BofA partners with AEGON to boost new CMBS offerings

Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAC) will tap the lending abilities of AEGON USA Realty Advisors to source new loans for commercial mortgage-backed securities issuances. AEGON is the commercial real estate investment and management arm of the AEGON Global Asset Management organization, which is part of AEGON N.V., a life insurance, pension and investment company based in the Netherlands. Steve Myers, an executive vice president and head of real estate credit at AEGON, said the firm is excited to be partnering with the one of the leading issuers of CMBS. At the height of the securitization market in 2006, there was more than $226 billion in issuance. After the financial crisis, CMBS issuance dropped to $1.9 billion in 2009. Bank of America Large Loan Trust issued one of only three CMBS issuances that year, a $460 million deal in December. But in 2010, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) is leading a revival in new CMBS bonds. The bank organized $1.1 billion in CMBS notes in the September. A Goldman Sachs (GS) deal in December pushed total sales in 2010 to $11.5 billion. Analysts predict next year’s offerings will quadruple. Mike Mezzei, BofAML’s global head of CMBS, said AEGON is an established commercial real estate platform that will help the company increase new securities. “As the CMBS market continues to recover, this relationship will allow us to increase our securitization capacity and strengthen our CMBS origination capabilities,” Mezzei said. Write to Jon Prior.