Essent Guaranty Inc. in Radnor, Pa., said Wednesday that it has received approval from the Pennsylvania Insurance Department to write mortgage insurance.
The company, which said in May it had raised $500 million in start-up capital, is the first private mortgage insurer established in the United States since the start of the current financial crisis. Its investors include JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
It also said it has been approved by a working group of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to participate in an expedited licensing pilot project and is now seeking approvals from other state insurance departments.
Essent said it anticipates soon becoming a licensed mortgage insurance company nationwide.
As part of the expedited licensing program, the insurance commissioner trade group seeks to streamline state-specific application requirements, including the need for hard copies of forms.
This streamlining is intended to facilitate the efficient regulatory review of new entrants in insurance industry sectors deemed of national importance.
