Ameriquest and Argent Up for Grabs

ACC Capital Holdings, Orange, Calif., is actively entertaining offers for its entire mortgage franchise, which includes Ameriquest Mortgage and its wholesale arm, Argent, investment bankers and other officials have confirmed to MortgageWire.As of MW's deadline, an ACC spokesman had declined to comment. Matthew Howlett, an analyst with Fox-Pitt Kelton, said he has been hearing reports that Ameriquest, Argent, and the servicing operation are all up for grabs. According to the Quarterly Data Report, Ameriquest services $113 billion in loans, ranking second among all subprime firms. ACC is a privately held company controlled by California businessman Roland Arnall, who is now serving as U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands. Estimates vary, but bankers say the entire mortgage operation could fetch close to $2 billion. (For the full story, see the Dec. 4 issue of National Mortgage News.)