Case Study on Korean Cross-Border RMBS

Abstract

Korea First Bank (KFB) closed its _550,000,000 cross-border residential mortgage-backed securities RMBS securitization in December 2004. This transaction was the third cross-border RMBS securitization closed by KFB in 2004 and was, at the time of closing, both the largest ever in terms of deal size and also the longest ever in terms of maturity for a cross-border RMBS securitization originating in Korea. Its success is a sign that international investors are increasingly comfortable both with Korea as an ABS jurisdiction and with Korean RMBS as an asset class. This article provides an overview of the transaction structure and discusses some of the issues encountered in structuring this transaction.