Fannie Mae Gives Books Clean Bill of Health

Fannie Mae said that it believes its internal accounting review is finally over, and that its anticipated restatement will be much less than its previous $2.4 billion estimates.

The home mortgage giant says that it now expects to be able to complete the restatement of its 2004 earnings by the end of this year. The company hasn't submitted a filing since late 2004.

"We are committed to devoting all resources necessary to complete the restatement as expeditiously as possible," Fannie Mae said in its filing with the SEC. "However, because many of the activities are sequential in nature, accelerating the completion of the restatement is difficult."

The Securities and Exchange Commission ordered the company to restate earnings back to 2001 and the Justice Department has been pursuing a criminal investigation, which remains open. Fannie Mae has also said that it expects an upcoming internal report to show that its financial controls remained insufficient as recently as the end of last year.

Fannie Mae also recently agreed to temporarily cap its mortgage holdings at $727 billion, though in the filing, it said that it might request a rise in that ceiling early next year.

Previously on WebCPA:

OFHEO Head: Freddie, Fannie Mae Can Boost Mortgage Marts (July 6, 2006)

Fannie Mae Execs Face Senate (June 16, 2006)

Fannie Mae to Pay $400M to Settle Misadventures in Accounting (May 24, 2006)

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