Tonya Chin

Assured Guaranty CEO Dominic Frederico criticized a multi-notch downgrade from Moody's Investors Service and said AGO will launch a new municipal bond insurer without Moody's ratings.

Standard & Poor's revised its growth forecast for 2013 on state and local governments to be slightly higher and Fitch Ratings gave most sectors a stable outlook for the year.

The proposed fracking of the Marcellus and Utica Shale Basins has positive credit implications for states and local governments in the region, according to a report from Kroll Bond Ratings Agency.

Union-owned Amalgamated Bank, the lender that helped Scranton, P.A. when it couldn't access the markets, has formed a new public finance unit, headed by industry veteran Robert O’Brien.

Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. expanded its municipal bond team with three industry veterans, Frank Hammond, Kevin Conrad, and John Dwyer.

Bond insurer MBIA Inc. announced that the New York State Department of Financial Services denied a request by MBIA Insurance Corp. to make its interest payment scheduled for Tuesday.

Rafael Perez has joined Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP from Cozen O'Connor as a partner in the firm's public finance department.

The recent changes to Basel III are a credit positive for issuers of variable rate demand bonds, according to Moody's Investors Service.

For 2012, greater municipal bond volume allowed for an uptick in business for law firms, led again by Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP.

Nixon Peobody LLP has announced two new public finance counsel arrivals, Lisel Wells and Katherine Baynes, in its Los Angeles and Rochester, N.Y., offices, as well as two new partner promotions.

Build America Mutual Assurance Company has hired Les Richmond as vice president and actuary to help assess the impacts of pension liabilities.

Andy Gurley, known among many in the public finance industry for his loyalty and integrity, died on Monday at the age of 75.

The impacts of property tax caps in the Eastern U.S. states are mixed, ranging from minimal to restrictive, according to a recent report from Standard & Poor's.

Build America Mutual says it is now offering secondary market insurance, and has hired Hans Hanf to lead the secondary market desk.

The United States not-for-profit sector outlook is stable for 2013, but less favorable than past years, according to Standard & Poor's.

After another year of record low municipal bond interest rates, next year is expected to see a slight increase in yields, according to municipal research analysts.

Natixis Global Asset Management, which recently acquired McDonnell Investment Management, has launched a new municipal bond fund.

B of A Merrill Lynch ranked number one among municipal bond underwriters of long-term issuance for 2012, with a total of $53 billion. Among financial advisors, Public Financial Management retained its number one spot.

Healthcare bond issuance is expected to continue its increase next year, with an estimated $34 billion, according to a BofA Merrill Lynch report.

Major municipal bond dealers are projecting total supply for 2013 to hold steady at close to $400 billion, with net supply remaining low or negative.