SIFMA Taps FHLB Chief to Head New Securitization Group

The ""Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association"":http://www.sifma.org (SIFMA) announced Monday that Richard Dorfman has been appointed managing director and head of the SIFMA Securitization Group (SSG), a unit formed in[IMAGE]early 2010 to take up the broad range of regulatory and legislative issues facing the secondary market in the wake of the nation's financial crisis. Dorfman joins SIFMA from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta, where he was president and CEO.

""We are very pleased to have Richard join SIFMA,"" said Tim Ryan, SIFMA president and CEO. ""With this addition, SIFMA is even better positioned to address the securitization issues that are currently the focus of regulators and policymakers in Washington and to offer insights into those issues which will help provide for necessary reforms yet preserve the ability of financial markets to remain liquid and drive capital formation.""

The SSG represents the largest originators of consumer and credit loans. Its members also include investors in securitized products, as well as intermediaries and liquidity providers. SIFMA explained that the group

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provides a ""cohesive, integrated, and effective advocacy platform for its members, while also undertaking efforts to address market issues and promote the restoration of a well functioning securitization market.""

Dorfman took the helm of the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of Atlanta, which is the nation's second largest FHLB, in June 2007. Prior to that role, he was a managing director and the head of the U.S. agencies and mortgages business at ABN AMRO. He also worked in Lehman Brothers' mortgage division as a managing director and head of originations, U.S. government, and agency business.

Early in his career, Dorfman was employed as an attorney with the FDIC, and held positions at mortgage banking and mortgage securities firms. He received his law degree from Syracuse University and his undergraduate degree from Hofstra University.

""I am excited by this opportunity and delighted to join SIFMA at such a crucial time for our industry,"" said Dorfman. ""Securitization is instrumental in the provision of consumer credit, economic activity, and job creation, and it is critical that the market recover. I look forward to working with our members on essential initiatives related to regulatory reform, the future of the GSEs, and to providing the input the SEC requested on its recent rule proposal related to asset-backed securities.""

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) advocates for the shared interests of hundreds of securities firms, banks, and asset managers. According to the ""organization's Web site"":http://www.sifma.org/capital_markets/mbssec.shtml, issues currently being addressed by its SSG faction include GSE reform, best practices for agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS), and financial reforms that impact securitization.