Financial Services Focus

In this episode of Financial Services Focus, Mayer Brown partner Lauren Pryor is joined by John Guzzo, Managing Director at Houlihan Lokey; Dan Thompson, CEO of Preferred Mortgage Services; Romalene Tolentino, Founding Partner of Preferred Mortgage Services; and Rajesh Bhat, Board Member of Preferred Mortgage Services and former founder and CEO of Roostify, for a wide-ranging conversation on the forces reshaping the mortgage servicing market. The panel examines how post-crisis regulatory shifts and rising technology demands have driven significant consolidation among servicers and their vendors, why outsourcing is increasingly oriented toward access to specialized expertise rather than simple cost reduction, and how cloud-based platforms are beginning to modernize historically manual processes such as investor reporting and exception management. The discussion also addresses the promise and risks of generative and agentic AI in a highly regulated environment—from automating exception resolution and document processing to the critical importance of human-in-the-loop guardrails, robust audit trails, and evolving liability frameworks.

The United States has had a one cent coin since the founding of the nation and on Wednesday, November 12, the last American penny will be minted. Even though the relative value of one cent declined to the point that many would forego picking pennies up from the street, the concept of a cent remains a key part of commercial transactions. In the absence of legislation, the official, financial and commercial sectors have been left to their creativity to implement with the phase-out of the penny. This podcast discusses the legal issues associated with the end of the physical penny and what it means for financial institutions and commercial businesses.

The podcast dives into the fast-evolving world of stablecoins, explaining how these dollar-pegged digital assets are transforming payments with speed, transparency, and fractional flexibility. We also delve into the GENIUS Act's bold framework, which would create bespoke AML and sanctions obligations for permitted payment stablecoin issuers—moving beyond the awkward "square peg, round hole" of legacy rules.

In this episode, our host Lauren Pryor is joined by Chris Gough and Michael Linger from Houlihan Lokey to discuss recent trends in Mortgage M&A, including consolidation among originators and servicers and developments in PropTech.

In this episode of Financial Services Focus, Lauren Pryor and her colleagues discuss a recent Delaware Chancery Court opinion that reinforces Delaware's pro-sandbagging stance in M&A transactions. This conversation covers the implications of this ruling, particularly regarding the interpretation of representations and warranties, the use of transaction multiples for calculating damages, and key takeaways for buyers and sellers in Delaware M&A transactions.

Join us for a new episode of Financial Services Focus with partner Eric Mitzenmacher and associate Kerri Webb, as they discuss the CFPB's recently proposed FCRA rulemaking, which, if finalized as proposed, would affect the availability and use of certain information about consumers—particularly with respect to data brokers. In this episode, we provide some background on the proposed data broker rule, the CFPB's goals for the proposal, and the potential impacts of the rule if enacted.

Join us for a new episode of Financial Services Focuswith partner Martin Heuber, leader of the German office's Banking & Finance practice. In this episode, we discuss the impact of current events in Europe on the private debt market in Germany, particularly how these developments are affecting the quality of transactions handled by alternative lenders, and why debt funds are entering the market right now. We also explore the regulatory barriers lenders encounter when entering the market and provide insight into the legal environment, examining whether it favors borrowers or lenders.

Join us for a new episode of Financial Services Focus with Mayer Brown partners Airlie Goodman (London) and Archis Parasharami (Washington, DC), who co-lead Mayer Brown's class action and collective actions practice, as they explore the growing risks posed by the rise of collective action regimes across the UK and Europe. Airlie and Archis discuss the need for financial services institutions with a presence in the UK or EU to be aware of their potential exposure to these regimes.

In this episode of Financial Services Focus, Eric Edwardson, Lauren Pryor and Chris Smith discuss selected key terms of purchase and sale agreements for residential mortgage servicing rights, exploring the typical perspectives and concerns of buyers and sellers.

Mayer Brown Partners Ana Bruder, Justin Herring, and Oliver Yaros focus on cybersecurity risks and regulations in the EU and UK. They explore third-party risks, ransomware incidents, and the impact of AI, while examining how DORA (Digital Operational Resilience Act) reshapes compliance for financial institutions. They emphasize the critical need for risk management frameworks and highlight the evolving landscape of cybersecurity governance.

Join us for this episode of Financial Services Focus, where Lauren Pryor, Eric Edwardson, Haukur Gudmundsson and Krista Cooley dive into considerations for MSR (Mortgage Servicing Rights) fund investments and outline the complexities of MSR fund investments, touching on market structures, licensing requirements, and acquisition strategies. They discuss the trade-offs between building or buying servicing platforms and explores various methods for acquiring MSR assets, such as loan origination and bulk portfolio purchases.

Join us on the latest episode of Financial Services Focus as Justin Herring, Jeff Taft and Ana Bruder discuss key cyber threats facing the financial services industry, including third-party risks, sophisticated ransomware, and AI-powered attacks. It examines the evolving and rapidly expanding regulatory landscape, with a complex mix of federal and state rules focused on areas like governance, risk assessments, and third-party management. It also covers enforcement trends, as regulators ramp up investigations and fines.