Countrywide Financial, which was the largest US mortgage lender before being acquired by Bank of America, faces a Federal Trade Commission probe into whether its loan-servicing activities violated federal law, reports Reuters. Countrywide in its quarterly SEC filing on Monday said the FTC has issued civil investigative demands requiring it to provide documents. It said the agency is assessing whether activities related to Countrywide’s $1.49 trillion servicing portfolio, covering roughly 9m borrowers, violated laws the agency administers. The FTC probe adds to legal headaches for Bank of America, which last month paid about $2.5bn to buy Countrywide. California, Connecticut, Florida and Illinois have all sued Countrywide over its lending practices. Countrywide also faces US justice department lawsuits accusing it of abusing or mismanaging the bankruptcy and foreclosure processes.
