Fremont Inks $2.9B Loan Sale

Fremont General Corp., Santa Monica, Calif., will sell $2.9 billion in subprime loans to an unidentified buyer, booking a $100 million pretax loss on the deal.According to a new public filing, the same buyer is in "exclusive" talks to buy Fremont's $27 billion subprime servicing portfolio as well as the platform. The buyer will also buy a "portion" of Fremont's subprime production operation even though the unit stopped funding loans several weeks ago. News of the sale and talks sent Fremont's shares soaring 26% to $8.85 in the early afternoon of April 16. Fremont, the holding company for a federally insured depository, can be found online at http://www.fremontgeneral.com.