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Ford Shuts Fairlane Credit
FORD SHUTS FAIRLANE CREDIT
In another retrenchment move, Ford Credit announced Thursday it would
close its high-risk-loan subsidiary, Fairlane Credit, of Colorado Springs,
Colo. The surprise move will not pull Ford Credit, the world's largest
consumer lender, out of so-called "subprime" vehicle loans, but Ford plans
to scale back on the extent of such loans, whose delinquency rates have
risen since zero-percent loans on new vehicles became popular after the
Sept. 11 terrorists attacks. Ford Credit and its new-vehicle loan arm,
PRIMUS Financial, of Franklin, TN, are taking over Fairlane's $2.5 billion
loan portfolio. Ford Credit boasts a $149 billion portfolio and underwent
a top executive shuffle last December when Donald A. Winkler was fired as
CEO as the financial institution amassed a rare fourth-quarter loss of
$297 million. His replacement, 29-year Ford Motor Co. veteran Greg C.
Smith, is implementing a policy of concentrating on financing of Ford's
three core brands plus those based overseas - Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land
Rover, Mazda and Volvo. Fairlane Credit, founded in 1997, is headed by
Ford Credit veteran Jerry Heimlicher. Its 360 employees are being offered
jobs with Ford Credit and its subsidiaries or early retirement packages.
Ford Credit was founded in 1959 and has more than 10 million customers and
20,000 employees in 38 countries. It financed sales and leases of in
excess of 5.5 million vehicles last year - a single-company record. Ford
Credit's world headquarters is next door to the Ford Motor Co. "glass
house" headquarters in Dearborn, Mich. -Mac Gordon
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