New Ocwen Unit to Buy Lower RMBS Tranches

Ocwen Financial Corp. has gotten commitments from investors to form and capitalize a new unit to invest in the lower tranches and residuals of residential mortgage-backed securities, related mortgage servicing rights, ABX Index protection and other similar assets.Affiliates of Angelo, Gordon & Co., a private investment management firm; Metalmark Capital LLC, a private equity firm established by the principals of Morgan Stanley Capital Partners; and others have committed to forming and capitalizing the new business, Ocwen Structured Investments LLC. The investors will put up to $250 million into the unit, which is expected to raise a total of $300 million in capital. The commitments are subject to being called by the new unit's board in the next 18 months. "Metalmark is excited about partnering with the leading independent servicer in the mortgage industry to create OSI, particularly during this period of industry dislocation and capital scarcity," said Howard Hoffen, Metalmark Capital's chairman and chief executive officer.