MBIA Swings to $2.3B Loss

Beleaguered bond insurer MBIA (MBI Quote) posted a net loss of $2.3 billion in its fourth-quarter, according to its earnings report on Thursday.

The Armonk, N.Y.-based bond insurer has been under pressure from rating agencies to increase its capital reserves to ensure that it has sufficient means to backstop potential losses on the debt that it insures, or be stripped of its vaunted triple-A rating. Thursday's results did not exactly present a bullish case for why it is worthy of the stamp.

MBIA's net loss equates to a loss of $18.61 a share, compared with a net income of $181 million, or $1.32 a share during the same period last year. ...