"Fidelity shines in slow lane" writes the Sunday Boston Globe. The article, subtitled "Firm's money market funds capitalize on investor worries and rivals' missteps to take the lead," says, "Some of Fidelity Investments' fastest growing mutual funds aren't managed in Boston's financial district, but rather in an airy trading room in an unassuming office park an hour away. This is where Fidelity runs its mammoth money market mutual funds business, which after years of being a quiet source of strength and profits for the investment company, emerged as a star during the financial crisis of the past year. In that time, Fidelity's money market mutual funds managed to avoid losses that felled other substantial competitors and gained an even more dominant share of the market while accounting for a sizable portion of the company's overall growth. And during a recent period when yields in many money market funds have hovered near zero, some of Fidelity's most prominent funds have paid significantly higher rates. Sometimes relegated to the backwater of the mutual fund industry, the money market business at Fidelity is accorded prominent status." The Globe quotes Charles S. Morrison II, president of the company's Money Market Group, "This is a franchise business for Fidelity." The piece also quotes Peter Crane, president of Crane Data, "Fidelity had zero loss events in protecting their shareholders. It's just astounding. Fidelity has been both good and lucky in the last couple years." It adds, "Fidelity executives bristle at the idea luck had anything to do with the company's success. It is a result of the company's investment in the business -- with nearly 70 researchers devoted to money market funds -- and the skill of those people."
