Lewis Ranieri – or "Lewie" as he is better known to readers of Michael Lewis’s ‘Liar’s Poker’ – was not only the godfather of securitisation, but also one of the most colourful figures of 1980s high finance.

As The Wall Street Journal reports today, Ranieri is "daring to revisit the most infamous sector of the mortgage market - sub-prime lending". The former Salomon Brothers bond trader believes that now is the time for non-traditional lenders, such as his Shellpoint Partners, which he founded with two partners, to enter the market http://bit.ly/iSnRLa.