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[ad_1] Rising steel prices and firm demand may prompt Tata Steel to advance its stated capacity expansion target by a few years, CEO and managing director TV Narendran told FE on Wednesday. He said that if the company advances the expansion plan, it could achieve its target of installed capacity of 40 million tonne in India, ahead of the targeted 2030. The company’s current installed capacity in India is at 20.6 million tonne. It reported production of 19.06 million tonne in FY22. The company has guided Rs 12,000-crore capital expenditure for the current financial year. However, it will review the same after six months, and if the need arises it could be revised upwards. “If the markets are good, the cash flows are strong and the deleveraging is also happening as we had planned, we can always go back to the board and ask for more and spend more,” Narendran said. “Unlike earlier when the group had just one site in Jamshedpur, the growth could happen only sequentially. Today, we have two sites in Kalinganagar and one in Angul — so we have the optionality that tomorrow if the demand in India really picks up and the profitability continues to be fantastic we can grow faster,” he added. He said that though the company is not revising the timeline of 2030 as yet, it will keep reviewing it. “If we can accelerate it, we certainly will,” Narendran said. Tata Steel has outlined that the 40-million tonne plan entails taking the Kalinganagar site to about 16 million tonne from the current 8 million tonne expansion which is underway, expanding the Neelachal Ispat Nigam (NINL) site to 10 million tonne from the current 1 million tonne capacity. NINL’s acquisition is expected to be complete by June. After acquiring Bhushan Steel, its capacity has been expanded from 3 million tonne to 5 million tonne per annum and can further go to 10 million tonne. “All these possibilities are available with us, and we will exercise what is the most capital-efficient way to grow and because it is organic growth, it is not going to be a big lump sum amount of expenditure. We can pace it any which way we like,” he said. Additionally, Tata Steel is also building smaller scrap recycling facilities in north, west and south, which gives it the option to add 0.75 million tonne of capacity at different locations in northern, western and southern India. As of now, Rs 8,500 crore has been earmarked for the ongoing Kalinganagar expansion from 3 million tonne per annum to 8 million tonne and significant expansions in the company’s iron ore mining, which it is planning to increase from 33 million tonne to 50 million tonne per annum over the next few years. The remaining Rs 3,500 crore is for Europe business. In addition, the company will also be spending Rs 12,000 crore to close the recent acquisition of NINL during the year. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] This article is part of our housing market economic update series. At the end of this series, you can join us on May 10 for a Housing Market Update webinar. Bringing together some of the top economists and researchers in housing, this event will provide an in-depth look at their latest insights on the housing market, along with a roundtable discussion on how this information applies to your business. To register for the HW+ event, go here. Annual house price growth hit a record high in 2021, over 17%, and growth remains in the double digits thus far in 2022. Homes that reach the market sell quickly, bidding wars are the new normal and the investor share of sales continues to rise. The combination of these factors has some feeling 2008 déjà vu. Yet, today’s housing market is nothing like the housing bubble of the mid-2000s. A housing bubble can generally be defined as an unsustainable period of house price growth generated by artificial demand, as was the case in the mid-2000s when demand surged because of wider access to mortgage financing. Various mortgage finance innovations facilitated larger loans at the same monthly payment to keep up with growing home values – which is one reason why house prices kept going up.  The price growth in today’s market is driven by market fundamentals: millennials, the largest living generation, are aging into their prime home-buying years at a time when the supply of homes for sale is historically low. Prior to 2009, housing was overbuilt relative to demand. Since then, the housing market has been underbuilt, and the supply deficit has grown. Demand driven by demographics is different than demand driven by mortgage finance innovation and “fix-and-flip” home buyers, as was the case in the mid-2000s. But today’s housing market differs from 2008 in several important ways. Tighter mortgage underwriting: Lending standards are much tighter today than during the mid-2000s. Lenders remain more conservative, and the Dodd-Frank Act has all but eliminated speculative products, such as negative-amortization loans and “teaser” rates. Mortgage credit availability remains tighter than it was pre-pandemic. Additionally, the median credit score of borrowers approved for mortgages reached 778 in the fourth quarter of 2021, which is higher than during the previous housing boom. Household balance sheets have improved: Since the Great Recession, mortgage rates have generally declined helping homeowners refinance into lower mortgage payments, while steadily rising home prices have significantly boosted homeowner equity. The mortgage debt-to-income ratio is near a four-decade low and homeowner equity is at a historic high. In the fourth quarter of 2021, the national loan-to-value  ratio was approximately 31%, the lowest in over three decades and significantly higher than in the fourth quarter of 2008, when it surpassed 50 percent.  The equity buffer is important because the housing crisis during the Great Recession was fueled heavily by the fact that job losses were paired with a significant share of homeowners who had little or no equity in their homes – otherwise known as being “underwater.” Today, homeowners have very high levels of home equity, providing a cushion to withstand potential price declines, but also preventing housing distress from turning into a foreclosure. In fact, if distressed homeowners are required to resolve delinquency, given their equity buffers, involuntary sales are much more likely than foreclosures. Why give your equity to the lender in a foreclosure when you can sell the home, pay off your mortgage and take that equity with you? Housing is not overvalued: If housing is appropriately valued, house-buying power should equal or outpace the median sale price of a home. The only period when the median sale price was greater than house-buying power was from 2005 through 2007, indicating an overvaluation of housing, or a “housing bubble.” Today, house-buying power is over $100,000 greater than the median sale price of home, signifying that housing is not overvalued. Moderation, not bust Double-digit house price growth is not sustainable in the long-run, especially alongside fast-rising mortgage rates. As rising prices and rising mortgage rates undermine affordability, it’s natural to see some moderation in price appreciation. Some buyers will pull back from the market and sellers will adjust their price expectations, which will prompt house prices to adjust. But the secular shortage of housing supply relative to demographically-driven demand will continue to keep house price appreciation positive. The underlying fundamental housing market conditions support a natural moderation of house prices rather than a sharp decline. We have clearly experienced a housing market boom, but that doesn’t portend the necessity of a bust. This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of HousingWire’s editorial department and its owners. To contact the author responsible for this story:Mark Fleming at @mflemingecon (Twitter) To contact the editor responsible for this story:Brena Nath at Brena@hwmedia.com. The post A housing boom doesn’t portend a bust appeared first on HousingWire. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Real Madrid Beats Manchester City in Extra Time: Highlights and Analysis  The New York Times Real Madrid 3-1 Manchester City (agg 6-5): Champions League semi-final, second leg – live reaction!  The Guardian Why Guardiola is unlikely to ever coach in Spain again  Goal.com Opinion: Carlo Ancelotti’s success is still valid, even if it comes in a different fashion  Football Espana Here’s to Plucky Little Real Madrid: Potential saviours of the European game  Football365 View Full Coverage on Google News [ad_2]

[ad_1] “Bitcoin is the hardest asset you can own in the 21st century….“ “What I can do with Bitcoin is similar to what I can do with a piece of real estate….“ “Bitcoin has all the positive attributes of real estate with none of the flaws…..“ The above were a few quotes from a good friend of mine who I’ve always viewed as a real estate expert. For as long as I’ve known him he’s been determined into becoming the most successful real investor. He’s always adapting his business to reflect market conditions and always staying one step ahead of the curve. So I was a bit surprised when he contacted me after he saw some of my videos on cryptocurrency. But not as surprised after I sent him a text after Bitcoin pulled back last fall and got this response: His response blew me away and I immediately knew I needed to hear more so I asked if he would be willing to join me on the GFC podcast (you can listen to the show below). There was so much good information he shared on cryptocurrency and Bitcoin that it made me look at it much differently. I was already excited about the crypto space but his views made me THAT much more ecstatic. What really fascinated me was how he looked at Bitcoin as having all the pros of real estate without many of the cons. And that’s what I want to tackle in this article: Bitcoin Vs. Real Estate – Which is the Better Investment? #ap63907-ww{padding-top:20px;position:relative;text-align:center;font-size:12px;font-family:Lato,Arial,sans-serif}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-indicator{text-align:right}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-indicator-wrapper{display:inline-flex;align-items:center;justify-content:flex-end}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-indicator-wrapper:hover #ap63907-ww-text{display:block}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-indicator-wrapper:hover #ap63907-ww-label{display:none}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-text{margin:auto 3px auto auto}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-label{margin-left:4px;margin-right:3px}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-icon{margin:auto;padding:1px;display:inline-block;width:15px;height:15px;min-width:15px;min-height:15px;cursor:pointer}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-icon img{vertical-align:middle;width:15px;height:15px;min-width:15px;min-height:15px}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-text-bottom{margin:5px}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-text{display:none}#ap63907-ww #ap63907-ww-icon img{text-indent:-9999px;color:transparent} Ads by Money. We may be compensated if you click this ad.Ad #ap63907-w-map{max-width:600px;padding:20px 0 10px;margin:0 auto;text-align:center;font-family:”Lato”, Arial, Roboto, sans-serif}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-title{color:#212529;font-size:18px;font-weight:700;line-height:27px}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-subtitle{color:#9b9b9b;font-size:16px;font-style:italic;line-height:24px}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-disclosure{margin-top:10px;font-size:12px;color:#9b9b9b}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map{max-width:98%;width:100%;height:0;padding-bottom:65%;margin-bottom:20px;position:relative}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg{position:absolute;left:0;top:0}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg path{fill:#e3efff;stroke:#9b9b9b;pointer-events:all;transition:fill 0.6s ease-in, stroke 0.6s ease-in, stroke-width 0.6s ease-in}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg path:hover{stroke:#1261C9;stroke-width:2px;stroke-linejoin:round;fill:#1261C9;cursor:pointer}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g rect{fill:#e3efff;stroke:#9b9b9b;pointer-events:all;transition:fill 0.6s ease-in, stroke 0.6s ease-in, stroke-width 0.6s ease-in}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g text{fill:#000;text-anchor:middle;font:10px Arial;transition:fill 0.6s ease-in}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g .ap00646-w-map-state{display:none}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g .ap00646-w-map-state rect{stroke:#1261C9;stroke-width:2px;stroke-linejoin:round;fill:#1261C9}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g .ap00646-w-map-state text{fill:#fff;font:19px Arial;font-weight:bold}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g:hover{cursor:pointer}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g:hover rect{stroke:#1261C9;stroke-width:2px;stroke-linejoin:round;fill:#1261C9}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g:hover text{fill:#fff}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-map svg g:hover .ap00646-w-map-state{display:initial}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-btn{padding:9px 41px;display:inline-block;color:#fff;font-size:16px;line-height:1.25;text-decoration:none;background-color:#1261c9;border-radius:2px}#ap63907-w-map #ap63907-w-map-btn:hover{color:#fff;background-color:#508fc9} Diversify your portfolio with Cryptocurrency Investments. Online trading platforms offer a wide variety of cryptocurrencies for trading. Click on your state to start investing today! HawaiiAlaskaFloridaSouth CarolinaGeorgiaAlabamaNorth CarolinaTennesseeRIRhode IslandCTConnecticutMAMassachusettsMaineNHNew HampshireVTVermontNew YorkNJNew JerseyDEDelawareMDMarylandWest VirginiaOhioMichiganArizonaNevadaUtahColoradoNew MexicoSouth DakotaIowaIndianaIllinoisMinnesotaWisconsinMissouriLouisianaVirginiaDCWashington DCIdahoCaliforniaNorth DakotaWashingtonOregonMontanaWyomingNebraskaKansasOklahomaPennsylvaniaKentuckyMississippiArkansasTexas Trade Today Why Bitcoin is a Better Investment Than Real Estate The best way to make the point is to compare Bitcoin and real estate side-by-side, analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of each. The Case for Bitcoin – Pros In the next two sections, I want to present the pros and cons of both Bitcoin and real estate. But ultimately, I believe the Bitcoin pros outweigh its cons and even eclipse the pros of real estate. 1. Let’s start with investment return I’m listing this as the first pro because it’s the most obvious advantage. The return on Bitcoin since 2010 has been nothing short of mind-boggling. According to calculations run on dqydj.com, Bitcoin has had a total return of 66.9 million percent between August 10, 2010, and December 31, 2021. That works out to be almost 325% annually. 😳 There isn’t another investment or asset class that’s come close in such a short space of time. 2. Bitcoin is both an asset and a currency There’s little doubt Bitcoin’s primary attraction over the past decade has been its investment performance. Numbers like those above are impossible to argue against. But Bitcoin is also a currency. It can be used to buy and sell products and services with both merchants and individuals. Even though the price of a single coin is far too high for most transactions, Bitcoin is divisible. It’s available in smaller denominations, referred to as Satoshi. There are 100 million Satoshi per one Bitcoin. The rough conversion into dollars is about 10 Satoshi to one penny, and 1000 Satoshi to $1. Bitcoin may be too expensive to use for everyday transactions, but Satoshi may be just right. Meanwhile, the number of merchants accepting Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies has been growing steadily. A recent article on Inc.com reported that one-third of US small businesses now accept cryptocurrencies as payment. 3. Limited supply/inflation hedge We’re going to go into this a little deeper later in this article, from my podcast interview with a friend I refer to as The Crypto Guy. But this is an important quality because it largely explains why Bitcoin is an outstanding inflation hedge. When Bitcoin was first launched, it was programmed with an absolute limit of 21 million coins. That gives a limited supply, and while the limit has yet to be reached, the price may continue rocketing higher once it does. Compare that with the U.S. dollar, which can be printed in unlimited quantity by the Federal Reserve. That printing capability, which, accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic, is the reason we have inflation. Dollars can be printed in unlimited quantities, but Bitcoin will never exceed 21 million coins. That’s a guarantee that Bitcoin will continue to outpace inflation. 4. Bitcoin is completely portable This is another feature that makes it suitable as money. But it’s also an advantage over real estate. Real estate is not portable at all. If you decide to move to another state or country, you’ll need to liquidate your real estate holdings before you move. You can’t bring it with you. Bitcoin acts just like electronic money. You can move to another state, or even another country, and still have access to your crypto. 5. Bitcoin is completely liquid This is yet another quality that makes it suitable as money. You can easily liquidate Bitcoin, even in a matter of minutes. You can use it to buy goods or services, convert it into another crypto, or even into fiat currencies, like the dollar or the euro. That also makes it easy to speculate

[ad_1] The post Swagbucks vs. Rakuten (formerly Ebates): Which Rewards Site Is Best? appeared first on Millennial Money. Looking for an easy way to earn extra money online? Then you’ve probably considered signing up for rewards sites that promise compensation for taking surveys, watching videos, and playing games. Two of my favorite cashback sites are Swagbucks and Rakuten (formerly Ebates). Both platforms are easy to use and loaded with ways to earn gift cards and save money at checkout. But are either of these sites worth your time? And if so, which one is better? In this post, you’ll learn exactly that. Keep reading to learn how Swagbucks compares with Rakuten so you can decide which is best for you. or, jump straight to our in-depth Swagbucks and Rakuten comparison Swagbucks Review for 2022 What is Swagbucks? Swagbucks is a leading cashback site that launched back in 2008. It remains one of the most popular loyalty programs on the internet, with over $600 million paid out to members to date. The site operates under the direction of Prodege, a California-based affiliate marketing and market research company. How Does Swagbucks Work? To put it plainly, Swagbucks members can earn points, which are called Swagbucks (SB), for engaging with ads, surveys, and shopping opportunities within the platform. One reason why Swagbucks is so popular is that there are a ton of different ways to earn SB, which we’ll briefly explore next. Shop Online When you shop through Swagbucks, you can earn cashback rebates at over 7,000 online stores. You can also receive rewards for shopping in brick-and-mortar partner stores by uploading your receipts into the Swagbucks app. Play Games  If you’re a gamer, you’ll love being able to earn reward points for playing and downloading online games. Swagbucks has an extensive library of popular games to choose from, including Solitaire Rush, Angry Birds Champions, Wheel of Fortune, and Travel Pursuit.  Watch Videos  You can also get Swagbucks points for watching partner content, such as commercials, music videos, and movie trailers. Literally, you can earn money just to sit there and watch videos. Sounds pretty dope to me. Search the Internet  One of the easiest ways to collect points on Swagbucks is to use its search engine. According to the company, the Swagbucks search engine displays the same results as other leading providers. So your experience shouldn’t be too different from using a traditional search engine like Google or Bing. By conducting your searches through Swagbucks, you can collect points for each search you make, which is a pretty sweet deal. Answer Surveys Swagbucks is best known for its paid survey opportunities. Expect to answer questions about your favorite foods, vacation destinations, and what type of car you drive.  Swagbucks then sells this data to its market research clients and pays members a reward for their contributions. Most Swagbucks surveys pay out between 100 and 300 SB. Generally speaking, the more comprehensive the survey is, the more it pays. To be clear, you aren’t going to get rich by taking surveys on Swagbucks. But you can earn a few extra bucks in your spare time. Swagbucks Swagbucks is a legit money-making app where you can make money taking surveys, watching videos, playing games, and more. Sign Up ($20 Bonus) Rakuten Review for 2022 What is Rakuten? Ebates became Rakuten back in 2014 when the Japanese e-commerce company purchased the site for $1 billion. Rakuten then phased out the Ebates brand in 2019. Today, the company remains a major cashback rewards portal, providing incentives for customers who shop at select partnering brands. According to Rakuten, the company has 12 million members, with over $1 billion in cashback distributions since its inception back in 1997. That’s a lot of dough! How does Rakuten work? Shop Rakuten Deals Rakuten is super easy to engage with. All you have to do is install its cashback button as a browser extension for Firefox, Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or Internet Explorer and sign up for an account. After that, you can shop on your desktop device and use the Rakuten button to find deals. You can earn cash rewards any time you take a deal from Rakuten. Participate in Online Surveys In addition to collecting deals from Rakuten, you can also take paid surveys through Rakuten Insight. After you sign up, you’ll receive a notification whenever a new survey opportunity becomes available. The company issues points for completing them, which you can exchange for cash rewards. Rakuten FREE Earn cash back on your online purchases with Rakuten. Sign Up! Comparing Swagbucks and Rakuten Now that you have a basic understanding of Swagbucks and Rakuten, let’s take a closer look at how these two rewards sites compare. Cashback Network Winner: Swagbucks Swagbucks has a much larger network of partnering stores, with over 7,000 retailers working with them. By comparison, Rakuten only has about 2,500 partners. So, if you’re looking for a wider network of participating retailers, Swagbucks is the better option. That said, both companies provide access to a wide variety of merchants. At the time of writing, some of Swagbucks’ featured retailers include Gap, Sam’s Club, Old Navy, Befitting, and Athleta. At Rakuten, you’ll find companies like JCPenney, Nordstrom, Priceline, Target, and Kohl’s, to name just a few examples. My advice: Sign up for both sites to access an even larger network of partnering retailers. Signing Up and Getting Started Winner: It’s a Tie Here’s some good news: Neither one of these companies is difficult to join. As long as you meet the minimum age requirements for each (13 for Swagbucks and 18 for Rakuten) and have an email address, you can sign up and start using these services—and making some money along the way.  For both companies, the signup process only takes a few minutes. So, once inspiration strikes and you want to try your hand at Swagbucks or Rakuten, you can sign up and start collecting cashback rewards that same day. Mobile App Winner: Rakuten Cash rewards

[ad_1] May the 4th be with you! Today only, Amazon is having a huge sale on Star Wars toys, apparel and more! Here are some deals you can get… Get this LEGO Star Wars at-ST Raider 75254 Building Kit for just $28.62 shipped! Get this STAR WARS Men’s Epic Darth Vader T-Shirt for just $11.99! Get this Star Wars Mission Fleet The Mandalorian The Child Razor Crest Outer Rim Run Deluxe Vehicle with 2.5-Inch-Scale Figure for just $29.99 shipped! Get this Funko Pop! Something Wild!: Star Wars The Mandalorian Card Game for just $5.59! Get this Star Wars The Black Series Tech Toy 6-Inch-Scale for just $14.19! Get this Boba Fett Mini Bluetooth Speaker for just $14.91! Get this Northwest Disney Star Wars, “Being Chewie” Adult Soft Throw Blanket with Sleeves for just $11! Sign up for a free trial of Amazon Prime to get free two-day shipping (and possibly one-day or same-day shipping!) with no minimum. If you’re not sure Prime is worth it, read this post for some helpful info to help you decide! And don’t forget you can sign up for Swagbucks to earn free gift cards to use on Amazon deals! Shop the entire sale here. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Markets mostly quiet ahead of Fed decision, crude jumps [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Private sector lender Kotak Mahindra Bank on Wednesday reported a 65 per cent jump in its standalone profit after tax at Rs 2,767 crore in the quarter ended March 2022, helped by higher growth in net interest income and healthy asset quality. The lender had reported a standalone PAT (Profit After Tax) of Rs 1,682 crore in the year-ago period. For the full financial year 2021-22, PAT increased by 23 per cent to Rs 8,573 crore from Rs 6,965 crore in FY21. “If you look at our Q4 numbers, our slippages have been extremely under control. On an annualised basis our slippage ratio is 1.08 per cent. Our slippage ratio actually now demonstrates that the quality of our credit book is extremely robust as we exit Covid,” the bank’s managing director and CEO Uday Kotak told reporters. Consolidated PAT for Q4 FY22 was Rs 3,892 crore, up 50 per cent from Rs 2,589 crore in the fourth quarter of FY21. For the entire FY22, Consolidated PAT increased to Rs 12,089 crore from Rs 9,990 crore in FY21. Kotak said the consolidated profit is truly broad based and not dependent disproportionately only on the bank. Net Interest Income (NII) for the fourth quarter increased by 18 per cent to Rs 4,521 crore from Rs 3,843 crore. Kotak said the bank’s NIM (Net Interest Margin) has always been high as the mix of retail is higher than wholesale in the loan book. He said the bank has a CASA (Current Account Savings Account) ratio of 60 per cent-plus, which has a significant positive impact on cost of funds. “We are entering into the new world of interest rates going up, with a very high current and savings account ratio. If 60 per cent of my deposit is CASA, that is a very stable cost of fund base. I have always believed that low cost and stable liability franchise is the core to sustainable banking,” he said. Net interest margin stood at 4.78 per cent for Q4 FY22. Gross Non-Performing Assets (GNPA) improved to 2.34 per cent from 3.25 per cent. Net NPA stood at 0.64 per cent as against 1.21 per cent. Credit cost on advances for Q4 FY22 was 27 basis points (annualised), excluding reversal of COVID provisions.The provision coverage ratio stood at 73.2 per cent. Total provisions (including specific, standard, Covid-related etc) held as on March 31, 2022 was at Rs 6,710 crore.Capital adequacy ratio of the bank, as per Basel III, as on March 31, 2022 was 22.7 per cent and Tier I ratio was 21.7 per cent. Advances increased by 21 per cent to Rs 2,71,254 crore as on March 31, 2022 from Rs 223,670 crore a year ago. Advances grew 7.2 per cent (not annualised) during Q4 FY22. Kotak said the bank’s Q4 loan growth is about 29 per cent-plus annualised and 7.3 per cent for the quarter. “We have got the accelerator on loan growth. Positively for us, the bulk of our book is floating rate. So, the ability to transmit interest rate as the central bank increases, is very much inherent in our loan book. Our growth momentum on loans will continue. We are very well risk managed not only on credit quality but also on asset-liability matching and cost of funds,” he said. On the impact of the rate hike announced by the RBI, he said rate hikes do have an impact but the 40 basis points rate hike will not change or make a dramatic difference. The bank’s scrip closed at Rs 1,776.95 apiece, up 0.17 per cent. Meanwhile, the bank also approved the appointment of Shanti Ekambaram as whole-time director of the bank for three years with effect from November 1, 2022, or from the date of regulatory approvals, whichever is later. The bank also announced the reappointment of K V S Manian as a whole-time director for three years (post the expiry of his current term on October 31, 2022), with effect from November 1, 2022, or from the date of regulatory approvals, whichever is later. The bank has accepted the request of Gaurang Shah to not to continue as a whole-time director and director of the bank on the expiry of his current term which ends on October 31, 2022. Shah will continue as director of Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company, Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance, Kotak Mahindra General Insurance, Kotak Investment Advisors, Kotak Mahindra (UK), Kotak Mahindra Inc. and Kotak Mahindra Asset Management (Singapore) Pte. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Don Layton, the former CEO of Freddie Mac recently penned what can only be described as an attack piece on mortgage originators from his seat as a fellow at the JCHS, Harvard’s Joint Center For Housing Studies. But what Mr. Layton has done is simple: perpetuate his ongoing disdain for the participants in the manufacturing of mortgage loans in the U.S. and, in the process, made some inaccurate assumptions as to causality. The piece is titled, “The Policymaking Implications Of Record-High Mortgage Origination Profits During The Pandemic.” In it he describes mortgage originators as “middlemen” in the transaction between a consumer and the secondary market. His thesis seems to lean on his long-standing belief that the GSEs and the Ginnie Mae programs are all that matter in creating access to mortgage finance and that lenders are, essentially, greedy institutions that leveraged the actions of the Federal Reserve during the pandemic to maximize profits as opposed to passing through the full value of rate reductions to consumers. His disdain for mortgage originators clearly oozes through his words but skew his sensibilities in his published paper. A bit of history First, let’s be clear. It is true that margins widened enormously as a result of the actions of the Federal Reserve. In the peak of the pandemic, 30-year mortgage rates tumbled, bottoming out at around 2.25% for a well-qualified borrower. Volumes skyrocketed and overwhelmed an unprepared mortgage finance system that, just months earlier in 2019, thought it might be heading into higher rates and slower volumes. In fact, if you look at the period just prior to the Fed’s COVID-19 reaction, refinance volume was far lower and then suddenly spiked upwards by more than 250% on a year-over-year basis. Lenders and the GSEs both bore the brunt of this impact. In the beginning phase in early April 2020, the interest rate moves were so swift that many were worried that mortgage originators hedged pipelines might cause institutional failures as a result of margin calls. I would note that this liquidity concern could have been alleviated by actions from the GSEs themselves, including the very company with which Mr. Layton was once CEO. But they didn’t, and lenders quickly were forced to drain their liquidity to support these margin calls, something policymakers remain very concerned about on a go-forward basis. This surge in volume left mortgage originators with limited options to manage consumer demand. Since denying applications in order to slow volume to a manageable level would have drawn outcries from housing activists and more and would be deemed illegal as well, they had to go to the only two options available. First, mortgage lenders tried to hire as rapidly as possible. The total capacity for the U.S. mortgage market pre-COVID-19 would allow for $1.5 to $2 trillion in volume. With the Fed’s extraordinary round of intervention, called Quantitative Easing (QE), the market volume doubled. 2020 and 2021 were back to back the two largest mortgage origination years in U.S. history. With 2003 being the only year previously to come close to that level. A zero sum game Hiring enough skilled capacity to manage the volume was a challenge. Since all lenders were trying to hire, it became a zero sum game that ultimately required lenders to both hire and train unskilled workers to become processors, closers, underwriters, quality control staff, and more. This was an impossibility to accomplish quickly amidst the rapid onslaught of volume. The only other option to slow volume — pricing The only other option lenders had, therefore, was to try to slow volume another way. And the one remaining valve to which they could turn was pricing. So, amidst the pandemic recession, with the historic levels of mortgage production and capacity limitations, lenders began raising rates or slowing the full recognition of the declines in order to keep service levels and customer expectations at bay. Mr. Layton argues that these “middlemen” — the mortgage originators — somehow took advantage of Fed actions intentionally to manufacture excess profits. While it’s true that margins widened as pricing was used to tether volume levels, anyone in the mortgage business knows that this industry has no ability to collude in a joint effort to produce better returns. If one wants evidence of that, just look at the inability to control mortgage origination pay scales. The mortgage industry is notoriously uncoordinated when it comes to market management. That usually serves as a benefit in a normal market as the competition among the multitude of mortgage bankers and mortgage brokers will typically drive rates to the lowest common denominator, often bringing margins to near break-even levels. Clear distain for mortgage originators What’s perhaps most concerning in this Layton treatise is his “middleman” language and clear disdain for mortgage originators, seeming to almost describe them as an impediment versus a critical access channel. Mr. Layton seems to fail to realize that as CEO of Freddie Mac, he and his successors had every opportunity to ease the process burdens on lenders that might have reduced some of the operational inefficiencies that established these timelines for the processing of a mortgage. But most importantly, I think that Mr. Layton has missed the critical element. Far from being “middlemen,” without mortgage originators, the products of Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, and the Ginnie Mae programs would be nothing more than a set of dusty books on shelves. Freddie Mac greatly benefits by three things The reality is that the company he once ran — while critical — benefits greatly by three things. First, the GSEs do not bear the general and administration burden of having to manage the mortgage origination infrastructure of America’s mortgage market, which thus allows them to operate with just a few thousand employees. Second, the GSEs are members of an exclusive club with only two members that consist of Fannie and Freddie. Legislation currently bars any new entrants to the model, thus essentially eliminating any real competition. Third, all of the GSEs’ debt is

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