In Brief: Thornburg Distancing Itself from Criimi Mae

In the aftermath of the bankruptcy filing by Criimi Mae, the commercial mortgage investment trust, Thornburg Mortgage Asset Corp. on Tuesday told investors that its business strategy continues to be sound.

Thornburg is another in a series of mortgage companies distancing itself from Criimi Mae, which filed for bankruptcy protection Monday.

Thornburg said that 94% of its adjustable-rate-mortgage assets are either AA or AAA-rated, securities backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, or A-quality whole loans that are held for securitization.

Unlike the mortgage real estate investment trust, Thornburg said, it does not invest in subordinate classes of non-investment-grade securities backed by commercial mortgages.

A Thornburg representative acknowledged that "there are liquidity concerns in the marketplace," but said the company is not experiencing difficulty in meeting its payment obligations.

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