Taylor Riggs

While municipal bonds are becoming increasingly politicized as the debate over eliminating their tax exemption heats up, many analysts say it won't become a serious issue until the 2012 elections.

Bank policyholders suing the New York Insurance Department and MBIA Inc. say new documents made available to the public show MBIA senior executives concealed critical information from the NYID about the size of future losses at MBIA Insurance Corp.

The municipal market can expect about $5 billion in new issuance this week, making it the third week in a row to see volume at that relatively subdued level. Last week saw a revised $5.11 billion, following a revised $7.8 billion the week before.

Assured Guaranty Municipal Corp. and Assured Guaranty Corp. are able to keep their AA-plus ratings, at least until this fall, when Standard & Poor’s said it plans to issue a new rating methodology for bond insurers that could cause a downgrade.

Recent revenue results for states have been strong and, in many cases, tax revenue has exceeded expectations, according to a report by Fitch Ratings and RBC Capital Markets.

Ambac Financial Group said it has named Diana Adams as president and chief executive officer and Stephen Ksenak as general counsel, replacing current president and CEO David Wallis and general counsel Kevin Doyle.

The insurance regulator for Ambac Assurance Corp. has named Roger Peterson special deputy commissioner for the company's segregated account containing its riskiest policies, pending court approval.

Ambac Financial Group said it has named Diana Adams as president and chief executive officer and Stephen Ksenak as general counsel, replacing current president and CEO David Wallis and general counsel Kevin Doyle.

The municipal market can expect $5.22 billion in new issuance this week, with issuers in Los Angeles and Utah leading the way with deals in excess of $600 million.

BMO Capital Markets hired Edward Fanter for its infrastructure group as the firm continues to seek growth in its senior management business in the public finance space.

A court-appointed judicial hearing officer has determined that e-mails sent between New York Insurance Department officials showed bias regarding the restructuring of bond insurer MBIA Insurance Corp.

Red Capital Group has made two hires in its senior housing sector as it expands its trading and distribution platforms. Matthew O’Grady and James Scribner join the firm as managing directors based in the Columbus, Ohio, headquarters and Connecticut, respectively.

The municipal market can expect $4.68 billion in new issuance this week, with a half dozen deals above $250 million contributing to volume and putting the projected total around the average for the year.

Regulators denied Ambac Assurance Corp.’s requests that it be allowed to pay interest on all its outstanding surplus notes due June 7.

RBC Capital Markets is expanding its municipal platform with new hires for its sales and trading group.

An attorney representing banks holding MBIA Insurance policies guaranteeing structured finance products argued Tuesday that the $5 billion restructuring of MBIA’s insurance subsidiary was done without giving a group of policy-owning banks a chance to object.

Long-term municipal bond issuance is half of what it was a year ago, with volume down 51% through the end of May versus the same time last year.

The municipal market can expect $2.5 billion of new issuance in a holiday-shortened week, including two sizeable New York deals, but that’s not enough to keep up with last week’s revised $4.3 billion total, which was up from a revised $3.9 billion the week before, according to Ipreo LLC and The Bond Buyer.

Lawyers for Ambac Financial Group said the bankruptcy plan submitted by the Wisconsin insurance regulator was unacceptable, and the company intends to issue its own plan in June.

Rating downgrades by Fitch Ratings outnumbered upgrades in 2010, according to a new report by the agency.