WSJ on Federal Home Loan Banks
The Wall Street Journal wrote "Money-Fund Overhaul Gives Federal Home Loan Banks New Prominence. The article says, "The Federal Home Loan Banks are emerging as one of the unexpected beneficiaries of last year's money-market fund overhaul, lending fresh support to a U.S. mortgage market in flux as interest rates creep higher. Money funds that invest in government debt are fueling a rise in debt issuance by the FHLBs, independently chartered financial institutions created by Congress 80 years ago to bolster U.S. housing finance. The increase is a boon to FHLB member banks like J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co., which borrow from the FHLBs for a range of needs including to fund mortgage lending, and is the latest ripple from a series of regulatory changes at the heart of financial markets." It adds, "The home loan banks' outstanding debt rose nearly 10% from a year earlier in 2016, finishing the year at $989.3 billion, its highest level since 2009. About 30% of their debt is now floating-rate debt, the most since at least 2002, and a nod to growing money-market fund appetite for short-term government debt." In other news, State Street, in its "Fourth Quarter Earnings release, says, "Management fees decreased from the third-quarter of 2016, primarily due to the impact of the stronger U.S. dollar and cash outflows, partially offset by ETF inflows. Compared to the fourth-quarter of 2015, management fees increased primarily due to an estimated $64 million from the acquired GEAM business, lower money market fee waivers, higher global equity markets, and ETF inflows, partially offset by the stronger U.S. dollar and cash outflows."
