Fannie Says It's Not Buying C-BASS

Federally chartered mortgage giant Fannie Mae said it is not pursuing an acquisition of C-BASS LLC and its "scratch-and-dent" servicing affiliate, Litton Loan Servicing.When asked by MortgageWire whether Fannie Mae, in the past, had been pursuing the companies, the spokesman declined to comment. A source told MW that Fannie, during the summer, was exploring the possibility of buying C-BASS and Litton. It was well known in the marketplace that their owners, MGIC Investment Corp. and Radian Corp. -- two publicly traded mortgage insurers -- were exploring a sale. Goldman Sachs has been mentioned as a bidder for the pair. (Goldman declined to comment.) C-BASS, which is based in New York, was hit by margin calls in July, forcing its two mortgage insurance company owners to write down its value by more than $1 billion. According to the Quarterly Data Report, Litton ranks 12th among subprime servicers, with $46 billion in receivables. Fannie Mae can be found online at http://www.fanniemae.com.