Radian (RDN) hired Goldman Sachs (GS) to evaluate interest in its financial guaranty business Radian Asset, according to the company.
Radian announced earlier in the month that it hired an advisor to consider ways to monetize or otherwise utilize Radian Asset.
The company has been in the runoff since the crisis in 2008, but the recent decision by the Federal Housing Finance Agency to revise its private mortgage insurance requirements appears to have sped up the process.
“FHFA’s Strategic Plan calls on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to strengthen the requirements for private mortgage insurance companies that do business with them in order to reduce Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s overall risk exposure and protect taxpayers,” said FHFA Director Mel Watt.
Back in May, Bradley Shuster, president and CEO of NMI Holdings, Inc. (NMIH), the parent company of National Mortgage Insurance Corp., told a group of investors that a recovery in the housing market and the high cost of FHA mortgage insurance could lead to a boost in business for private mortgage insurers.
Maverick Capital has joined Shuster in predicting a lucrative year for private mortgage insurers, like Radian.
