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"Relied on leverage as a hedge fund"

Former U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow:
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have relied on leverage to fund their businesses in the same fashion as a hedge fund
The government-chartered companies, which grew to account for almost half of the $12 trillion in U.S. mortgages, were able to borrow at cheap rates because of an implicit federal guarantee
July 11 2008 Bloomberg

Snow served at the Treasury from February 2003 to June 2006
US Treasury Secretary John Snow has broken with the long tradition of backing a strong dollar, hinting that the boost to exports from a weaker greenback is a welcome change. BBC Monday, 12 May, 2003

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac make money by borrowing in the bond market and reinvesting the proceeds in higher-yielding mortgages and securities backed by home loans.

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