Daily Links Archives: March, 2024
DWS Government MMFs File Update
A Prospectus Supplement filing for DWS Government & Agency Securities Portfolio, DWS Government Money Market Series, DWS Treasury Portfolio and DWS Government Money Market VIP recently updated its language to reflect the new money fund rules. It explains, "On April 2, 2024, certain changes to the federal regulations that govern money market funds are effective and the following changes to each fund's prospectus will be effective. The following information replaces existing similar disclosure contained in the 'PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES' section of the 'FUND DETAILS' section of each fund's prospectus(es). The fund maintains certain minimum liquidity standards such that: - the fund may not purchase a security other than a security offering daily liquidity if, immediately after purchase, the fund would have invested less than 25% of its total assets in securities offering daily liquidity (includes securities that mature or are subject to demand within one business day, cash or direct US government obligations); - (For DWS Government & Agency Securities Portfolio, DWS Government Money Market Series and DWS Government Money Market VIP): the fund may not purchase a security other than a security offering weekly liquidity if, immediately after purchase, the fund would have invested less than 50% of its total assets in securities offering weekly liquidity (includes securities that mature or are subject to demand within five business days, cash, direct US government obligations and government agency discount notes with remaining maturities of 60 days or less); - (For DWS Treasury Portfolio): the fund may not purchase a security other than a security offering weekly liquidity if, immediately after purchase, the fund would have invested less than 50% of its total assets in securities offering weekly liquidity (includes securities that mature or are subject to demand within five business days, cash, direct US government obligations); and - the fund may not purchase an illiquid security if, immediately after purchase, the fund would have invested more than 5% of its total assets in illiquid securities (securities that cannot be sold or disposed of in the ordinary course of business within seven days at approximately the market value ascribed to them by the fund)." It adds, "For DWS Government & Agency Securities Portfolio and DWS Treasury Portfolio only, the following language is deleted under 'PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES' section of the 'FUND DETAILS' section of each fund's prospectus(es). In July 2023, changes to the federal regulations that govern money market funds, including government money market funds like the fund, were adopted. The changes will be effective at various times in 2023 and 2024. Among the changes are: (i) an increase in the minimum investment percentages in securities offering daily and weekly liquidity and (ii) removal of the ability to temporarily suspend (gate) redemptions. The following disclosure replaces similar disclosure under the 'OTHER POLICIES AND RISKS' or 'OTHER POLICIES' section in the 'FUND DETAILS' section of each fund's prospectus(es). - While the fund does not intend to impose a liquidity fee in connection with the implementation of federal regulations relating to money market funds, the fund may elect to do so in the future."
BNY Mellon and GLMX In Repo Deal
A press release titled, "BNY Mellon and GLMX collaborate to connect buy-side clients at point of execution to Triparty" tells us, "BNY Mellon (BK) and GLMX announced today a new integration allowing buy-side clients to direct repo trades at point of execution to BNY Mellon's Triparty platform. This integration follows growing demand from clients seeking to expand their BNY Mellon Triparty usage beyond Uncleared Margin segregation into repo financing, helping them to capture more benefits from being on the world's largest collateral platform." Ted Leveroni, Head of Margin Services for BNY Mellon, comments, "This integration with GLMX re-enforces our commitment to enhance the user experience for our growing buy-side client base on Triparty.... In our 240th year of business, we are proud to utilize our expertise to form relationships that provide innovative solutions and capabilities for our clients." GLMX CEO Glenn Havlicek says, "Building interoperability with BNY Mellon creates a seamless workflow from negotiation and execution to settlement for our global clients. This step is consistent with GLMX's objective of providing a single access point which connects the global money market to deep liquidity pools, regardless of trade structure, settlement type or trading instrument." The release adds, "This integration connects BNY Mellon, the world's largest collateral manager with a $5.25 trillion Triparty liquidity pool, into GLMX's $2 trillion network. It also addresses the increasing market demand for buy-side clients looking for a single ecosystem to manage both their collateral and liquidity requirements."
Crane 100 MF Index Stays at 5.14%
Money fund yields stayed at 5.14% on average (as measured by our Crane 100 Money Fund Index) in the week ended March 22, after rising 1 bp the week prior. Our Crane 100 is an average of 7-day yields for the 100 largest taxable money funds. Yields were 5.17% on 1/31/24, 5.20% on 12/31/23 and 11/30, 5.19% on 10/31, 5.17% on 9/30, 5.16% on 8/31, 5.09% on July 31, 4.94% on June 30, 4.61% on March 31 and 4.05% on 12/31/22. The vast majority of money market fund assets now yield 5.0% or higher. Assets of money market funds fell by $19.9 billion last week to $6.465 trillion according to Crane Data's Money Fund Intelligence Daily. Weighted average maturities were unchanged last week. The broader Crane Money Fund Average, which includes all taxable funds tracked by Crane Data (currently 712), shows a 7-day yield of 5.04%, unchanged in the week through Friday. Prime Inst MFs were unchanged at 5.24% in the latest week. Government Inst MFs were unchanged at 5.11%. Treasury Inst MFs were unchanged at 5.07%. Treasury Retail MFs currently yield 4.86%, Government Retail MFs yield 4.83%, and Prime Retail MFs yield 5.05%, Tax-exempt MF 7-day yields were down 3 bps at 3.00%. According to Monday's Money Fund Intelligence Daily, with data as of Friday (3/22), 49 money funds (out of 833 total) yield under 3.0% with $21.8 billion in assets, or 0.3%; 76 funds yield between 3.00% and 3.99% ($107.5 billion, or 1.7%), 247 funds yield between 4.0% and 4.99% ($1.095 trillion, or 16.9%) and 461 funds now yield 5.0% or more ($5.241 trillion, or 81.1%). Our Brokerage Sweep Intelligence Index, an average of FDIC-insured cash options from major brokerages, was unchanged at 0.61%. The latest Brokerage Sweep Intelligence, with data as of Mar. 22, shows that there was no changes over the past week. Three of the 11 major brokerages tracked by our BSI still offer rates of 0.01% for balances of $100K (and lower tiers). These include: E*Trade, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley.
Columbia Ultra Short Celebrates 20th
A press release titled, "Columbia Ultra Short Term Bond Fund Celebrates 20-Year Anniversary" tells us, "Columbia Threadneedle Investments ... announced that the Columbia Ultra Short Term Bond Fund is celebrating its 20-year anniversary. Since inception, the fund has generated consistent long-term performance and provided daily NAV stability with minimal total return volatility. Ron Stahl, head of Columbia Threadneedle's $8.4 billion short duration and stable value team, has been co-portfolio manager of the fund since 2015, while Gregory Liechty has been co-manager since 2016. They have a long tenure at the firm, having worked together for 15 years." It says, "The team seeks to capitalize on pricing anomalies at the short end of the yield curve using high quality issues and diverse fixed income assets consistent with preserving capital, diversifying risk and meeting cash flow needs. Stahl and Liechty leverage the firm's more than 80 credit analysts globally who have provided the research intensity needed to deliver attractive returns in this strategy for two decades. The team helps inform bottom-up security selection, with a focus on credits that stand to benefit from multiple economic outcomes." Stahl comments, "While cash can offer relative stability and capital preservation, bonds have the potential for price appreciation while cash does not.... Columbia Ultra Short Term Bond Fund offers a potentially attractive alternative for investors who seek liquidity and capital preservation by providing exposure to higher-yielding, high-quality bonds at the short end of the curve with low volatility relative to its benchmark."
MMFs Plunge on March 15 Corp Taxes
Money market mutual fund assets decreased by $61.9 billion the past week, which included the March 15 quarterly corporate tax date, to $6.047 trillion, after jumping $31.3 billion the previous week, according to ICI's latest weekly "Money Market Fund Assets" report. MMF assets are up by $160 billion, or 3.4%, year-to-date in 2024 (through 3/20/24), with Institutional MMFs up $51 billion, or 1.7% and Retail MMFs up $110 billion, or 6.5%. Over the past 52 weeks, money funds have risen a massive $914 billion, or 18.2%, with Retail MMFs rising by $538 billion (29.1%) and Inst MMFs rising by $377 billion (11.9%). The weekly release says, "Total money market fund assets decreased by $61.90 billion to $6.05 trillion for the week ended Wednesday, March 20, the Investment Company Institute reported.... Among taxable money market funds, government funds decreased by $66.09 billion and prime funds increased by $3.27 billion. Tax-exempt money market funds increased by $913 million." ICI's stats show Institutional MMFs falling $71.1 billion and Retail MMFs rising $9.2 billion in the latest week. Total Government MMF assets, including Treasury funds, were $4.906 trillion (81.1% of all money funds), while Total Prime MMFs were $1.019 trillion (16.9%). Tax Exempt MMFs totaled $121.2 billion (2.0%). ICI explains, "Assets of retail money market funds increased by $9.21 billion to $2.40 trillion. Among retail funds, government money market fund assets increased by $4.51 billion to $1.54 trillion, prime money market fund assets increased by $4.11 billion to $748.27 billion, and tax-exempt fund assets increased by $595 million to $110.09 billion." Retail assets account for over a third of total assets, or 39.7%, and Government Retail assets make up 64.2% of all Retail MMFs. They add, "Assets of institutional money market funds decreased by $71.11 billion to $3.65 trillion. Among institutional funds, government money market fund assets decreased by $70.60 billion to $3.36 trillion, prime money market fund assets decreased by $836 million to $271.17 billion, and tax-exempt fund assets increased by $318 million to $11.10 billion." Institutional assets accounted for 60.3% of all MMF assets, with Government Institutional assets making up 92.3% of all institutional MMF totals. According to Crane Data's separate Money Fund Intelligence Daily series, money fund assets have fallen by $561 million in March (through 3/20) to $6.466 trillion (they were a record $6.519 trillion on 3/12). Assets rose $72.1 billion in February, $93.9 billion in January, $32.7 billion in December and $226.4 billion in November. MMF totals fell by $31.9 billion in October. They rose $93.9 billion in September, $98.3 billion in August and $34.7 billion in July. Note that ICI's asset totals don't include a number of funds tracked by the SEC and Crane Data, so they're over $400 billion lower than Crane's asset series.
ICD: Clients Concerned About Banks
ICD published the release, "ICD 2024 Client Survey Shows Companies Grappling with Counterparty Concentration," which tells us, "A year out from the spectacular failure of Silicon Valley Bank, turmoil in the banking sector still plagues corporations in the Americas and EMEA, according to a newly released survey of 157 treasury professionals responding to the annual client survey of ICD, an institutional investment technology provider. According to the 2024 ICD Client Survey, which closed in February, 80% of respondents say they are highly or moderately concerned with bank failures, while 74% say they are concerned with counterparty concentration risk. Of the 61% who say they have changed the way they have managed counterparty risk since March 2023: 37% - Changed the way or frequency of monitoring risk; 21% - Updated investment policy restrictions; 18% - Changed their investment strategy; 17% - Added or removed investment products to their available mix." ICD CEO Tory Hazard comments, "The banking turmoil of last March has had a lasting effect on corporates, who remain concerned about the banking sector." The release continues, "According to ICD's client survey, only 30% of respondents in the Americas say they are investing in or planning on investing in Demand/Bank Deposits, down from 49% in 2023, while 90% of all respondents say they are increasing or maintaining investments in money market funds." Hazard states, "We've worked with our clients over the past year to introduce an automated solution to the arduous, manual process of collecting, aggregating and monitoring positions from bank deposits, direct investments and underlying holdings from fund and separately managed accounts. Our cloud solution for portfolio analytics leverages AI to create a single data set of our clients' entire investment portfolio so they can effectively manage counterparty risk <b:>`_."
Weekly Money Fund Portfolio Holdings
Crane Data published its latest Weekly Money Fund Portfolio Holdings statistics Tuesday, which track a shifting subset of our monthly Portfolio Holdings collection. The most recent cut (with data as of March 15) includes Holdings information from 68 money funds (up 6 from two weeks ago), or $3.143 trillion (up from $2.778 trillion) of the $6.485 trillion in total money fund assets (or 48.5%) tracked by Crane Data. (Our Weekly MFPH are e-mail only and aren't available on the website. See our latest Monthly Money Fund Portfolio Holdings here.) Our latest Weekly MFPH Composition summary shows Government assets dominating the holdings list with Treasuries totaling $1.468 trillion (up from $1.293 trillion two weeks ago), or 46.7%; Repurchase Agreements (Repo) totaling $1.158 trillion (up from $980.8 billion two weeks ago), or 36.9%, and Government Agency securities totaling $268.4 billion (up from $236.2 billion), or 8.5%. Commercial Paper (CP) totaled $77.0 billion (down from two weeks ago at $91.3 billion), or 2.5%. Certificates of Deposit (CDs) totaled $71.6 billion (down from $75.9 billion two weeks ago), or 2.3%. The Other category accounted for $68.6 billion or 2.2%, while VRDNs accounted for $30.8 billion, or 1.0%. The Ten Largest Issuers in our Weekly Holdings product include: the US Treasury with $1.468 trillion (46.7% of total holdings), Fixed Income Clearing Corp with $250.5B (8.0%), Federal Home Loan Bank with $207.3B (6.6%), the Federal Reserve Bank of New York with $125.0 billion (4.0%), RBC with $77.8B (2.5%), BNP Paribas with $77.2B (2.5%), JP Morgan with $76.4B (2.4%), Citi with $63.2B (2.0%), Federal Farm Credit Bank with $57.4B (1.8%) and Barclays PLC with $54.7B (1.7%). The Ten Largest Funds tracked in our latest Weekly include: JPMorgan US Govt MM ($263.1B), Goldman Sachs FS Govt ($228.3B), Fidelity Inv MM: Govt Port ($205.7B), JPMorgan 100% US Treas MMkt ($197.1B), State Street Inst US Govt ($154.7B), BlackRock Lq FedFund ($145.0B), Morgan Stanley Inst Liq Govt ($139.7B), Fidelity Inv MM: MM Port ($128.7B), Allspring Govt MM ($114.0B) and Dreyfus Govt Cash Mgmt ($111.5B). (Let us know if you'd like to see our latest domestic U.S. and/or "offshore" Weekly Portfolio Holdings collection and summary.)
Crane 100 Inches Back Up to 5.14%
Money fund yields inched up by one basis point to 5.14% on average (as measured by our Crane 100 Money Fund Index) in the week ended March 15, after falling 1 bp the week prior. Our Crane 100 is an average of 7-day yields for the 100 largest taxable money funds. Yields were 5.17% on 1/31/24, 5.20% on 12/31/23 and 11/30, 5.19% on 10/31, 5.17% on 9/30, 5.16% on 8/31, 5.09% on July 31, 4.94% on June 30, 4.61% on March 31 and 4.05% on 12/31/22. The vast majority of money market fund assets now yield 5.0% or higher. Assets of money market funds rose by $3.3 billion last week to $6.485 trillion according to Crane Data's Money Fund Intelligence Daily. Weighted average maturities were unchanged last week. The broader Crane Money Fund Average, which includes all taxable funds tracked by Crane Data (currently 712), shows a 7-day yield of 5.04%, up 1 bp in the week through Friday. Prime Inst MFs were unchanged at 5.24% in the latest week. Government Inst MFs were up 1 bp at 5.11%. Treasury Inst MFs were up 1 bp at 5.07%. Treasury Retail MFs currently yield 4.86%, Government Retail MFs yield 4.83%, and Prime Retail MFs yield 5.05%, Tax-exempt MF 7-day yields were unchanged at 3.02%. According to Monday's Money Fund Intelligence Daily, with data as of Friday (3/15), 45 money funds (out of 833 total) yield under 3.0% with $16.2 billion in assets, or 0.3%; 80 funds yield between 3.00% and 3.99% ($113.3 billion, or 1.7%), 247 funds yield between 4.0% and 4.99% ($1.111 trillion, or 17.1%) and 461 funds now yield 5.0% or more ($5.245 trillion, or 80.9%). Our Brokerage Sweep Intelligence Index, an average of FDIC-insured cash options from major brokerages, was unchanged at 0.61%. The latest Brokerage Sweep Intelligence, with data as of Mar. 15, shows that there was no changes over the past week. Three of the 11 major brokerages tracked by our BSI still offer rates of 0.01% for balances of $100K (and lower tiers). These include: E*Trade, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley.
MFs in Retirement Plans Jump to $758B
The Investment Company Institute published a brief entitled, "Retirement Assets Total $38.4 Trillion in Fourth Quarter 2023." It includes data tables showing that money market funds held in retirement accounts jumped to $758 billion (up from $722 billion) in the latest quarter, accounting for 13% of the total $5.919 trillion in money funds. MMFs represent just 6.4% of the total $11.887 trillion of mutual funds in retirement accounts. This release says, "Total US retirement assets were $38.4 trillion as of December 31, 2023, up 7.8 percent from September. Retirement assets accounted for 32 percent of all household financial assets in the United States at the end of December 2023. Assets in individual retirement accounts (IRAs) totaled $13.6 trillion at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, an increase of 7.9 percent from the end of the third quarter of 2023. Defined contribution (DC) plan assets were $10.6 trillion at the end of the fourth quarter, up 8.5 percent from September 30, 2023. Government defined benefit (DB) plans—including federal, state, and local government plans—held $8.7 trillion in assets as of the end of December 2023, an 8.0 percent increase from the end of September 2023. Private-sector DB plans held $3.2 trillion in assets at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, and annuity reserves outside of retirement accounts accounted for another $2.4 trillion." The ICI tables also show money funds accounting for $539 billion, or 10%, of the $5.820 trillion in IRA mutual fund assets and $199 billion, or 3%, of the $6.057 trillion in defined contribution plan holdings. (Money funds in 401k plans totaled $133 billion, or 3% of the $4.800 trillion of mutual funds in 401k's.)
ICI's MMF Series Breaks $6.1 Trillion
Money market mutual fund assets increased by $31.3 billion the past week to a record $6.108 trillion after jumping $18.7 billion the previous week, according to ICI's latest weekly "Money Market Fund Assets" report. MMF assets are up by $222 billion, or 4.7%, year-to-date in 2024 (through 3/13/24), with Institutional MMFs up $122 billion, or 4.0% and Retail MMFs up $100 billion, or 6.0%. Over the past 52 weeks, money funds have risen a massive $1.094 trillion, or 21.8%, with Retail MMFs rising by $544 billion (29.4%) and Inst MMFs rising by $550 billion (17.4%). The weekly release says, "Total money market fund assets increased by $31.33 billion to $6.11 trillion for the week ended Wednesday, March 13, the Investment Company Institute reported.... Among taxable money market funds, government funds increased by $34.30 billion and prime funds decreased by $3.33 billion. Tax-exempt money market funds increased by $362 million." ICI's stats show Institutional MMFs rising $23.5 billion and Retail MMFs rising $7.8 billion in the latest week. Total Government MMF assets, including Treasury funds, were $4.972 trillion (81.4% of all money funds), while Total Prime MMFs were $1.016 trillion (16.6%). Tax Exempt MMFs totaled $120.3 billion (2.0%). ICI explains, "Assets of retail money market funds increased by $7.83 billion to $2.39 trillion. Among retail funds, government money market fund assets increased by $3.49 billion to $1.54 trillion, prime money market fund assets increased by $3.92 billion to $744.16 billion, and tax-exempt fund assets increased by $414 million to $109.50 billion." Retail assets account for over a third of total assets, or 37.5%, and Government Retail assets make up 64.3% of all Retail MMFs. They add, "Assets of institutional money market funds increased by $23.50 billion to $3.72 trillion. Among institutional funds, government money market fund assets increased by $30.81 billion to $3.44 trillion, prime money market fund assets decreased by $7.25 billion to $272.00 billion, and tax-exempt fund assets decreased by $52 million to $10.79 billion." Institutional assets accounted for 62.5% of all MMF assets, with Government Institutional assets making up 92.4% of all institutional MMF totals. According to Crane Data's separate Money Fund Intelligence Daily series, money fund assets have risen by $50.0 billion in March (through 3/13) to $6.516 trillion (they were a record $6.519 trillion the previous day). Assets rose $72.1 billion in February, $93.9 billion in January, $32.7 billion in December and $226.4 billion in November. MMF totals fell by $31.9 billion in October. They rose $93.9 billion in September, $98.3 billion in August and $34.7 billion in July. Note that ICI's asset totals don't include a number of funds tracked by the SEC and Crane Data, so they're over $400 billion lower than Crane's asset series.
T. Rowe Price Examines Cash Pile
T. Rowe Price published, "Putting cash to work in 2024," which tells us, "A wall of money is hanging over U.S. financial markets -- in the form of a huge stockpile of liquidity parked in money market funds and other short term liquid accounts. Where those funds move next, and when, could be a decisive factor in the future performance of both stocks and bonds. Our bottom line conclusion is that cash seeking higher returns is likely to move into shorter term bonds, given attractive yield levels and a potential for price appreciation as yields move lower." T. Rowe continues, "Investor motives also could matter: Assets parked in money market funds to avoid the 2022–2023 stock and bond sell offs could return to risk assets, while cash shifted from bank savings accounts appears more likely to remain in money market funds as long as they maintain a yield advantage over savings accounts. Mutual funds are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. While money market funds typically seek to maintain a share price of USD 1.00, there is no guarantee they will do so." Shifting to the section, "Flows may lag rates," the piece states, "Although the past four Fed policy cycles suggest that investors could have benefited most by shifting from cash to longer term fixed income assets and stocks either before or at an interest rate peak, actual investor behavior suggests they often have been slow to move, even after Fed rate cuts started pushing money market yields lower.... [I]n each of the past three Fed cycles, money market fund assets didn't stop rising until well after the Fed had started cutting rates. In the past two cycles, these balances continued to grow even after short term rates had bottomed out." The section "Not all flows are alike," says, "Because record flows into retail and institutional money market funds were driven by a variety of factors, where and when they are likely to go next are complicated questions. Money market fund assets held in retail brokerage accounts seem more likely to move into equities, credit, and other risk assets. But many might be inclined to remain in those funds, as yields probably will still be attractive even at 3%–4% levels if inflation continues to slow and real (inflation adjusted) rates of return remain positive.... For institutional clients who fled banks to mitigate specific credit risks during the regional banking crisis in early 2023, money market funds were just one option. Many chose to invest directly in U.S. Treasury securities or limited their transfers to government money market funds. But with short term Treasury yields widely expected to move lower in 2024 as the Fed eases, money market funds could provide a yield advantage that attracts inflows from institutional investors focused on comparative returns among 'cash equivalent' investments. These varied sources of inflows across investor types suggest that at least part of today's massive stockpile of liquidity is not destined to move into risk assets, no matter how attractive they may appear to be."
Morningstar Hits Cash on the Sidelines
Morningstar recently published an article titled, "Is There Really a Historic Level of Cash on the Stock Market's Sidelines?" They state, "Heading into 2022, the federal-funds rate target was essentially zero. Money market funds, which invest in very short-term debt, had yields to match. Now, with the Fed's target rate in the range of 5.25%-5.50%, money market yields have been hovering around 5.00%. The Fed began raising interest rates in March 2022, but it wasn't until October 2022 that investors began pouring money into money market funds. Since then, more than $1.2 trillion has been shifted into these cash alternatives as yields have risen and stabilized. Not surprisingly, assets in the category have swelled to a nominal record of $6.1 trillion as of Feb. 29, 2024." The brief continues, "As $123 billion flowed into money markets in January, that fueled the argument. But flows slowed markedly in February, with just $33 billion in net new money. At this pace, 2024 money fund inflows will approach $1 trillion but fall short of 2023's record." It adds, "The reality is that as a proportion of risky assets, money markets are normal. According to Morningstar Direct, assets in money funds as a percentage of long-term assets peaked at 63% at the height of the global financial crisis in 2008, and they have averaged about 20% since 2011. At 23% of long-term assets at the end of January, US money market levels are not extraordinary, even after 2023's cascade of inflows."
MMF Yields Inch Lower to 5.13%
Money fund yields inched down by one basis point to 5.13% on average (as measured by our Crane 100 Money Fund Index) in the week ended March 8, after going unchanged the week prior. Our Crane 100 is an average of 7-day yields for the 100 largest taxable money funds. Yields were 5.17% on 1/31/24, 5.20% on 12/31/23 and 11/30, 5.19% on 10/31, 5.17% on 9/30, 5.16% on 8/31, 5.09% on July 31, 4.94% on June 30, 4.61% on March 31 and 4.05% on 12/31/22. The vast majority of money market fund assets now yield 5.0% or higher. Assets of money market funds rose by $13.9 billion last week to $6.482 trillion according to Crane Data's Money Fund Intelligence Daily. Weighted average maturities were unchanged last week. The broader Crane Money Fund Average, which includes all taxable funds tracked by Crane Data (currently 712), shows a 7-day yield of 5.03%, down 1 bp in the week through Friday. Prime Inst MFs were down 1 bp at 5.24% in the latest week. Government Inst MFs were down 1 bp at 5.10%. Treasury Inst MFs were down 1 bp at 5.06%. Treasury Retail MFs currently yield 4.85%, Government Retail MFs yield 4.83%, and Prime Retail MFs yield 5.05%, Tax-exempt MF 7-day yields were up 3 bps at 3.02%. According to Monday's Money Fund Intelligence Daily, with data as of Friday (3/8), 48 money funds (out of 833 total) yield under 3.0% with $19.5 billion in assets, or 0.3%; 77 funds yield between 3.00% and 3.99% ($108.5 billion, or 1.7%), 248 funds yield between 4.0% and 4.99% ($1.101 trillion, or 17.0%) and 460 funds now yield 5.0% or more ($5.253 trillion, or 81.0%). Our Brokerage Sweep Intelligence Index, an average of FDIC-insured cash options from major brokerages, was unchanged at 0.61%. The latest Brokerage Sweep Intelligence, with data as of Mar. 8, shows that there was no changes over the past week. Three of the 11 major brokerages tracked by our BSI still offer rates of 0.01% for balances of $100K (and lower tiers). These include: E*Trade, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley.
FDIC Quarterly Banking Profile Q4'23
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation released its latest "FDIC Quarterly Banking Profile," which says "Domestic deposits increased $186.9 billion (1.1 percent) from third quarter 2023, the first quarterly increase in the past seven quarters. Growth in time deposits led the increase in domestic deposits, while noninterest-bearing deposits declined for the seventh consecutive quarter. Estimated insured deposits (up $46.6 billion, or 0.4 percent) increased during the quarter. Reported uninsured deposits decreased during the quarter but would have increased for the first time in seven quarters had a large bank's subsidiary transactions not affected reported data. Excluding that bank from the calculations, the industry's uninsured deposits increased $92.4 billion, or 1.4 percent, in the quarter <b:>`_." It explains, "Community banks reported an increase in total deposits of 1.2 percent ($25.7 billion) during fourth quarter 2023, similar to an increase of 1.0 percent reported in third quarter 2023. More than half of all community banks (59.9 percent) reported an increase in deposit balances from the prior quarter. Community banks reported growth in both insured ($11.6 billion, or 0.7 percent) and uninsured deposit account balances ($14.9 billion, or 2.2 percent). In the fourth quarter, growth in interest-bearing deposit balances ($35.5 billion, or 2.1 percent) was somewhat offset by a decline in noninterest-bearing deposits ($9.8 billion, or 1.8 percent). Total deposits increased 2.3 percent ($51.2 billion) from one year ago." A press release, entitled, "FDIC-Insured Institutions Reported Full-Year 2023 Net Income of $256.9 Billion and Fourth Quarter 2023 Net Income of $38.4 Billion," comments, "Reports from 4,587 commercial banks and savings institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) reflect aggregate full-year 2023 net income of $256.9 billion, down $6 billion (2.3 percent) from the prior year, and fourth quarter 2023 net income of $38.4 billion, down $30 billion (43.9 percent) from the prior quarter. Non-recurring, noninterest expenses at large banks drove the decrease in quarterly earnings. Higher provision expense and lower noninterest income also contributed to the decline. These and other financial results for fourth quarter 2023 are included in the FDIC's latest Quarterly Banking Profile." FDIC Chairman Martin Gruenberg comments, "The banking industry has shown resilience after a period of liquidity stress in early 2023. Full-year net income remained high, overall asset quality metrics were favorable, and the industry's liquidity was stable. However, ongoing economic and geopolitical uncertainty, continuing inflationary pressures, volatility in market interest rates, and emerging risks in some bank commercial real estate portfolios pose significant downside risks to the banking industry. These issues, together with funding and earnings pressures, will remain matters of ongoing supervisory attention by the FDIC."
ICI: MMF Assets Hit Another Record
Money market mutual fund assets increased by $18.7 billion the past week to a record $6.077 trillion after jumping $49.9 billion the previous week, according to ICI's latest weekly "Money Market Fund Assets" report. MMF assets are up by $191 billion, or 3.7%, year-to-date in 2024 (through 3/6/24), with Institutional MMFs up $97 billion, or 3.1% and Retail MMFs up $94 billion, or 4.9%. Over the past 52 weeks, money funds have risen a massive $1.165 trillion, or 23.8%, with Retail MMFs rising by $556 billion (30.7%) and Inst MMFs rising by $609 billion (19.8%). The weekly release says, "Total money market fund assets increased by $18.65 billion to $6.08 trillion for the week ended Wednesday, March 6, the Investment Company Institute reported.... Among taxable money market funds, government funds increased by $21.56 billion and prime funds decreased by $3.57 billion. Tax-exempt money market funds increased by $658 million." ICI's stats show Institutional MMFs rising $3.6 billion and Retail MMFs rising $18.7 billion in the latest week. Total Government MMF assets, including Treasury funds, were $4.938 trillion (81.3% of all money funds), while Total Prime MMFs were $1.019 trillion (16.8%). Tax Exempt MMFs totaled $119.9 billion (2.0%). ICI explains, "Assets of retail money market funds increased by $15.07 billion to $2.38 trillion. Among retail funds, government money market fund assets increased by $7.77 billion to $1.53 trillion, prime money market fund assets increased by $6.49 billion to $740.23 billion, and tax-exempt fund assets increased by $807 million to $109.08 billion." Retail assets account for over a third of total assets, or 39.2%, and Government Retail assets make up 64.4% of all Retail MMFs. They add, "Assets of institutional money market funds increased by $3.59 billion to $3.69 trillion. Among institutional funds, government money market fund assets increased by $13.79 billion to $3.40 trillion, prime money market fund assets decreased by $10.06 billion to $279.26 billion, and tax-exempt fund assets decreased by $149 million to $10.84 billion." Institutional assets accounted for 60.8% of all MMF assets, with Government Institutional assets making up 92.1% of all institutional MMF totals. According to Crane Data's separate Money Fund Intelligence Daily series, money fund assets have risen by $13.8 billion in March (through 3/6) to $6.480 trillion (they were a record $6.494 trillion the previous day). Assets rose $72.1 billion in February, $93.9 billion in January, $32.7 billion in December and $226.4 billion in November. MMF totals fell by $31.9 billion in October. They rose $93.9 billion in September, $98.3 billion in August and $34.7 billion in July. Note that ICI's asset totals don't include a number of funds tracked by the SEC and Crane Data, so they're over $400 billion lower than Crane's asset series.
Fed's Powell Says No Cuts Just Yet
Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome Powell gave his "Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress yesterday, and reiterated that the Fed won't be cutting rates any time soon. He commented, "After significantly tightening the stance of monetary policy since early 2022, the FOMC has maintained the target range for the federal funds rate at 5-1/4 to 5-1/2 percent since its meeting last July. We have also continued to shrink our balance sheet at a brisk pace and in a predictable manner. Our restrictive stance of monetary policy is putting downward pressure on economic activity and inflation. We believe that our policy rate is likely at its peak for this tightening cycle. If the economy evolves broadly as expected, it will likely be appropriate to begin dialing back policy restraint at some point this year. But the economic outlook is uncertain, and ongoing progress toward our 2 percent inflation objective is not assured." He explains, "Reducing policy restraint too soon or too much could result in a reversal of progress we have seen in inflation and ultimately require even tighter policy to get inflation back to 2 percent. At the same time, reducing policy restraint too late or too little could unduly weaken economic activity and employment. In considering any adjustments to the target range for the policy rate, we will carefully assess the incoming data, the evolving outlook, and the balance of risks. The Committee does not expect that it will be appropriate to reduce the target range until it has gained greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2 percent." Powell adds, "We remain committed to bringing inflation back down to our 2 percent goal and to keeping longer-term inflation expectations well anchored. Restoring price stability is essential to set the stage for achieving maximum employment and stable prices over the longer run. To conclude, we understand that our actions affect communities, families, and businesses across the country. Everything we do is in service to our public mission. We at the Federal Reserve will do everything we can to achieve our maximum employment and price stability goals."
Weekly MF Portfolio Holdings
Crane Data published its latest Weekly Money Fund Portfolio Holdings statistics Tuesday, which track a shifting subset of our monthly Portfolio Holdings collection. The most recent cut (with data as of March 1) includes Holdings information from 62 money funds (down 19 from a week ago), or $2.778 trillion (down from $3.527 trillion) of the $6.468 trillion in total money fund assets (or 42.9%) tracked by Crane Data. (Our Weekly MFPH are e-mail only and aren't available on the website. See our latest Monthly Money Fund Portfolio Holdings here.) Our latest Weekly MFPH Composition summary shows Government assets dominating the holdings list with Treasuries totaling $1.293 trillion (down from $1.545 trillion a week ago), or 46.5%; Repurchase Agreements (Repo) totaling $980.8 billion (down from $1.308 trillion a week ago), or 35.3%, and Government Agency securities totaling $236.2 billion (down from $308.9 billion), or 8.5%. Commercial Paper (CP) totaled $91.3 billion (down from a week ago at $120.8 billion), or 3.3%. Certificates of Deposit (CDs) totaled $75.9 billion (down from $106.1 billion a week ago), or 2.7%. The Other category accounted for $71.8 billion or 2.6%, while VRDNs accounted for $29.1 billion, or 1.0%. The Ten Largest Issuers in our Weekly Holdings product include: the US Treasury with $1.293 trillion (46.5% of total holdings), Fixed Income Clearing Corp with $215.9B (7.8%), Federal Home Loan Bank with $184.7B (6.7%), the Federal Reserve Bank of New York with $96.8 billion (3.5%), JP Morgan with $73.1B (2.6%), RBC with $64.1B (2.3%), BNP Paribas with $60.9B (2.2%), Goldman Sachs with $56.1B (2.0%), Citi with $54.1B (1.9%) and Federal Farm Credit Bank with $48.5B (1.7%). The Ten Largest Funds tracked in our latest Weekly include: JPMorgan US Govt MM ($265.2B), Fidelity Inv MM: Govt Port ($201.4B), JPMorgan 100% US Treas MMkt ($194.3B), State Street Inst US Govt ($150.3B), BlackRock Lq FedFund ($143.7B), Morgan Stanley Inst Liq Govt ($138.2B), Fidelity Inv MM: MM Port ($128.2B), Dreyfus Govt Cash Mgmt ($114.1B), Allspring Govt MM ($112.0B) and BlackRock Lq Treas Tr ($109.4B). (Let us know if you'd like to see our latest domestic U.S. and/or "offshore" Weekly Portfolio Holdings collection and summary.)
Crane 100 MF Index Flat at 5.14%
Money fund yields remain at 5.14% on average (as measured by our Crane 100 Money Fund Index) in the week ended March 1, after falling 1 basis point the week prior. Our Crane 100 is an average of 7-day yields for the 100 largest taxable money funds. Yields were 5.17% on 1/31/24, 5.20% on 12/31/23 and 11/30, 5.19% on 10/31, 5.17% on 9/30, 5.16% on 8/31, 5.09% on July 31, 4.94% on June 30, 4.61% on March 31 and 4.05% on 12/31/22. The vast majority of money market fund assets now yield 5.0% or higher. Assets of money market funds rose by $58.6 billion last week to $6.468 trillion according to Crane Data's Money Fund Intelligence Daily. Weighted average maturities were unchanged last week. The broader Crane Money Fund Average, which includes all taxable funds tracked by Crane Data (currently 712), shows a 7-day yield of 5.04%, unchanged in the week through Friday. Prime Inst MFs were unchanged at 5.25% in the latest week. Government Inst MFs were unchanged at 5.12%. Treasury Inst MFs were unchanged at 5.08%. Treasury Retail MFs currently yield 4.86%, Government Retail MFs yield 4.83%, and Prime Retail MFs yield 5.06%, Tax-exempt MF 7-day yields were up 5 bps at 3.00%. According to Monday's Money Fund Intelligence Daily, with data as of Friday (3/1), 51 money funds (out of 833 total) yield under 3.0% with $22.2 billion in assets, or 0.3%; 74 funds yield between 3.00% and 3.99% ($105.5 billion, or 1.6%), 242 funds yield between 4.0% and 4.99% ($1.317 trillion, or 20.4%) and 466 funds now yield 5.0% or more ($5.023 trillion, or 77.7%). Our Brokerage Sweep Intelligence Index, an average of FDIC-insured cash options from major brokerages, was unchanged at 0.61%. The latest Brokerage Sweep Intelligence, with data as of Mar. 1, shows that there was no changes over the past week. Three of the 11 major brokerages tracked by our BSI still offer rates of 0.01% for balances of $100K (and lower tiers). These include: E*Trade, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley.
ISSMI Survey Mentions RIAs and Cash
We learned from Ignites recently about a survey from ISS Market Intelligence titled, "RIA Market Insights - Refining the Opportunity," which states, "The Retail Registered Investment Advisor (RIA), including RIA only and hybrid RIAs, market has been around since the early 1990s, and it remains a source of innovation and growth in the financial advisor marketplace and a distribution opportunity for asset management firms, product providers, custodians, and investment and advisor platforms, TAMPs, and fintech providers. Yet, as the Retail RIA evolves, it continues to perplex and challenge firms seeking to distribute and support this market.... This report leverages data from across ISS Market Insights, including advisor sentiment and behavior based on eight proprietary surveys conducted annually with over 8,000 advisors across channels. Market sizing and segmentation data are sourced from ISS MI's Discovery Data and qualitative insights from in-depth interviews with asset managers, product providers, RIA custodians/platform providers, wholesalers, and related industry experts." A section on "Assets in cash says, "While market volatility drives interest in alternative investments and a non/low correlated investment, it is also driving assets out of the market and into cash. Assets in cash have been increasing over the past year. Across channels, 77% of wirehouses have increased their cash allocation, followed by regionals, IBDs, and banks at 62% and RIA only at 60%.... Money market funds are the top cash vehicle among 87% of RIA only and hybrid RIAs surveyed, followed by short-term bond funds and CDs. Treasuries rank a close fourth place among 42% of RIA only compared to hybrid RIAs, at 31%.... Preference for money market funds is driven by the ease of use and convenient access via platforms and custodians." The ISSMI survey speculates, "Cash has already begun moving off the sidelines, albeit gradually following the significant flight to safety in 2022 and early 2023. While cash positions remain high thanks to elevated interest rates, the likelihood is that much of the short-term asset build-up will ultimately be reactivated. Data reveals early trends in the directionality of the redeployment activity. RIAs anticipate active and passive ETFs will be the primary recipients, with 44% of RIA only likely or very likely to shift cash into passive ETFs and 29% shifting into active ETFs. [A]ctive ETFs hold a greater appeal for hybrid RIAs when combining likely and very likely scores (33%), narrowly edging out the scores for passive ETFs (30%)."
WSJ Says High Yield Savings Deceptive
The Wall Street Journal recently published, "When High-Yield Savings Accounts Come With an Asterisk," which says, "A few months after the Federal Reserve started aggressively raising interest rates in early 2022, Sam Kuperstein opened a savings account at online bank UFB Direct to earn more on his extra cash. The Springfield, N.J., resident assumed the advertised 1.81% rate -- which at the time was among the highest marketed by U.S. lenders -- would keep rising as the Fed kept hiking. Then, last September, he found out that his rate hadn't budged, even though the bank advertised a savings account that paid more than 5%. The bank had rolled out a new, nearly identical savings account every few months over that period, giving the product a slightly different name each time. Like Kuperstein, some customers with older accounts were unknowingly stuck earning lower rates, even as the Fed raised interest rates over two years by about 5 percentage points. Online-centric banks such as UFB, Capital One Financial and CIT Bank attract deposits by paying rates far higher than typical bricks-and-mortar banks. Rates on these high-yield accounts generally rise alongside U.S. interest rates without depositors needing to take any action. But some customers say these lenders deceived them by advertising competitive rates while paying longtime customers lower ones. In some cases, only customers who were monitoring their bank's every move could notice and respond to the changes. 'You think you'll get a higher rate and it will keep going up,' said Ken Tumin, founder of DepositAccounts.com, a website owned by LendingTree that tracks banks' account offerings. 'But there are games they play to get deposits without having to pay the highest interest rates.'" The article continues, "UFB is taking these tactics to another level. When Kuperstein opened his UFB account, the bank simply called the product Savings. A few weeks later, the lender advertised Rewards Savings as its main offering, paying 2.21%. It left the rate on the older account called Savings at 1.81%, Kuperstein said. The bank did this eight more times. Best Savings, Preferred Savings, and Priority Savings were among the names that followed. The current offering, Secure Savings, pays 5.25%. 'Only the biggest rate chaser that's monitoring what the bank is offering every week and what their account is paying will notice that. The vast majority of people won't be that observant,' Tumin said. Some reviewers on his site report that UFB lowered their rates after the bank established new accounts."
