"Fannie Mae reported a fourth quarter 2017 net loss of $6.5 billion," the US-government sponsored home mortgage lender said in a financial report. "To eliminate the company’s net worth deficit, the company expects the [US] Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) will submit a request to Treasury on the company’s behalf for $3.7 billion."
The company incurred an expense of nearly $9.9 billion because credits on its balance sheet lost significant value as a result of President Donald Trump’s corporate tax cuts, the report said.
In 2008, the US Treasury Department was authorized to purchase up to $100 billion in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac stock amid the financial collapse. Then-US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said the move was necessary because the institutions were critical for the United States to turn the corner on the housing crisis.
According to the US-based media reports, many US companies reported similarly large accounting charges because of the GOP's tax reform, which took effect January 1.
