Ambac slashes dividend, suspends structured finance

Bond insurer Ambac Financial Group Inc said on Friday it is cutting its dividend to a penny a share, the second dividend cut this year, and does not plan to write new structured finance insurance for six months.

Suspending the writing of structured finance insurance should free up about $600 million of capital, Ambac said.

The insurer also said it will no longer enter guarantee credits using default swaps.