As attention is focused on the United States we take a look at the U.K. where mortgage lenders have a crisis. Bradford & Bingley, the former building society, raised more than £4bn selling off two of its most solid mortgage books. Paragon, the specialist buy-to-let mortgage supplier, announced that it will attempt to repair its balance sheet with a £280m rights issue.
Shares in Paragon crashed 40% after it was forced to arrange a standby emergency funding package worth £280m with UBS.

Paragon has lost more than 80% of its value this year and is now worth just £140m.