The company named Martin F. Wood, who previously was the international business development leader for Genworth Financial's mortgage insurance division, as its senior vice president of international business development.

Curt Culver, president and chief executive officer of MGIC, told NMN the reasons the company has decided that now is the right time to revisit and enter international markets include:

• Credit enhancement that has become more global in nature and is an area the company excels in.
• There has been more interest from prospective global partners.
• There has been more standardization of international mortgage and securitization markets to the point where he is "not as concerned about adverse section."
• Basel II international credit risk weighting standards are creating more business opportunities.

Mr. Culver said these factors, combined with a longtime, continuing need for "the expansion of housing across the globe" are collectively what have made this the right time for MGIC to become more of an international player and focus on long-term strategies in that area.

He would not comment on where or when MGIC might expand internationally but said he was fairly certain the company would be involved in "a number of opportunities in the short term" and "even more so in the long term."

The only international business MGIC has been involved in recently has been in Bermuda, Mr. Culver said. Many years in the past, the company had a business in Australia that it sold and another U.S. mortgage insurer, PMI, later owned, he said.

Mr. Culver said MGIC left the Australian market at that time because it made more sense for his company in particular to concentrate on domestic opportunities.