| * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
IN THE MATTER OF: GREAT WESTERN FINANCIAL |
* * * * * * * * * * * |
CONSENT ORDER |
WHEREAS, the Banking Commissioner (“Commissioner”) is charged with the administration of Part I of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-485 to 36a-534c, inclusive, of the Connecticut General Statutes, “Mortgage Lenders, Correspondent Lenders, Brokers and Loan Originators”;
WHEREAS, Great Western is a Texas corporation that is currently licensed as a mortgage lender under Part I of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-485 et seq., of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner, through the Consumer Credit Division of the Department of Banking, investigated the activities of Great Western pursuant to the authority granted by Section 36a-17(a) of the 2012 Supplement to the General Statutes, as amended by Public Act 12-96, and Section 36a-498f of the Connecticut General Statutes, to determine if it had violated, was violating, or was about to violate the provisions of the Connecticut General Statutes within the jurisdiction of the Commissioner;
WHEREAS, on December 17, 2012, as a result of the investigation, the Commissioner, acting pursuant to Section 36a-494(b) of the 2012 Supplement to the General Statutes, as amended by Public Act 12-96, Section 36a-52(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes and Section 36a-50(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended by Public Act 12-96, issued a Notice of Intent to Issue Order to Cease and Desist, Notice of Intent to Impose Civil Penalty and Notice of Right to Hearing (“Notice”) against Great Western, which Notice is incorporated herein by reference;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner alleged in the Notice that Great Western failed to timely file its MCR – Standard – Financial Condition report that was due on March 30, 2012, in violation of Section 36a-534b(c)(3) of the 2012 Supplement to the General Statutes and/or Section 36a-534b(c)(3) of the 2012 Supplement to the General Statutes, as amended by Public Act 12-96, which such violation forms the basis to issue an order to cease and desist pursuant to Section 36a-494(b) of the 2012 Supplement to the General Statutes, as amended, and Section 36a-52(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes, and to impose a civil penalty pursuant to Section 36a-494(b) of the 2012 Supplement to the General Statutes, as amended, and Section 36a-50(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended;
WHEREAS, on December 21, 2012, the Notice was sent by certified mail, return receipt requested to Great Western (Certified Mail No. 70112000000247316161);
WHEREAS, on December 24, 2012, Great Western received the Notice and on January 7, 2013 requested a hearing;
WHEREAS, Section 4-177(c) of the Connecticut General Statutes and Section 36a-1-55(a) of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies provide that a contested case may be resolved by consent order, unless precluded by law;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner and Great Western now desire to resolve the matters alleged in the Notice and set forth herein;
WHEREAS, Great Western admits that the report described in the Notice and set forth herein was not filed on its respective due date, and acknowledges that this Consent Order is a public record and is a reportable event for purposes of the regulatory disclosure questions on the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry (“NMLS”), as applicable;
WHEREAS, Great Western voluntarily agrees to consent to the entry of the sanction described below, solely for the purpose of obviating the need for further formal administrative proceedings concerning the allegation contained in the Notice and set forth herein;
WHEREAS, Great Western herein represents to the Commissioner that it has reviewed and updated its internal policies, procedures and controls for timely and accurately filing required reports with the Commissioner through NMLS as required or as otherwise permitted under Part I of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-485 et seq., of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, Great Western agrees that the Notice may be used in construing the terms of this Consent Order and agrees to the language of this Consent Order;
AND WHEREAS, Great Western, through its execution of this Consent Order, voluntarily agrees to waive any applicable procedural rights, including a right to a hearing as it pertains to the allegation contained in the Notice and set forth herein, and voluntarily waives its right to seek judicial review or otherwise challenge or contest the validity of this Consent Order.
CONSENT TO ENTRY OF SANCTION
WHEREAS, Great Western, through its execution of this Consent Order, consents to the Commissioner’s entry of a Consent Order imposing the following sanction:
No later than the date this Consent Order is executed by Great Western, Great Western shall remit to the Department of Banking by cashier’s check, certified check or money order made payable to “Treasurer, State of Connecticut”, the sum of Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500) as a civil penalty.
CONSENT ORDER
NOW THEREFORE, the Commissioner enters the following:
| 1. | The Sanction set forth above be and is hereby entered; |
| 2. | No later than the date this Consent Order is executed by Great Western, Great Western shall have satisfactorily filed on NMLS all mortgage call reports required to date, and also expressly including the MCR – Standard – Financial report that was due within 90 days of Great Western’s fiscal year end. In the future, Great Western shall timely and accurately file all required reports on NMLS or as otherwise permitted under Part I of Chapter 668 of the Connecticut General Statutes in connection with its current, and any future license issued to Great Western; |
| 3. | Upon issuance of this Consent Order by the Commissioner, this matter will be resolved and the Commissioner will not take any future enforcement action against Great Western based upon the allegation set forth in the Notice and contained herein; provided that issuance of this Consent Order is without prejudice to the right of the Commissioner to take enforcement action against Great Western based upon a violation of this Consent Order or the matters underlying its entry, if the Commissioner determines that compliance with the terms herein is not being observed or if any representation made by Great Western and reflected herein is subsequently discovered to be untrue; |
| 4. | So long as this Consent Order is promptly disclosed by Great Western and its control persons on NMLS, as applicable, nothing in the issuance of this Consent Order shall adversely affect the ability of Great Western to apply for or obtain licenses or renewal licenses under Part I of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-485 et seq., of the Connecticut General Statutes, provided all applicable legal requirements for such license are satisfied; and |
| 5. |
This Consent Order shall become final when issued.
|
Issued at Hartford, Connecticut
this 26th day of April 2013. ________/s/_________
Howard F. Pitkin
Banking Commissioner
I, Fred E. McDonald, state on behalf of Great Western Financial Services, Inc., that I have read the foregoing Consent Order; that I know and fully understand its contents; that I am authorized to execute this Consent Order on behalf of Great Western Financial Services, Inc.; that Great Western Financial Services, Inc., agrees freely and without threat or coercion of any kind to comply with the sanction entered and terms and conditions ordered herein; and that Great Western Financial Services, Inc., voluntarily agrees to enter into this Consent Order, expressly waiving the procedural rights set forth herein as to the matters described herein.
By: ________/s/________
Name: Fred E. McDonald
Title: CEO
Great Western Financial Services, Inc.
State of: Texas
County of: Collin
On this the 23 day of April 2013, before me, Rhonda G. Martin, the undersigned officer, personally appeared Fred E. McDonald who acknowledged himself/herself to be the CEO of Great Western Financial Services, Inc., a corporation, and that he/she as such CEO, being authorized so to do, executed the foregoing instrument for the purposes therein contained, by signing the name of the corporation by himself/herself as CEO.
In witness whereof I hereunto set my hand.
_________/s/_________
Notary Public
Date Commission Expires: 05-20-2014