WASHINGTON, D.C. (Jan. 9)-The Mortgage Bankers Association of America (MBA) has hired Gabe Minton as senior director of industry technology.
Minton, who received a master’s degree in software engineering from the University of Maryland, will be responsible for overseeing MBA’s leadership role in the establishment of technology standards for the real estate finance industry. He will serve as the staff representative to MBA’s Technology Steering Committee and will oversee activities of the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO). Minton also will help develop a policy management authority to oversee a public key infrastructure, a system to protect data.
MISMO is comprised of MBA members, technology companies, and key industry players, including Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. The organization was formed to address electronic commerce issues in the mortgage industry.
The hiring of Minton is part of the decision by MBA to restructure and elevate its technology-related committees. MBA has positioned its Technology Steering Committee to report directly to the association’s board of directors. The committee is chaired by Robert M. Couch, president of New South Federal Savings Bank, with Shekar Narasimhan, managing director of Prudential Mortgage Capital Co., serving as vice chairman. The committee’s structure and status acknowledge technology’s application to both the residential and commercial finance processes and ensure consistency across the industry through strong, collaborative leadership at top levels.
“By these actions, MBA has signaled its understanding of the importance of having the right technical knowledge and organizational structure in place to address the rapid technology driven pace of change in the industry,” said Andrew D. Woodward, MBA president.
MBA also has put in place a working group to develop an industry standard for electronic transactions on the commercial side of the mortgage business similar to the single-family standard MISMO has been working on.
“Minton is perfectly placed to understand the needs of the industry since he has served as the chairman of the architecture workgroup for MISMO,” said Woodward.
In May, MISMO released XML (Extensible Mark-up Language) Data Standards, which cover secondary commitment and delivery transactions and credit, underwriting, mortgage insurance application, and service request processes. Earlier in the year, MISMO released a dictionary of common data, focusing on elements relevant to the single-family mortgage origination and underwriting processes, and it launched a Web-based repository tool to provide a central location for managing data elements and generating XML document definitions.
“The fact that MBA has hired someone with Gabe’s software engineering background is an indication of the seriousness of its commitment to leading the development of an industry technology standard everyone can use,” said Douglas G. Duncan, MBA senior staff vice president.
Formerly vice president of standards and alliances with Ultraprise Corp., a Frederick, Md., business-to-business technology firm, Minton has more than eight years of experience working with a number of software systems. In addition to Ultraprise, he has worked for Kaman Sciences Corp. and the U.S. Navy. He also is an adjunct professor of computer science at Hood College in Frederick, Md.
MBA is the national association representing the real estate finance industry. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the association works to ensure the continued strength of the nation’s residential and commercial real estate markets; to expand homeownership prospects through increased affordability; and to extend access to affordable housing to all Americans. MBA promotes fair and ethical lending practices and fosters excellence and technical know-how among real estate finance professionals through a wide range of educational programs and technical publications. Its membership of approximately 2,800 companies includes all elements of real estate finance: mortgage companies, mortgage brokers, commercial banks, thrifts, life insurance companies and others in the mortgage lending field. For additional information, visit MBA’s Web site: www.mbaa.org.
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Kathy Buchanan (202) 557-2730
Dave Warner (202) 557-2843
