Freddie Mac Names New CFO

Freddie Mac headquarters. Image courtesy of Freddie Mac

Freddie Mac has tapped Christian M. Lown to serve as executive vice president & CFO, effective June 15, as the mortgage behemoth prepares to exit conservatorship. Lown, who was previously executive vice president & CFO at Navient Corp., succeeds Donald F. Kish, who has served as Freddie Mac’s interim CFO since December of last year.

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At Navient, a servicer of federal and student loans, Lown was responsible for functions such as accounting, corporate development, financial planning and analysis, investor relations and treasury. Lown joined Navient in 2017 from Morgan Stanley, where he co-led the Global FinTech and North America Banks and Diversified Finance investment banking practices as managing director, Financial Institutions Group.

Lown earned an MBA from The University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business Administration after graduating from Lynchburg College. In a statement, Freddie Mac Chief Executive David Brickman cited Lown’s track record as a CFO and his strong background in the debt and equity capital markets and in mergers and acquisitions.

Exit plan

Kish took charge as interim CFO at Freddie Mac following the resignation of James Mackey, who had served as finance chief for six years. He will remain at the government-sponsored enterprise as senior vice president, corporate controller & principal accounting officer.

Freddie Mac, along with Fannie Mae, was placed into conservatorship by the U.S. Treasury in September 2008. The two agencies have since repaid the $191 billion government bailout they received during the financial crisis, in addition to nearly $100 billion more. In September 2019, the Treasury released a plan to reform the national housing system and privatize Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, bringing the mortgage buyers out of government conservatorship.