DETROIT — The Ally Financial Board of Directors announced today it has declared a quarterly dividend payment on certain outstanding preferred stock issued to the U.S. Department of Treasury.

A quarterly dividend payment was declared on Ally's Fixed Rate Cumulative Mandatorily Convertible Preferred Stock, Series F-2, of approximately $257 million, or $1.125 per share. The dividends were declared on Oct. 1 and are payable Nov. 15.

A quarterly dividend payment was also declared on Ally's Fixed Rate Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series G.

This dividend totals about $45 million, or $17.31 per share. It is payable to shareholders of record as of Nov. 1.

This series of preferred stock was issued to investors in connection with the company's private exchange and cash tender offers, which were completed in December 2008.

GMAC-SAIC Completes Financial Bond Issuance

In other news, GMAC-SAIC Automotive Finance Co. recently announced it has completed what it is calling "the first-ever financial bond issuance by an auto finance company in China."

The company issued a RMB 1.5 billion, three-year, floating rate financial bond.

The interest rate for the initial year was set at 3 percent. The bond will pay interest on an annual basis and the interest rate will be reset annually at 75 basis points above the People's Bank of China one-year deposit rate.

"We are pleased to continue our tradition of innovation in China's capital markets with the completion of this transaction," said Rick Livingood, general manager of GMAC-SAIC.

"In January 2008, we issued China's first auto asset-backed securitization, and GMAC-SAIC is now the first-ever auto finance company to issue a financial bond. This issuance diversifies our access to funding and liquidity, which further strengths our ability to meet the needs of customers in this highly competitive marketplace," he continued.

Before issuing the bond, GMAC-SAIC received regulatory approval from the PBOC and the China Banking Regulatory Commission. It is rated triple-A by Dagong Global Credit Rating Co. Ltd. and is guaranteed by the Bank of China.

The bond was issued in China's National Interbank Market, which provided access to a broad investor audience within the country, according to management.

"As the largest auto finance company in China, we continue to partner with the government and our regulators to pioneer the country's capital markets," said Benjamin Zhang, deputy general manager of GMAC-SAIC.

"Additionally, our strong relationships with our partner banks in China were critical to ensuring the successful execution of this transaction," he concluded.

Ally Financial Takes Home Auto Finance Award

Finally, Ally Financial revealed it received the 2010 Auto Finance Excellence Award for its contributions to the auto finance industry.

The award was handed out at the recent Auto Finance Summit by Auto Finance News.

Ally noted it was cited for "completing several remarkable achievements in a very short time."

"These included rebranding the company, on-boarding thousands of Chrysler dealers for wholesale and retail credit lines, while supporting its GM dealer clients and diversifying its customer base as a preferred source of financing for Saab, Fiat and Thor Industries RVs," according to officials.