enhancement and support of Clayton's due diligence platform, risk assessment/sampling tools and aligning the company's offerings with securitization market needs.

About Clayton Holdings LLC

Clayton Holdings LLC headquartered in Shelton, Connecticut, is a leading provider of customized risk analysis, loss mitigation and operational solutions that support the mortgage and fixed income industries. Clayton's services encompass analytics, residential and commercial loan due diligence, consulting, credit risk management and surveillance, independent pricing, specialized loan servicing, and staffing solutions. Clayton provides transparency, independence, expertise and quality resources to leading investment & commercial banks, institutional investors, government agencies and service providers internationally. Additional information is available at www.clayton.com.

SOURCE Clayton Holdings LLC