New York Fed Taps Trepp to Monitor CMBS

NEW YORK CITY-The Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Tuesday that it has selected Trepp LLC as a collateral monitor for legacy CMBS as part of the TALF program. According to the bank, Trepp will assist the New York Fed “by providing valuation, modeling, analytics and reporting, as well as advising on these matters.”

Trepp will not establish policies or make decisions for the New York Fed, including decisions whether to reject a CMBS as collateral for a TALF loan, the bank says. In addition, the New York Fed may opt to use other collateral monitors as well.

In a release, Trepp CEO Annemarie DiCola says the New York Fed contract, which was awarded after a competitive bidding process that began last month, “recognizes Trepp’s ability to provide in-depth information and analysis on CMBS.” Locally-based Trepp, an information provider on CMBS and commercial mortgages, will use the analytics and forecasting services of its subcontractor and sister company, Boston-based Property and Portfolio Research. Both Trepp and PPR are each wholly owned by DMG Information, Inc., the business information division of Daily Mail and General Trust, plc.

The New York Fed says the initial legacy CMBS subscription date will be in late July, with the specific date to be announced shortly. The subscription and settlement cycle for both legacy and new issue CMBS will occur in the latter part of each month, while the cycle for non-CMBS ABS TALF asset classes will remain in the first half of the month, the New York Fed says. According to the bank, DBRS, Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service, Realpoint LLC and Standard & Poor’s have all been selected as TALF CMBS-eligible rating agencies.