Countrywide Financial was co-founded by Angelo Mazilo and by the early 2000s it became the largest home loan provider in the United States. It was also considered the leading provider of home loans to minorities in the United States because of its lower barriers to homeownership for low-income people. The company was well known for the services it offered to its clients such as: loan closing, capital market, insurance and banking services. In the 2000s, the main factor that contributed to the company's reputation and growth was the higher margin on home equity and subprime loans. Countrywide Financial was a leading provider of liar loans due to its riskier customers who had to pay higher fees and interest rates. Subprime loans mean lending to borrowers, people who would not qualify for a traditional loan, at a rate higher than prime. . In other words, subprime loans are offered to high-risk customers who are not eligible for conventional loans. For example, if a borrower has a credit score below 620, they are classified as low-income. Many critics considered subprime lending to be the main key to the 2008-2009 financial crisis. The country has been criticized for its negligence in providing very risky loans to people who could not afford them, in order to make quick profits. loans. According to Datamonitor (2008, p. 5), one of the company's strengths was its "diversified offerings" and "strong financial performance." The group's banking sector offered a diversified product portfolio and catered to a diverse clientele. segments operated through Countrywide Bank and Countrywide Warehouse Loans (CWL). Countrywide Bank's product offering included residential mortgages...... middle of paper ......e Criminal Justice, accessed December 20 and available at: http://www.corporateccrimereporter.com /news/200/eileen-Foster-Countrywide-and-the-failure-of-corporate-criminal-justice/USDepartment of Labor (September 12, 2011), accessed December 23, 2013 and available at: http://corporateccrimereporter.com /documents/fosterosha.pdf United States v. Countrywide Financial Corp. et al. Summary of complaint, accessed December 23, 2013 and available at: http://www.justice.gov/crt/about/hce/documents/countrywide_complaint_overview.pdf, p. 1-2Zacks (July 9, 2012) Countrywide's Fraudulent VIP Program - Analyst Blog, accessed December 23, 2013 and available at: http://www.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/zacks/countrywidesfraudulentvipprogram-analystblog.aspxUnknown, Eileen Foster, retrieved on December 23, 2013 and available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eileen_Foster