William Erbey
{{short description|American entrepreneur}}
{{Infobox person
| name = William Erbey
| citizenship = American
| alma_mater = Harvard Business School{{cite web |title=William Erbey overview on Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/william-erbey/#507bd1263e76|website=Forbes}}
| occupation = American businessman
}}
William Erbey is an American businessman and the founder of Ocwen Financial Corporation.{{cite news |last1=Freed |first1=Dan |title=Bill Erbey Made $2.3B Off Your Underwater Mortgage |url=https://www.thestreet.com/investing/stocks/bill-erbey-made-23b-off-your-underwater-mortgage-12083751 |work=TheStreet.com}}{{cite web |last1=Chen |first1=Liyan |title=The New Subprime Bet: How Bill Erbey Built A $2.8 Billion Fortune By Getting Inside Homeowners' Heads |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/liyanchen/2013/11/27/the-new-subprime-bet-how-bill-erbey-built-a-2-8-billion-fortune-by-getting-inside-homeowners-heads/#61346884794b |website=Forbes }} Erbey made billions during the subprime mortgage crisis by positioning Ocwen to take advantage of larger banks leaving the market; however, he later lost much of his wealth amid allegations of frequent legal violations and conflicts of interest by the company.{{cite web|first1=Dan|last1=Freed|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=How Mortgage Pioneer Bill Erbey of Ocwen Lost His Empire|url=https://www.thestreet.com/investing/stocks/how-mortgage-pioneer-bill-erbey-of-ocwen-lost-his-empire-12993778|website=TheStreet}}{{cite web|first1=Antoine|last1=Gara|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=Bill Erbey Of Embattled Mortgage Giant Ocwen Loses Over $300M In Hours, No Longer Billionaire|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/antoinegara/2014/12/22/bill-erbey-of-embattled-mortgage-giant-ocwen-loses-over-300m-in-hours-no-longer-billionaire/|website=Forbes}} In 2014, these conflicts of interest led to Erbey's resignation from Ocwen's board as part of a settlement with the New York Department of Financial Services.
Ocwen Financial Corporation
Erbey was the founder of Ocwen Financial Corporation, a mortgage services company that made large amounts of money during the subprime mortgage crisis.{{cite web|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=Millionaire facing US investment fraud suit is Malta's newest citizen|url=http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/66489/millionaire_facing_us_investment_fraud_suit_is_maltas_newest_citizen|website=MaltaToday.com.mt}} In 2014 he stepped down as board chairman as part of a settlement with the New York Department of Financial Services, and resigned from positions at several related companies, over what the New York regulator called "serious conflicts of interest."{{cite web|first1=Kevin|last1=McCoy|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=Ocwen shares plunge as founder steps down|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/12/22/ocwen-william-erbey-conflicts/20754655/|website=USA TODAY}}{{cite web|first1=Alan Zibel, James|last1=Sterngold|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=NY regulator announces $150 million settlement with Ocwen Financial|url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/ny-regulator-announces-150-million-settlement-with-ocwen-financial-2014-12-22|website=MarketWatch}} Erbey chaired, and was the largest stakeholder for, four companies which had close business relationships with Ocwen; by directing default-related business to these companies, Erbey was able to profit by putting borrowers in default.{{cite news|first1=David|last1=Dayen|authorlink1=David Dayen|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=Finally, a Financial Executive Is Sacked for His Company's Misdeeds|url=https://newrepublic.com/article/120625/ocwen-ceo-william-erbey-finally-wall-st-exec-forced-resign|newspaper=The New Republic|date=22 December 2014|issn=0028-6583}} In order to do so, Ocwen used backdated letters to borrowers to make it appear as if they had not replied in the required timeframe and violated over a thousand of its other legal obligations.{{cite web|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=Ocwen executive chairman to resign in New York settlement: WSJ|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2014/12/22/ocwen-executive-chairman-to-resign-in-new-york-settlement-wsj.html|date=22 December 2014|website=CNBC}} As part of his resignation, Erbey received a lump-sum payment of $1.2 million dollars from Ocwen.{{cite web|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=How much will Ocwen pay William Erbey to leave?|url=https://www.housingwire.com/articles/32658-how-much-will-ocwen-pay-william-erbey-to-leave/|date=20 January 2015}}
Erbey has blamed what happened to his company on what he calls a "concerted smear campaign" by PIMCO and BlackRock, which he sued in 2017. PIMCO and BlackRock have been accused of a “wilful and wanton scheme . . . to cripple, if not outright destroy” Ocwen.{{cite news|accessdate=2020-07-08|title=S Pimco and BlackRock accused of subprime 'profit gouging'|url=https://www.ft.com/content/c071eade-9737-11e8-b67b-b8205561c3fe|newspaper=Financial Times|date=6 August 2018 }}
References
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Category:American chief operating officers