GMAC’s bid for rescue falters

NEW YORK —  GMAC Financial Services, the financing arm of General Motors Corp., said Wednesday that its bid to become a bank holding company and qualify for aid under the government’s $700-billion bank rescue plan might be in danger because it hadn’t raised the capital needed to meet federal requirements.

One analyst said that if GMAC didn’t get the help it needed, it might need to close its home mortgage division to prevent the entire company from filing for bankruptcy protection.

It wasn’t clear what effect that would have on GMAC’s owners, General Motors and private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management.

GM, which owns a 49% stake in GMAC, did not include any possible federal aid to GMAC in the restructuring plan that the automaker submitted to Congress in an effort to get its own government loans, GM spokeswoman Renee Rashid-Merem said.

“Our plan is based on GM’s operations,” she said.

GMAC, which provides both mortgage and car loans, is trying to reduce its debt and raise $30 billion in capital that regulators are requiring before it can become a bank holding company and possibly get access to government assistance.

It warned that a failure to convert to a bank holding company would have a “material adverse effect” on its business.

The New York finance company is raising capital by offering to exchange debt for cash, notes or preferred stock. But it said Wednesday that it had raised only about $8.3 billion through the offers so far.

In a last-ditch effort, GMAC extended the early delivery time under its offers by three days, to Friday. It was the third time that the company had extended the deadline.

If GMAC were to become a bank holding company, it could potentially be eligible for part of the government’s $700-billion rescue package for the financial sector.

GMAC has said that the aid would give it the cash needed to make loans to consumers who want to buy a car or truck but have been unable to get affordable financing.