EUROPESERVICING 2006

Bridging primary and secondary markets, enabling cross-border lending and protecting investment value in European mortgage and real estate markets

Purpose:	To increase the profile, improve capabilities, create opportunities and highlight the importance of servicing and administration across European mortgage markets. As creator and producer of the event, EuroCatalyst's goal is to impact the way in which servicers acquire, process, distribute and protect the information that serves as the ultimate currency of the global mortgage industry.
Programme:	Click here for final programme (includes Director's Notes)
A big thank you from EuroCatalyst to all partners, panellists, delegates and sponsors whose dedication and tireless efforts helped to make EuropeServicing 2006 London a success. More than 200 people from across Europe gathered at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts on both the commercial and residential days of the event, to listen to key players from across the mortgage value chain discuss their perceptions of the current state of servicing, processing and administration in Europe today and the directions in which they see it going. As an investment advisory and market-positioning firm dedicated to accelerating new market and cross-border entry, EuroCatalyst's public efforts in Europe have been focused on developing and positioning the entire mortgage value chain across national borders. However, its heart lies firmly in the servicing sector, and this event was dedicated to all who share its goal of increasing the profile, improving the capabilities, creating the opportunities and highlighting the importance of servicing and administration across European mortgage markets. The event incorporated the personal experience of EuroCatalyst CEO Toni Moss in navigating European mortgage markets for the past nine years, initially as the Director of International Business Development for Stater at a time when it was the first third-party residential servicer in Continental Europe. While she has been the most identifiable individual "champion" of the European servicing sector, she is also its most harsh critic. "I would like to see the servicing sector in Europe grow as much as I would like to see current capabilities improve," Moss says, adding that "this is the sole purpose driving the EuropeServicing event." Led by Host Partners FitchRatings, Morgan Stanley Mortgage Servicing and Homeloan Management Limited, EuropeServicing's elite list of partners this year included Katten Muchin Rosenman Cornish LLP, Europe's leading law firm focusing on real estate and servicing issues specifically, Capmark Europe (formerly GMACCM-Europe), Europe's largest commercial third-party servicer, Standard & Poor's, Hatfield Philips International, Moody's Investor's Service, and Stater International Mortgage Services, as well as exhibitors CB Richard Ellis Loan Servicing Limited, Global Realty Outsourcing and Quion. The networking reception on the first evening, which attracted more than 100 people, was graciously sponsored by MortgageFlex, whose Chief Operating Officer Jim Dowell is a true EuroCatalyst alumni, having attended every single event hosted by EuroCatalyst since EuroCatalyst 2002 in Madrid, and Mayer, Brown, Row and Mawe, whose Frankfurt capital markets and real estate expert, Joerg Wulfken, is another long-time member of the growing EuroCatalyst community. EuroCatalyst's most heartfelt thanks go to the individuals and firms who continue to act as pioneers of the European servicing sector. In particular, "Wheels" (or Helena Day, as opposed to a week) was absolutely instrumental in the content and design of the CMBS sessions. Also, Eddie Register was key, as well as FitchRatings for allowing full access to the universe of FitchResearch, truly a dream for insomniac information hounds like most of EuroCatalyst. Other individuals include Rick Watson of the ESF, Carol Wilkie of the CMSA, Michael Guttierez of Standard and Poor's, Robbie Hughes of Capmark, Marie-Noelle Brisson of Standard and Poor's, Matt Gilmour of Infinity Mortgages, Joergen Louw-Pedersen, Baralides Alberdi and Rob Bier. Throughout the two-day programme, three key concepts made their way into each session: Although housing and real estate are fundamentally local activities, their funding is increasingly global. Despite natural differences among national markets (and indeed even among different states in the US), mortgage markets vary in form - but not function. When looking at a wider picture of the mortgage and real estate value chain, servicing is the bridge between primary and secondary markets. The best way to understand how mortgage markets really work - and to make them more efficient - is to view that value chain from the servicing perspective. The key drivers for cross-border lending in Europe are securitisation, the ability to share risk and the ability to outsource servicing to third parties. Both securitisation and mortgage insurance/monoline schemes are advancing much faster than third-party servicing. There must be more efforts, initiatives and assistance - beyond the pioneering firms themselves - toward developing the third-party sector The loan-level and portfolio-wide information that servicers manage is the ultimate currency of the mortgage and real estate industry. As such, servicers are the repository of that information. The perception of servicing must change from the outdated view of it as the "originator's back office" to a more accurate one of servicing as the shareholder and investor's front office. EuroCatalyst expresses its gratitude to Louise Hunter and her team at Thomson Financial/IFR Conferences, who worked tirelessly on event marketing and back office activities. EuropeServicing is here to stay, stay tuned for next year! The EuropeServicing platform is dedicated to all market participants who share the common goal of increasing the prominence of the European mortgage servicing industry.