LONDON — U.K. subprime mortgage lender Victoria Mortgage Funding Ltd. on Monday went into administration after funding was withdrawn.
The Financial Services Authority said it believed that the company is the first subprime mortgage lender in the U.K. to go into administration following the start of the current credit crisis.
KPMG has been appointed as administrator for Victoria Mortgages, according to the FSA, which added that up to 381 customers who currently have mortgage offers may be affected.
Victoria Mortgages, which the FSA says represents 0.06% of the U.K. mortgage lending market, wasn't immediately reachable for comment.
The FSA added that mortgage lender GMAC-RFC had offered to review potential completions for home purchase transactions due in the next three days, with a view to providing borrowers with a mortgage loan.
Victoria Mortgages launched two years ago, with backing U.S.-based venture capitalist Venturion Capital, to provide credit to first time buyers and people rebuilding their credit history.
Credit markets globally have been paralyzed in recent weeks over concerns about investor and lender exposure to subprime mortgages, or loans given to borrowers of weaker credit histories. Most of the worries over subprime lending have centered on mortgages in the U.S. so far, although investors in Europe have also been hit by investments into paper related to the loans.
