Investment bank FBR Capital Markets (FBCM) executive vice president and head of institutional brokerage, Jonathan Billings, retired this week as the bank reported a loss of $25.8m, or $0.41 per diluted share, for Q210. His departure was announced, without further explanation, in a filing with the SEC. A source at FBR confirmed to HousingWire that Billings is retiring, but could not elaborate on the reasons or circumstances. Billings served FBR as the head of institutional brokerage. The company’s pre-tax core operating loss narrowed to $2.8m for the Q210, compared to a pre-tax core operating loss of $12.3m this time last year. The quarterly results compare to a pre-tax loss of $21.6m and a net after-tax loss of $21.7m, or $0.40 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2009. Expenses at FBR included $5m of stock-based compensation and $4.3m in severance expenses. Write to Jacob Gaffney. Disclosure: the author holds no relevant investments.