Crane Data wrote in its July 20 News that "BlackRock Makes The Case Against Floating the Net Asset Value". But we hadn't included a link to the full piece since the paper wasn't available online at that time. BlackRock has now posted the full 4-page "ViewPoint: Money Market Mutual Funds, The Case Against Floating the Net Asset Value" white paper. The company had sent this out to clients earlier in July, and encouraged investors to send letters to Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner and SEC Chair Mary Shapiro objecting to the possibility of a floating NAV money fund. The BlackRock article asks, "What changes, if any, should be made to reduce risk while maintaining the integrity of the product? The SEC Money Market Reform rules, effective in May 2010, together with the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, have already gone a long way toward addressing some of the issues, but additional proposals remain on the table. Among them is a recommendation that money market funds -- known and appreciated for their stable net asset value (NAV) -- assume a floating NAV structure. In this paper, we make the case that such a change would not simply alter the nature of a single investment vehicle, but would have far-reaching implications and negative consequences for the entire financial system." See also, WSJ's "Money Funds Turn to European Bank Debt".
