With more than $2.1 trillion outstanding, the Ginnie Mae mortgage-backed security (MBS) is one of the largest fixed-income products in the world. The Ginnie Mae MBS is the only mortgage-backed securities program backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government and is the source of capital for more first-time homeowners and affordable rental choices than any other MBS in America. Tasked with such an important responsibility that touches the lives of millions of families, Ginnie Mae must sustain the MBS program’s value with a consistent and efficient investment in technology and business process design.
In the final quarter of the 2020 fiscal year, Ginnie Mae concluded important technology acquisitions that orient its business platform for a faster and more secure digital future that protects the taxpayer and creates more opportunities for consumers in the government mortgage market.
With assistance from the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer at HUD and the General Service Administration, Ginnie Mae awarded two long-term technology service contracts to companies that have extensive track records of success.
Ginnie Mae closed on a ten-year IT Infrastructure Dedicated Cloud Migration contract with Deloitte, who partnered with AWS, JHC Technology and Bank NY Mellon. This new contract will enable consolidation of legacy platforms, improve availability, and provide reliable, efficient, and high-quality services using cloud-native solutions. This contract will also provide a more modernized and centrally managed infrastructure platform integrated with leading-edge cloud services, enhanced security, development, security and operations (DevSecOps), monitoring, and service delivery across the entire Ginnie Mae application portfolio. The DevSecOps methodology and discipline facilitates agility, efficiency and enhanced security and operational capabilities throughout the software development lifecycle.
Because of this contract, Ginnie Mae stakeholders can expect the company to continue its evolution into a Cloud Center of Excellence, a business posture that enables innovation in the organization to sustain and improve a reliable government mortgage market that works for consumers and protects taxpayers.
The acquisition of a five-year general licensing contract with MicroTech, a minority-owned small business, will also help Ginnie Mae’s modernization program by strengthening data services and current and evolving IT requirements in all operational environments. The new contract consolidates many licenses that were previously spread across other procurements and better positions Ginnie Mae to keep pace with the growing MBS market and evolving requirements.
These agreements follow closely after the agency’s launch of its Digital Collateral Initiative, one of the most important program changes in recent years. Announced in July after extensive consultation with Issuers, document custodians, and industry groups, the Digital Collateral policy positions Ginnie Mae to meet emerging borrower demands upon Issuers for a more convenient and transparent closing experience. Before the COVID-19 National Emergency pushed many businesses to develop light- or no-touch processes, the mortgage industry was on a path to transition away from traditional wet-ink paper closings, and toward the technology necessary to support digital mortgage closings. Since this policy announcement, Ginnie Mae has received more than one dozen applications for participation and has been evaluating potential Issuers for inclusion in the pilot program. Issuers that are accepted will securitize loans exclusively with digital loan instruments, a milestone expected by end of the calendar year.
Ginnie Mae is working to transform important facets of its business for an expanded and more opportunistic digital future that is better for Issuers, consumers and taxpayers. The investments and policy enhancements made in 2020 are proof of that commitment.