New York Post – J.P. Morgan Securities is shopping Ameriquest, one of the largest sub-prime mortgage lenders in the U.S., to bond hedge funds, sources said.<\/p>\n
Ameriquest’s bankers have approached several buyers recently, including Ellington Capital Management, a large Old Greenwich, Conn.-based hedge fund, to gauge interest in bidding on the sub-prime lending giant.<\/p>\n
News of the possible sale was first reported by trade publication Asset Securitization Report.<\/p>\n
A source familiar with the fund said J.P. Morgan bankers asked the high- profile fund if it was interested; fund executives haven’t decided if they want to proceed and receive an offering circular. No price talk was available.<\/p>\n
In the business of buying and selling bonds created from residential mortgages since 1995, Ellington manages around $4.5 billion, with over $3 billion dedicated to mortgage bonds. One of the fund’s specialties is hedging what Wall Street terms “mortgage credit risk” or the risk that homeowners with less than stellar credit profiles – which is Ameriquest’s customer base – might default or fall behind on their payments.<\/p>\n