What We're Hearing

A few days have passed since the Dodd regulatory overhaul bill hit Gucci Gulch and analysts are still reading the fine print on this 1,300-page (plus) monster. Will it shepherd in the continued rise of mega banks at the expense of small- to medium-sized mortgage bankers? Will it put an end to any possibility that nonagency securitization will happen again? Who knows for sure. There's still plenty of horse trading that needs to be done within the halls of Congress (not to mention educating our thick-skulled elected officials.) Meanwhile, Federal Financial Analytics, a Washington-based consulting firm believes the bill will result in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac being placed under a "new systemic-risk regulator" which ultimately will be the Federal Reserve Board. "All of the capital and other requirements that would then be imposed on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will play a major role in how they come out of conservatorship, making it still more difficult for the GSEs to emerge without dramatic restructuring and still more billions of taxpayer support," FFA says...