Ex-Countrywide Execs Now Cashing In On Self-Created Mess?

The New York Times reports:

• Fairly or not, Countrywide Financial and its top executives would be on most lists of those who share blame for the nation’s economic crisis. After all, the banking behemoth made risky loans to tens of thousands of Americans, helping set off a chain of events that has the economy staggering.

• So it may come as a surprise that a dozen former top Countrywide executives now stand to make millions from the home mortgage mess. Stanford L. Kurland, Countrywide’s former president, and his team have been buying up delinquent home mortgages that the government took over from other failed banks, sometimes for pennies on the dollar. They get a piece of what they can collect.(1)

For more, see Ex-Leaders of Countrywide Profit From Bad Loans.

See also, Blogging Stocks: Former Countrywide honchos look to cash in on their mess.

(1) According to the story, Mr. Kurland said he regrets what happened at Countrywide and in the mortgage industry nationwide, but does not believe he deserves blame. But lawsuits against Countrywide raise questions about Mr. Kurland’s portrayal of his role. The lawsuits, including one filed by New York State’s comptroller, say Mr. Kurland was well aware of the risks, and even misled Countrywide’s investors about the precariousness of the company’s portfolio. “Kurland is seeking to capitalize on a situation that was a product of his own creation,” said Blair A. Nicholas, a lawyer representing retired Arkansas teachers who are also suing Mr. Kurland and other former Countrywide executives.