Bank Of America: Countrywide merger was a "bag of worms".

[Julio E. Sune Jr. (FL)]

http://ml-implode.com/staticnews/2012-06-30_BankOfAmericaCountrywideMergerCostBofA40Billion.html

["The bank's acquisition of mortgage lender Countrywide in 2008 has cost BofA more than $40 billion, the Wall Street Journal reports. The merger turned BofA into a big player in the mortgage market right before the housing bubble burst and since the bank has suffered massive real estate losses and paid out huge sums in legal fees and settlements with state and federal agencies."]

 

[Restrain]

Bottom line is that BofA did not use "due diligence " in the acquisition process. This is due to BofA being NCNB, not the original BofA. Different priorities, different type of management.

 

[tmon43]

If I recall correctly BofA bought Countrywide because the housing bubble had burst, not before. Sounds like the WSJ is tyying to rewrite history to provide cover for BofA.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

This is due to BofA being NCNB

That was what I was thinking...'member driving up thru Dallas and there was a big building near the Interstate that had N C N B strung down it... North Carolina? in Texas???

 

[Scott Kibler]

Back in my banking days, we used to sell loans to NCNB. This was in the early 90s. They turned into a company called Nations Bank, the entity that purchased BoA. I recall a subprime lender from the mid 90s called Portfolio Acceptance that was out of the Dallas area. They were later acquired as part of Nations Credit, the sub prime subsidiary of Nations Bank. Maybe that acquisition was by NCNB before the name change. I dunno, the details of that time get fuzzy as the years progress.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

Hey, Scotty where ya been?

The First Republic BankCorp was the Texas connection. NCNB bought them about 1988 after First Republic went titzup. FRB was probably nigh the biggest bank in Texas when it folded.

BTW...no one profited more from the sharp axe of the RTC than NCNB. They bought up dozens of S & Ls etc. at fire sale prices and most were profitable from Month 1. Yep, the FDIC and RTC created the monster we know know as BoA and I for one am totally happy with the outcome that they got sucker punched by the orange man... couldn't happen to a nicer bunch.

 

[Caligirl]

Speaking of Mr. Orange, whatever happened to that guy. Poster child for the real estate implosion, if you ask me.

 

[Couch Potato]

The people who worked on the Countrywide deal were probably left over from C&S (aka Crooks & Swindlers) the NCNB acquired as they were becoming Nations Bank. BoA would never have purchased Countrywide with Hugh McColl still in charge.

That was what I was thinking...'member driving up thru Dallas and there was a big building near the Interstate that had N C N B strung down it... North Carolina? in Texas???

In 2008 Hugh McColl, head of NCNB when they moved into Texas was named South Texan of the Year.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

So Hugh's still kicking... illustrious list there.. Even Kleberg, thrown off the King Ranch as he was... The King Ranch is such a strange place. I worked on it once.