The Federal Housing Finance Agency has approved the merger application for the Federal Home Loan Banks of Des Moines and Seattle that was submitted on October 31, 2014, according to a press release. The historic voluntary merger between two FHL Banks is subject to satisfaction of specific closing conditions the FHFA approval letter set forth, including the receipt of approvals by members of both the Des Moines and Seattle Banks.
The next step in the merger process is ratification of the merger agreement by the members of both the Des Moines and Seattle cooperatives. The FHFA merger rules require that members of both Banks must separately ratify the merger agreement by majority vote. The voting process is expected to begin in mid-January and run through late February, and individuals who were members of their respective Banks on or before September 30, 2014, are eligible to vote. The merger has already been unanimously approved by the boards of directors for both Banks.
Leaders in both servicing and government will come together to engage in honest and open dialogue about the housing industry’s most pressing issues and challenges at the sixth annual Five Star Government Forum on Wednesday, March 18, 2015, at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. Speakers will include Congressman Randy Neugebauer from Texas, Robert Kimble of Freddie Mac, Mark McArdle from Treasury, and Brian Montgomery of the Collingwood Group. Visit fivestargovernmentforum.com to register.