U.S. blocks exit pay of Fannie, Freddie chiefs

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s regulator is blocking as much as $24 million in “golden parachute” severance payments to the companies’ ousted chief executives.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency notified former Fannie chief Daniel H. Mudd and former Freddie chief Richard F. Syron that they would not receive the exit pay called for in their employment contracts now that the companies are under federal control, the regulator said on its website.

Estimates last week put Syron’s exit pay at $12 million to $14 million and Mudd’s at $7 million to $9 million.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.) postponed a hearing today on the government’s takeover of the two mortgage financing giants.