Verrone has been with Wachovia since 1995 and has served as managing director for Wachovia Securities northeastern region, where he was responsible for a number of $50-million mortgages and is known for helping to get mezzanine financing popularized. In September 2007 he was promoted to co-head of Real Estate Americas, where he was responsible for domestic real estate clients, commercial mortgage-backed securities, structured finance, real estate corporate banking, tax credit and agency finance, real estate syndications, and real estate collateralized debt obligation sales and trading.
The news comes one day after Wachovia Corp. nearly doubled its previously reported first-quarter loss. The bank is now claiming a loss of $708 million, or 36 cents per share, compared to their previously reported loss of $393 million in mid-April.
Although the loss was attributed to a bank-owned life insurance portfolio, The New York Times reports that the company is also experiencing losses associated with the housing slump, including a $121.2-billion portfolio of "option" adjustable-rate mortgages.
The company did not indicate that Verrone's departure has anything to do with the losses, but Gerard Cassidy, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets in Portland, ME spoke with GlobeSt.com about the possibility. "What you need to see happen at Wachovia is the individuals responsible for approving strategies and loans that are now causing significant losses have to be replaced," Cassidy says. "If this person was responsible for commercial real estate losses, than replacing him is something that needs to be done."
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