New York State’s top banking regulator said he had new concerns about Ocwen Financial, creating another regulatory headache for one of the nation’s largest mortgage servicing companies.
In a letter to Ocwen released Wednesday, Benjamin M. Lawsky, supervisor of the state’s Department of Financial Services, said his office had found a “number of potential conflicts of interest†between Ocwen and other public companies with which it is affiliated.
Ocwen was founded by William Erbey and has grown in recent years into a major player in the mortgage industry, servicing 2.3 million home loans.
Mr. Lawsky said he was concerned that potential conflicts between Ocwen and four other publicly traded companies chaired by Mr. Erbey could “harm borrowers and push homeowners unduly in foreclosure.â€
Ocwen has said that it maintains an arms-length business relationship with the other companies, which rent foreclosed houses and sell homes online. In addition, the company said that Mr. Erbey recused himself from any discussions where the five companies’ businesses overlap.
In the letter, Mr. Lawsky has asked Ocwen to detail the financial interests that Ocwen’s directors and employees have in the other companies. He also asked for details about the agreements Ocwen has made with the other companies for services.
Last month, Mr. Lawsky halted the transfer of $39 billion of mortgage servicing rights to Ocwen from Wells Fargo out of concern that the company lacked the capacity to handle the influx of new loans.
