Patrick McGee

A change in the way Fitch Ratings will allow securities issuers’ to use its ratings in offering documents, prompted by the pending regulatory reform bill, will not apply to municipals, an agency official said.

Assured Guaranty Ltd. continued to dominate bond insurance in the first half of 2010 even as the industry struggled to re-establish itself as an important force in the municipal market, data from Thomson Reuters shows.

After serving at UBS for 12 years, Brad Gewehr has moved on to become a director of public finance at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Thomas G. McLoughlin is stepping down from his role as president and chief executive officer at National Public Finance Guarantee Corp. to join UBS Financial Services as head of its municipal research division.

NEW YORK - Thomas G. McLoughlin is stepping down from his role as president and chief executive officer at National Public Finance Guarantee Corp. to join UBS Financial Services as head of its municipal research division.

Former Republican senator and Bush administration official Mel Martinez will join JPMorgan Chase & Co. on Aug. 1 as its chairman of the Florida, Mexico, Central America and Caribbean regions, the bank announced Monday.

A new strain of tender-option bonds is geared toward taxable investors who want the advantages of Build America Bonds without committing to a long maturity.

Aside from tax status, there is one key distinction between tax-exempt and taxable TOBs.

The municipal market closed the holiday-shortened week with yields remaining flat at calendar-year lows, while Treasury yields suffered a second day.

The New York Stock Exchange once again notified Ambac Financial Group that it could be de-listed for failing to maintain a minimum share value of $1.00 for a 30-day period, the company announced Tuesday.

Knight Capital Group Inc., a discount broker-dealer for investment advisers, has launched an electronic platform that it hopes will appeal to investors in the municipal market.

Citi and Bank of America Merrill Lynch continue to vie for the top underwriting position in the municipal bond industry, according to mid-year rankings from Thomson Reuters.

Citi and Bank of America Merrill Lynch continued to vie for the top underwriting position in the municipal bond industry, according to mid-year rankings from Thomson Reuters.

The turbulence that’s battered financial markets in recent weeks reduced the volume of municipal bonds sold in June to the lowest level that month has seen in 10 years.

As the buyer base for Build America Bonds continues to expand, Fitch Ratings has created a website so investors unfamiliar with the municipal market can visit a "one-stop shop" for all BAB-related research.

In an effort to be more transparent, Moody’s Investors Service will be issuing separate press releases when it changes the ratings on bonds that act as collateral for floating-rate certificates, known as tender-option bonds.

Syncora Guarantee Inc. may have to start paying all of its outstanding insurance claims or face rehabilitation or liquidation.

Barclays Capital announced the addition of two senior members to its public finance health care unit Monday as it continues to grow the one-time Lehman Brothers team.

Ambac Financial Group announced Thursday that it entered into a pair of debt-for-equity exchanges June 11, meaning that it purchased back its own debt by offering debt-holders a stake in the company.

Wells Fargo & Co. has made two new additions to its government and institutional banking group in response to the rising needs of municipalities struggling to make ends meet amid falling revenue.