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IN THE MATTER OF: FIRST WORLD MORTGAGE ("First World Mortgage") |
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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, First World Mortgage is a Connecticut 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, on February 1, 2008, First World Mortgage entered into a Settlement Agreement with the Commissioner to resolve allegations that First World Mortgage employed or retained four (4) originators without registering them, in violation of Sections 36a-486(b) and 36a-511(b) of the then applicable Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, on September 1, 2010, the Commissioner, through the Consumer Credit Division of the Department of Banking, conducted an examination pursuant to Sections 36a-17 and 36a-498f of the Connecticut General Statutes into the activities of First World Mortgage 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, as a result of such examination, the Commissioner alleges that First World Mortgage employed or retained, during the period of December 19, 2009 through August 4, 2010, one (1) individual as a mortgage loan originator who was not licensed, in violation of Section 36a-486(b) of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner believes that such allegation would support initiation of enforcement proceedings against First World Mortgage, including proceedings to revoke First World Mortgage’s license pursuant to Section 36a-494(a) and subsections (a) and (b) of Section 36a-51 of the Connecticut General Statutes, issue a cease and desist order against First World Mortgage pursuant to Sections 36a-494(b) and 36a-52(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes, and impose a civil penalty of up to one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) per violation on First World Mortgage pursuant to Sections 36a-494(b) and 36a-50(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, initiation of such enforcement proceedings would constitute a “contested case” within the meaning of Section 4-166(2) of the Connecticut General Statutes;
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, both the Commissioner and First World Mortgage acknowledge the possible consequences of formal administrative proceedings, and First World Mortgage voluntarily agrees to consent to the entry of the sanction described below without admitting or denying any allegation contained herein and solely for the purpose of obviating the need for further formal administrative proceedings concerning the allegation contained herein;
WHEREAS, First World Mortgage acknowledges that this Consent Order is a public record and, notwithstanding the foregoing paragraph, constitutes a finding by the Commissioner that First World Mortgage has been involved in a violation of a financial services-related regulation or statute required to be disclosed in response to regulatory disclosure questions on the MU1 Form, MU2 Form or MU4 Form on the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry (“NMLS”), as such forms are applicable;
WHEREAS, First World Mortgage herein represents to the Commissioner that the individual alleged to be an unlicensed mortgage loan originator in violation of Section 36a-486(b) of the Connecticut General Statutes, during the period of December 19, 2009 through August 4, 2010, is either currently licensed as a mortgage loan originator under Part I of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-485 et seq., of the Connecticut General Statutes or is no longer engaged in any mortgage-related activity with First World Mortgage that would prohibit First World Mortgage from engaging the services of such individual without licensure as a mortgage loan originator under Part I of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-485 et seq., of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, First World Mortgage herein represents to the Commissioner that it has reviewed and updated its internal policies, procedures and controls for assessing whether an individual engaged in mortgage-related activity with First World Mortgage requires licensure from the Commissioner under Part I of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-485 et seq., of the Connecticut General Statutes, and agrees that it will not engage the services of an individual as a mortgage loan originator in the future without first confirming that such individual is duly licensed;
AND WHEREAS, First World Mortgage, through its execution of this Consent Order, voluntarily agrees to waive its procedural rights, including a right to notice and an opportunity for hearing as it pertains to the allegation 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, First World Mortgage, 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 First World Mortgage, First World Mortgage 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 Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000) 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. | 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 First World Mortgage based upon the allegation contained herein; provided that issuance of this Consent Order is without prejudice to the right of the Commissioner to take enforcement action against First World Mortgage 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 First World Mortgage and reflected herein is subsequently discovered to be untrue; |
| 3. | So long as this Consent Order is promptly disclosed by First World Mortgage on NMLS, nothing in the issuance of this Consent Order shall adversely affect the ability of First World Mortgage 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, and for its mortgage loan originators to apply for or obtain licensure from the Commissioner, provided all applicable legal requirements for such licenses are satisfied; and |
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This Consent Order shall become final when issued.
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Dated at Hartford, Connecticut
this 20th day of April 2011. ________/s/_________
Howard F. Pitkin
Banking Commissioner
CONSENT TO ENTRY OF ORDER
I, Frank J. Sidoti Jr., state on behalf of First World Mortgage Corporation, 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 First World Mortgage Corporation; that First World Mortgage Corporation agrees freely and without threat or coercion of any kind to comply with the sanction entered and terms and conditions ordered herein; and that First World Mortgage Corporation 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: Frank J. Sidoti Jr.
Title: President
First World Mortgage
State of: Connecticut
County of: Hartford
On this the 11 day of April 2011, before me, Frank J. Sidoti Jr., the undersigned officer, personally appeared Frank J. Sidoti Jr. who acknowledged himself to be the President of First World Mortgage Corporation, a corporation, and that he as such President, being authorized so to do, executed the foregoing instrument for the purposes therein contained, by signing the name of the corporation by himself as President.
In witness whereof I hereunto set my hand.
________/s/_________
Notary Public
Date Commission Expires: April 30, 2012