Public Finance
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Bill Hogan
Senior Managing Director
(212) 408-6006
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Mary Francoeur
Managing Director
(212) 408-6051
Email |
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Sheelagh Flanagan
Managing Director
(415) 995-8009
Email |
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John Trahan
Managing Director
(212) 408-6023
Email |
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Robert Wetzler
Director
(212) 893-7383
Email |
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Olivier Garnier
Managing Director
(212) 339-3590
Email |
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Rich Cassata
Managing Director
(212) 408-6067
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Robert Tucker
Managing Director
(212) 339-0861
Email |
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Michael Walker
Director
(212) 261-5575
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The Assured Guaranty family of companies provides financial guaranty insurance in U.S. and global public finance markets.
In the United States, we offer municipal bond issuers and investors a choice between two proven, financially strong guarantors: Assured Guaranty Municipal Corp. (AGM), which serves public finance markets exclusively, and Assured Guaranty Corp. (AGC), a diversified financial guarantor. Separately capitalized, AGM, with $7.2 billion of claims-paying resources at September 30, 2009, and AGC, with $2.8 billion, are further bolstered by $2.6 billion of claims-paying resources from Assured Guaranty Re Ltd.
While we have two platforms, we are one team and apply the same underwriting standard across both platforms. Operationally, the platforms are integrated for origination, risk management, surveillance, credit, financial reporting and technology.
We offer a full range of credit enhancement products for the municipal bond marketplace, including:
- Primary and secondary market bond insurance policies covering principal and interest
- Surety policies that take the place of cash-funded reserves
- Specialized financial guaranty policies, such as swap sureties guaranteeing an issuer’s obligations under a swap agreement with a broker-dealer
We also insure financings of essential infrastructure projects, including public-private partnerships, in both the U.S. and international markets. Our broad experience in infrastructure finance encompasses highways, bridges, tunnels, airports, government buildings, hospitals, utilities and other sectors. We insure bonds, notes and bank loans in both primary and secondary markets.
Our Public Finance team is focused on providing superior customer service. Our team structure makes it easy to determine which analyst can best assist a prospective customer.
Our analysts have the credit skills and business knowledge to give issuers and their advisors answers regarding the:
- Insurability of a transaction: We can discuss key credit characteristics by phone and provide general feedback.
- General legal terms and conditions: Based on the sector and credit rating, we can provide guidance regarding key terms and conditions.
- Pricing parameters: We track pricing by sector and rating so we can quickly provide a pricing range during our initial discussions.
If the transaction is insurable, every effort is made to meet the transaction schedule. Legal conditions are discussed in detail up front – often through the use of term sheets – to ensure that all parties are comfortable with the terms and conditions that will be required by the Assured Guaranty credit committee. All aspects of the legal process – from formal commitment through closing – are managed by an in-house legal team that includes a dedicated Public Finance attorney and closing coordinator. For a current list of U.S. transactions, see the “Downloads” section located at the top of this page.
The firm has established a sizable and growing buyer base that includes many of the largest institutional investors. Broker-dealers focused on retail distribution can take comfort from the excellent results other firms have had distributing bonds we have insured to their retail clients.