Any Fannie, Freddie IPO Would Be Years Off, Raymond James Says

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A pedestrian walks past the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) headquarters in Washington, D.C.Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

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By Felice Maranz

June 6, 2019 at 11:40 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

A long list of “preparatory steps” means that any potential Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac initial public offerings are at least three to four years away, according to Raymond James.

Before any IPO, analyst Ed Mills wrote in a note, the mortgage giants, or government- sponsored enterprises (GSEs), need to build around $200 billion to $250 billion in capital reserves. The question of how much money they send to the U.S. Treasury Department has to be addressed, too. And Mills expects Fannie and Freddie to need several years of “established earnings history” under new rules as well.