Angelo Mozilo Net Worth 2024

What was Angelo Mozilo’s Net Worth?

Angelo Mozilo was an American government who had a net worth of $600 million on the time of his loss of life in July 2023. Angelo Mozilo was greatest recognized for being the previous chairman of the board and CEO of Countrywide Financial. He served as CEO till July 1, 2008, only a few months earlier than the monetary disaster. During his time at Countrywide, Angelo earned a whole lot of thousands and thousands of {dollars} in compensation and bought at the very least $400 million price of his shares.

Countrywide was a pioneer within the nationwide non-bank mortgage trade. When subprime loans got here onto the scene within the late ’80s (Guardian S&L) and ’90s (The Money Store), his firm didn’t take part. He reportedly (privately) described the subprime mortgage mavericks of the ’90s as “crooks”. His firm, nevertheless, was shedding enterprise to the subprime lenders and needed to compete with them or proceed to lose market share. By the early 2000s, Countrywide started utilizing subprime loans in a significant method. After the market crash of 2008/2009, Countrywide quickly symbolized and bore a lot of the blame for, the subprime mortgage disaster.

In a 2008 New York Times characteristic, Henry G. Cisneros, former secretary of HUD and member of the Countrywide board of administrators, described Mozilo as “sick with stress—the ultimate chapter of his life is the infamy that is been introduced on him, or that he introduced on himself.” CNN named Mozilo as one of many Ten Most Wanted: Culprits’ of the 2008 monetary collapse within the United States, a idea additional supported in “Inside Job,” an Academy Award-winning documentary on the worldwide monetary disaster.

Over a few years, Mozilo bought a whole lot of thousands and thousands of {dollars} in inventory, personally, even whereas publicly touting the inventory and utilizing shareholder funds to purchase again inventory to assist the share value.

On June 4, 2009, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged him with insider buying and selling and securities fraud. The phrases of the settlement allowed Mozilo to keep away from acknowledging any wrongdoing. Countrywide was to pay $20 million of the $67.5 million penalty due to an indemnification settlement that was a part of Mozilo’s employment contract. In February 2011, the U.S. dropped its prison investigation into the info behind the civil settlement.

Early Life

Angelo Mozilo was born on November 29, 1938, within the Bronx, New York, to a first-generation Italian-American family. He was significantly influenced by his mother and father’ struggles as immigrants, which kindled in him a robust work ethic and a deep dedication to offering alternatives for homeownership to underserved communities.

After graduating from Fordham University in 1960 with a level in economics, Mozilo began his skilled journey within the mortgage trade.

Countrywide Financial Corporation

In 1969, alongside along with his enterprise associate David Loeb, Mozilo based Countrywide Credit Industries, later renamed Countrywide Financial Corporation. They started as a two-man operation and grew it right into a nationwide enterprise that serviced thousands and thousands of loans. As CEO, Mozilo targeted on simplifying mortgage lending and making homeownership extra accessible to Americans.

Countrywide’s progress was spectacular, finally changing into the nation’s largest mortgage lender. The firm was praised for its developments in computerized mortgage processing, and it performed a vital position in making a secondary marketplace for mortgages by promoting loans to government-sponsored entities like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Subprime Mortgage Crisis and Controversy

However, Countrywide’s success story turned bitter when the U.S. housing bubble burst in 2007. The firm had aggressively pursued subprime lending, providing mortgages to high-risk debtors. When the market collapsed, many of those debtors defaulted, contributing considerably to the 2008 monetary disaster.

Mozilo’s management throughout this era attracted important controversy. He was accused of deceptive buyers in regards to the riskiness of Countrywide’s mortgage portfolio and of creating thousands and thousands via insider buying and selling.

Bank of America acquired Countrywide in July 2008 for $4.1 billion. The acquisition would go on to value BofA billions upon billions of {dollars}. Angelo retired just a few months after the deal closed. Around this time he made a variety of glowing statements about his former firm’s future prospects, whereas additionally offloading $140 million price of his personal shares.

Legal Proceedings and Later Life

In 2009, Mozilo was charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for securities fraud and insider buying and selling. He agreed to a settlement in 2010, which included a lifetime ban from serving as an officer or director of any public firm, with out admitting or denying the allegations.

Mozilo largely retreated from public life following the settlement. However, he has often commented on the state of the mortgage trade, sustaining his perception that each American ought to have the chance to personal a house.

Legacy

Angelo Mozilo’s legacy is multifaceted. His early improvements within the mortgage trade and his dedication to creating homeownership accessible to extra Americans have had an enduring influence. However, his management through the subprime mortgage disaster and the following authorized penalties have left a stain on his fame.