For Money Market Funds, Massive Preparation Has Paid Off in Smooth Transition

By Marty Burns

September 26, 2016

First in a series on money market funds.

By October 14, the money market fund industry must fully implement the 2014 money market fund reforms passed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), cementing major changes for investors and fund complexes. ICI has been in close constant contact with members since the rules were enacted in 2014 and has been working with operations and other professionals throughout the industry to ensure an orderly transition—including fully informing investors—to the new regime in October.

Throughout this time, funds have been actively creating and testing new systems and tools to implement requirements under the new rule. The upcoming changes have led to significant shifts in money market fund assets. These shifts were anticipated, and the thoughtful planning by industry leaders has helped to smoothly manage the $910 billion in money market fund asset flows we have seen to date. At ICI, we believe the industry is well positioned to navigate the remaining fluctuations as the new rules take hold.

To ensure a smooth transition to the new regime, money market funds have been beefing up their liquidity, investing predominantly in securities with very short maturities. Data on the weighted average maturity (WAM) and weighted average life (WAL) of money market fund holdings show a significant shortening in each category (see chart). With shorter maturities, funds will have ample liquidity to accommodate high levels of outflows before and after October 14.

WAMs and WALs of Prime Money Market Funds Are at All-Time Lows
Number of days; weekly, January 6, 2015–September 20, 2016

Source: iMoneyNet

Summary of the new money market fund rules

The 2014 SEC rules largely centered around two principal reforms. The first reform requires prime institutional and tax-exempt institutional money market funds to price and transact in their shares using “floating” net asset values (NAVs).

The second principal reform will enable, and in certain cases require, all nongovernment money market funds (i.e., all prime and tax-exempt funds, whether institutional or retail) to impose barriers on redemptions (so-called liquidity fees and gates) during extraordinary circumstances, subject to determinations by a money market fund’s board of directors.

These are significant structural changes that require considerable planning and testing to implement. Here’s a look at what funds have been doing recently to smooth the transition to the new rules.

Funds are working toward smooth implementation

For more than two years now, operations, investment, and legal professionals in fund complexes across the United States have been working steadily to implement the SEC’s new rules. ICI has helped coordinate important work streams addressing implementation issues in the following areas:

Identifying retail versus institutional investors
Preparing funds to float their NAVs, including calculating NAVs to four decimal places
Preparing for intraday processing for floating NAV money market funds
Enabling funds to impose liquidity fees and redemption gates

Each of these work streams requires a different area of focus and expertise, so here’s more detail about each stream and what it means for investors.

Retail vs. institutional investors

The 2014 reforms require that sponsors choosing to offer retail funds separate their prime and tax-exempt money market funds into two categories: retail funds, which can only be owned by natural persons, and institutional funds, open to businesses and all other investors. Pursuant to the new rules, fund complexes have been sorting through their shareholder files to make sure each investor is enrolled in the appropriate fund. This can require multiple steps and consistent monitoring, particularly because money market fund shareholders often invest though broker-dealers or other intermediaries that may operate omnibus accounts that pool the holdings of many investors.

Sponsors choosing to offer retail funds have been implementing policies and procedures that are reasonably designed to ensure that only natural persons (i.e., human beings, not businesses or organizations) own retail shares. These procedures could include prospectus disclosures and steps to clarify the role that broker-dealers or other intermediaries play. To help funds facilitate these decisions and implement the required changes, ICI published an Annotated Prototype Policy and Procedures for Retail Money Market Funds, which also serves as a handy resource to learn more about this aspect of the new SEC rules.

Preparing funds to float, including calculating NAVs to four decimal places

Before the reforms, a key characteristic of money market funds was the stable $1.00 NAV. Funds were managed, and were allowed to use specific pricing rules, so that they could consistently offer and redeem shares for $1.00. Under the new reforms, however, prime and tax-exempt institutional money market funds will be required to calculate “floating” share prices based on the market value of portfolio holdings at the time they strike their NAV. The new rules also require funds to calculate their NAVs to four decimal places. (For a fund with a NAV of $1.00, that means calculating the NAV to one-hundredth of a penny—i.e., $1.0000.)

To realize this change, fund operations teams have been busy working with pricing vendors and reprogramming and testing system algorithms that calculate NAVs to ensure they are working in an accurate, reliable manner. For many, this means a large-scale reconfiguration of complex systems that were previously not designed for this level of precision. By all accounts, this highly technical work and testing has succeeded and firms are prepared to meet the demand for unprecedented levels of precision on the valuation of floating NAV money market funds.

Preparing for intraday processing for floating NAV money market funds

Under the new rules, some money market funds may choose to calculate (or “strike”) their NAV multiple times a day. This would allow a floating NAV fund to maintain its role as a cash management vehicle by ensuring that investors have intraday access to their balances.

Funds may decide whether to strike multiple NAVs and when during the day to do so. Many funds have indicated they are planning to strike two to three NAVs per day, typically in the morning, around midday, and in the afternoon before the markets close.

To do this, funds are enhancing systems, educating shareholders, and updating their prospectuses and other materials about the upcoming changes.

Enabling funds to impose liquidity fees and gates

The new SEC rules will require all nongovernment money market funds (i.e., all prime and tax-exempt money market funds, whether retail or institutional) to have the ability to impose liquidity fees, redemption delays (“gates”), or both to slow redemptions under extraordinary circumstances.

The new rules give a money market fund’s board the flexibility to impose liquidity fees of up to 2 percent, redemption gates (a delay in processing redemptions for up to 10 business days), or both if the fund’s weekly liquid assets have dropped below 30 percent of its total assets.

If a fund’s weekly liquid assets fall below 10 percent of its total assets, the SEC rules require the fund to charge redeeming investors a fee of 1 percent of their redemption, unless the fund’s board determines either that no fee, or a lower or higher fee (not to exceed 2 percent), would be in the best interests of the fund.

This is a major change for money market funds. In ICI’s discussions with members about the transition to the new rules, it is clear that the fees and gates requirement has proven to be a larger concern to investors than policymakers originally anticipated. Funds have spent a considerable amount of time communicating around fees and gates to shareholders, including making the point that sponsors believe it is extremely unlikely that they would ever choose or be forced to impose fees and gates.

What does this mean for investors?

What do all of the upcoming changes and recent work by fund companies mean for millions of shareholders who invest in money market funds? It means the fund industry is well positioned to meet investor demand and market conditions surrounding the rules change. Yes, the pending change has already had a significant impact on the flow of investor assets—out of prime and into government money market funds. But this shift was anticipated and fund companies took the necessary steps to communicate and adjust portfolios to manage the change without disruption. We expect this preparation to continue to pay off as we approach—and pass—the October 14 implementation date.

Throughout this transition, ICI has been tracking the data and writing about developments in the market. For more information on the upcoming rules change and funds’ efforts to meet the new requirements, please visit ICI’s Money Market Fund Implementation Resource Center.

Marty Burns is ICI’s chief industry operations officer.

TOPICS: Mutual Fund Financial Markets Money Market Funds Fund Regulation Operations and Technology

US T+2 Is Coming—and Bringing Many Benefits with It

By Ahmed Elghazaly

September 6, 2016

On September 5, 2017, equities, municipal and corporate bonds, and unit investment trusts will reduce the amount of time it takes to settle trades from trade date plus three days (T+3) to trade date plus two days (T+2).

Revised Fed Data Show Mutual Funds’ Share of Corporate Bond Market Is Small and Stable

By Shelly Antoniewicz

August 26, 2016

Discussions among regulators and the financial press about the role of bond mutual funds in financial stability risks have been fueled by concerns about the size and apparent growth in bond funds’ participation in corporate bond markets. But what if that role and its growth have been largely overstated?

Cybersecurity at Work: The Risks of Information Sharing

By Peter Salmon

August 23, 2016

In the last installment of this series, we wrote about the importance of information sharing. Though important, there is a balance to be struck; you don’t want to share too much information. Growing up in New York City, for example, my friends and I would poke fun at drivers with personalized license plates. “Why would anyone want everyone to know where they were all the time?” was our usual comment.

Ten Years After the PPA, the Path to Retirement Saving Is Easier

By Sarah Holden and Elena Barone Chism

August 22, 2016

Ten years ago, on August 17, 2006, President George W. Bush signed the Pension Protection Act (PPA) into law, with the goal of ensuring greater retirement security for American workers. With regard to defined contribution (DC) plans, such as 401(k) plans, PPA further encouraged automatic enrollment while paving the way for diversified default investments and the creation of Roth accounts inside DC plans. PPA also made permanent previously legislated contribution-limit increases and the saver’s credit.

Secure Choice Is Risky for Workers and for the State

By Paul Schott Stevens

August 17, 2016

Millions of Americans save for retirement using employer-sponsored plans that offer tax advantages and excellent investment options.

Matching Models to Reality: Bond Market Investors Don’t Follow the “First-Mover” Script

By Brian Reid

July 18, 2016

Fourth in a series of ICI Viewpoints testing the hypotheses of academics and regulators about mutual fund and investor behavior during times of market stress.

Regulators and researchers have put forward a common narrative that fund investors can destabilize markets during a period of market stress. They have advanced several hypotheses—including the concept of a first-mover advantage—to support their narrative. These hypotheses produce testable predictions about how fund investors behave in troubled markets: not only will investors redeem their fund shares but they also will stop purchasing new fund shares, thus creating large destabilizing net outflows from funds.

Matching Models to Reality: In a Falling Market, the Real “Movers” May Be...the Buyers

By Brian Reid

July 15, 2016

Third in a series of ICI Viewpoints testing the hypotheses of academics and regulators about mutual fund and investor behavior during times of market stress.

Matching Models to Reality: The Real-World Challenges to Regulators’ “First-Mover” Hypothesis

By Sean Collins

July 14, 2016

Commentators have long predicted that, one of these days, a market downturn will send U.S. mutual fund investors racing for the exits.

Matching Models to Reality: Doomsayers Are Disappointed—Again—as Funds Weather Brexit Shock

By Paul Schott Stevens

July 13, 2016

On Thursday, June 23, the electorate of the United Kingdom voted in a referendum on the country’s membership in the European Union. The result—51.9 percent in favor of “Brexit,” 48.1 percent in favor of “Remain”—went against pollsters’ and pundits’ expectations and surprised the world.

Building on the Success of the Private-Sector Retirement System Is the Real “Secure Choice”

By David Blass

July 8, 2016

Retirement assets in the United States totaled $24 trillion at the end of 2015, bolstered by investments through employer-sponsored plans and individual retirement accounts (IRAs).

It’s Time: SEC Proposals Show the Need to Reexamine the Role of Fund Boards

By Amy B. R. Lancellotta

July 7, 2016

The proper role for fund independent directors—the role where they are best-positioned to represent shareholder interests—is to oversee the work of fund management. The sharp distinction between directors’ oversight role and management’s on-the-ground, day-to-day responsibilities has been a major factor in the modern fund industry’s 75-plus years of success.

The Liquidity Provided by ETFs Is No Mirage

By Todd Bernhardt

June 20, 2016

The article above ignores fundamental information about ETFs, the behavior of investors, and the effects of market structure on the ETF product.

Cybersecurity at Work: The Benefits of Information Sharing Networks

By Peter Salmon

June 16, 2016

In the last installment of this blog series, we wrote about the need for training—specifically, cyber tabletop exercises.

When Investor Protection Becomes Protectionism

By Patrice Bergé-Vincent

June 14, 2016

Today, Europe is facing two related needs: to provide its citizens with efficient, lower-cost vehicles for savings and investment, and to bolster economic growth.

Industry Operations Leaders Address Needs of Investors and Advisers

By Candice Gullett

June 6, 2016

In conversations exploring regulation, demographics, and technology, industry leaders offered their perspectives on serving investors and advisers in an evolving world at ICI’s annual Operations and Technology Conference, held concurrently with the General Membership Meeting on May 18–20 in Washington, DC.

Industry Leaders Address Changing Industry Terrain

By Miriam Bridges

June 3, 2016

Will fund industry leaders need to rethink their traditional operating models? Experts shared their views on this question and others, as well as the opportunities presented by a rapidly changing industry, in a candid discussion on the second day of ICI’s 58th General Membership Meeting, held May 18–20 in Washington, DC.

Conducting Business in a Rapidly Changing World

By Jeanne Arnold

June 1, 2016

The global operating environment is evolving and it is critical for corporations to understand the changes afoot if they are to succeed in the 21st century, said Kevin Kajiwara, co-president of Teneo Intelligence, a division of global advisory firm Teneo. Speaking on the final day at ICI’s 58th General Membership Meeting (GMM), Kajiwara gave an overview of the economic and political shifts taking place around the world during his session, “Geopolitical Risks and the Global Economy.” After the overview, he engaged in an insightful question-and-answer session with Tom Faust, chairman and CEO of Eaton Vance Corp.

A Changing Landscape for the Fund Industry—and Fund Investors

By Rob Elson

May 27, 2016

Continue to expect change in the investment landscape, with the Federal Reserve, the Millennial generation, and technological evolution all playing major roles.

Ops Leaders Extol the Transformational Power of Data and Analytics

By Todd Bernhardt

May 26, 2016

The evolution of fund companies’ ability to gather and analyze data is creating a revolution in the way that those companies serve their customers, said panelists at “Big Data Initiatives and the Power of the Cloud,” the session that kicked off ICI’s Operations and Technology Conference on May 19 in Washington, DC.

The SEC’s Historic Success: Six Key Ingredients

By Paul Schott Stevens

May 20, 2016

This ICI Viewpoints is adapted from ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens’s introduction for SEC Chair Mary Jo White at the 2016 ICI General Membership Meeting on May 20.

More than 80 years have passed since Congress—looking to restore public confidence in markets at the height of the Great Depression—established the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to administer the federal securities laws enacted as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal.

SEC Chair White Expects Continued ‘Bright Spotlight’ on Asset Management

By Rachel McTague

May 20, 2016

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is contemplating several new initiatives governing registered funds, in addition to adopting rules this year on reporting modernization, liquidity management, and the use of derivatives, SEC Chair Mary Jo White announced at the opening session on the final day of ICI’s annual General Membership Meeting (GMM).

Walter Isaacson: Where Art Meets Science

By Rob Elson

May 19, 2016

Our world’s greatest innovations, according to Walter Isaacson, can be traced to “people who truly have a sense of what it is to be human…but also feel very comfortable with science and technology, and can make the connection.” And he’s got the evidence to back this belief up.

Read more…

TOPICS: Events Cybersecurity GMM

GMM Policy Forum: Michael Bloomberg and the Focus on Value

By Todd Bernhardt

May 18, 2016

Businesses and people can both prosper if they focus on providing a service that is unique and that has real value, said Michael R. Bloomberg at ICI’s 58th Annual General Membership Meeting (GMM) today. The noted entrepreneur, philanthropist, and three-term mayor of New York City covered a wide range of topics in a lively back-and-forth with ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens during the meeting’s opening Policy Forum, attended by about 1,500 fund industry leaders.

To the SEC and FINRA: It’s Your Move

By David W. Blass

April 21, 2016

Earlier this month, I wrote about the wide-ranging benefits of the proposed Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule to give U.S. regulated funds the option of making online access to shareholder reports their default method for informing their shareholders.

Cybersecurity at Work: Exercise Is Important

By Peter Salmon

April 20, 2016

In this installment of our series focusing on cybersecurity, we are going to look at exercising—not the type of exercising that many of us do to stay in shape, though that is a good place to start.

The SEC’s Online-Delivery Gift to Fund Shareholders

By David W. Blass

April 4, 2016

A recent SEC rulemaking proposal presages good news for America’s 90 million mutual fund shareholders. Proposed Rule 30e-3 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, introduced last year as part of a larger initiative to enhance and modernize fund data reporting, would give funds the option of flipping their default mechanism for delivering shareholder reports from U.S. mail to online access.

Factors Contributing to the Decline of Expense Ratios in 2015

By Sean Collins and James Duvall

March 31, 2016

ICI recently released its annual update on the expense ratios of mutual funds, showing expense ratios to be at their lowest levels in at least 20 years.

Cybersecurity at Work: Incident Response Plans and What They Entail

By Peter Salmon

March 21, 2016

In this second posting in our series, I’d like to focus on computer incident response planning. In last month’s post, I mentioned that there are many more data breaches that take place than we are made aware of through the media. These cybersecurity events can affect networks large and small, from large multinational corporations to your own home.

Yes, Funds Come and Go—Without Government Help

By Todd Bernhardt

March 11, 2016

For several years now, ICI has pushed back against those advocating for bank-like regulations on the asset management industry, pointing out the numerous reasons why regulated funds or their managers are not sources of risk to the overall financial system.

The “Waterfall Theory” of Liquidity Management Doesn’t Hold Water

By Sean Collins and Chris Plantier

March 9, 2016

In a series of recent blog posts, economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York have discussed new research assessing the potential for bond mutual funds to pose systemic risks.

Three Reasons Why You Should Consider an IRA

By Sarah Holden

March 8, 2016

April 18 is the deadline to file income tax returns with the federal government this year.

Getting Started in a 401(k) Plan—and Getting the Most Out of It

By Christina Kilroy

February 26, 2016

This week, ICI and the Investment Company Institute Education Foundation (ICIEF) joined thousands of corporations, nonprofits, and government agencies to celebrate America Saves Week.

How America Supports Retirement: The Incentive to Save Is Not Upside Down

By Peter J. Brady

February 25, 2016

In my new book, How America Supports Retirement: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on Who Benefits, and the first three ICI Viewpoints in this series, I’ve demonstrated that Social Security’s benefit formula drives participation in tax-deferred employer-sponsored retirement plans ; that the full system of government support for retirement is progressive; and that those in higher tax brackets don’t enjoy greater “bang for their buck” from tax deferral.

Models vs. the Real World—Why Bond Funds Aren’t the Bond Market

By Chris Plantier and Sean Collins

February 25, 2016

In two recent blog posts, economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York use a theoretical model to assess the size of potential spillover effects from bond mutual fund outflows.

How America Supports Retirement: What Do Tax Rates Have to Do with the Benefits of Tax Deferral? Less Than You Think

By Peter J. Brady

February 24, 2016

In my new book, How America Supports Retirement: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on Who Benefits, I set out to gain a comprehensive view of how government policy supports American workers as they gather resources for retirement.

MetLife Case Shows That “Assuming the Worst of the Worst of the Worst” Doesn’t Work

By Mike McNamee

February 24, 2016

If regulators are going to impose strict rules and heavy burdens on a business, should they have to demonstrate that those rules and burdens address an actual and probable risk?

How America Supports Retirement: No, Benefits Are Not “Tilted” to the Higher Earners

By Peter J. Brady

February 23, 2016

Second in a series of ICI Viewpoints.

In my new book, How America Supports Retirement: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on Who Benefits, I analyze the benefits individuals receive from the major government policies that help American workers accumulate resources for retirement: Social Security and tax deferral on compensation set aside for retirement in employer-based plans (both traditional pensions and defined contribution plans, such as 401(k) plans).

New Research by New York Fed Confirms: Bond Funds Don’t Pose Systemic Risks

By Chris Plantier and Sean Collins

February 23, 2016

In a series of recent blog posts, economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York discussed results from a theoretical model assessing the potential for bond mutual funds to pose systemic risks.

Derivatives—Please Don’t Let Them Be Misunderstood

By Shelly Antoniewicz

February 22, 2016

Derivatives are important portfolio management tools that provide funds with many potential benefits, including the ability to:

hedge risk;
enhance liquidity, because derivatives can be more liquid than traditional physical securities;
gain or reduce exposure to unique markets or to asset classes when access through other instruments is difficult, costly, or impossible;
manage or equitize cash; and
reduce cost.

How America Supports Retirement: Tackling the Myths That Surround Us

By Peter J. Brady

February 22, 2016

America’s retirement system isn’t perfect but it’s a lot stronger than many people think. Whether by accident or design, the U.S. retirement system provides benefits to workers across the earnings distribution and has helped millions of retirees maintain their standard of living in retirement.

Cybersecurity at Work: Creating Passwords That Are More Secure

By Peter Salmon

February 17, 2016

Welcome to the first in a monthly series of ICI Viewpoints focusing on sound practices in cybersecurity.

U.S. and European Fund Investors Continue to Take Long View on EM Economies

By Chris Plantier

February 12, 2016

In an ICI Global Research Perspective last year, we showed that U.S. and European registered funds held $1.7 trillion in emerging market (EM) stocks and bonds at the end of 2014 (this total counts Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan as emerging markets). Of that, $1.27 trillion was estimated to be in equities and $431 billion was in bonds. We also showed that this $1.7 trillion was spread widely, across 80 different EM countries, and that fund net purchases of EM securities explained little of the variability of capital flow to EM countries.

All Pain and No Gain for Fund Investors

By Paul Schott Stevens

February 5, 2016

The following is a letter submitted to the editor of the New York Times. A financial transaction tax (FTT) (editorial, The Need for a Tax on Financial Trading, Jan. 28) is a terrible idea that would harm all investors, especially American workers saving for retirement. We have yet to see an FTT proposal that would not hurt Main Street nor weaken our capital markets.

Liquidity Risk Management Must Be Done Right

By Paul Schott Stevens

January 15, 2016

The following ICI Viewpoints is a lightly edited version of a letter that ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens sent to U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Mary Jo White, as part of the Institute’s overall response to the SEC’s liquidity risk management proposal.

How the SEC’s Six-Bucket Approach Could Provide a False Picture of Liquidity

By Brian Reid

January 14, 2016

As I explained in a previous post, I filed a letter on January 13 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to its liquidity risk management proposal and to Liquidity and Flows of U.S. Mutual Funds, a study by the Commission’s Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA). My letter was one of four components of ICI’s multipart response to the SEC proposal.

The SEC’s Liquidity Proposal: Good Goals, Unintended Consequences

By Brian Reid

January 13, 2016

On January 13, I filed a letter with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), in response to the SEC’s liquidity risk management proposal and to Liquidity and Flows of U.S. Mutual Funds, a study by the SEC’s Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA). My letter was one of four components of ICI’s multipart response to the SEC proposal.

High-Yield Bond Mutual Fund Flows: An Update

By Sean Collins

December 23, 2015

In an ICI Viewpoints on December 16, we debuted new weekly data on flows to high-yield bond mutual funds, presenting data through December 9. In light of continuing developments in the high-yield market, we have had requests to provide an update this week, taking into account the flows through December 16. Here is our overview.

High-Yield Bond ETFs: A Source of Liquidity

By Shelly Antoniewicz

December 22, 2015

The high-yield bond market has been buffeted recently, as market participants reassessed the risks of this sector and sent prices for many such bonds tumbling.

High-Yield Bond Mutual Fund Flows: Some Perspective

By Sean Collins

December 16, 2015

Recent conditions in the high-yield credit markets have raised questions about the impact of market turmoil on mutual funds investing in that segment of the bond market.

The First Move: MSRB Issues a Proposal for Shortened Settlement Cycle

By Marty Burns

December 8, 2015

Recently, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) opened the door on the regulatory filings needed to move the U.S. securities markets to a shortened settlement cycle.

Traders, Start Your Engines: After August 24, Exchanges Need to Coordinate

By Jennifer Choi and George Gilbert

November 30, 2015

The extraordinary volatility in U.S. equity markets on August 24, 2015, exposed a significant deficiency in the rules governing these markets’ structure: a lack of harmonization across securities exchanges for reopening trading after a “limit up–limit down” trading halt in a security.

Mutual Fund Investments in Private Placements: an Overview

By Gregory M. Smith

November 23, 2015

Given recent media interest in mutual fund investments in private placements, it might be helpful to review mutual fund disclosure and valuation obligations. How do funds handle securities that are not publicly traded?

U.S. Bond ETFs Resilient on August 24

By Shelly Antoniewicz

November 20, 2015

Some observers have suggested that equity market volatility on August 24, 2015, spilled over into other markets and products, in particular to bond exchange-traded funds (see, for example, Bank of England Financial Stability Paper, no. 34, October 2015, pages 26 and 27). In our analysis of the events of that morning, we conclude that U.S. bond ETFs were resilient and largely immune to the turmoil in the equity markets.

Retirement Planning: No Place for Fairy Tales

By Paul Schott Stevens

November 17, 2015

It is sadly appropriate that Labor Secretary Thomas Perez invokes fairy tales in his Nov. 16 commentary, “A path forward for state retirement plans.” Neither his version of the past nor his program for the future accord with reality.

Changes to Money Market Funds Are Showing Up in Data

By Sean Collins

November 10, 2015

In July 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted new regulations for money market funds.

Correcting a Distorted Picture of Retirement Resources

By Peter Brady

October 21, 2015

Can 401(k) plans and individual retirement accounts (IRAs) provide the income that retirees need to supplement Social Security and enjoy a secure retirement?

Small Savers at a Loss

By Brian Reid and Sarah Holden

September 25, 2015

As ICI has pointed out before, the proposed rule from the Department of Labor (DOL) to redefine what counts as a fiduciary relationship in the retirement market is fundamentally flawed. But it is no less flawed than the DOL’s justification for it—a Regulatory Impact Analysis that fails to demonstrate a market failure that supports the need for such a sweeping and costly rule.

The Wall Street Journal’s Dangerous Disservice to Investors

By Mike McNamee

September 22, 2015

For 75 years, mutual funds have successfully met their regulatory obligation to fulfill redemption requests within seven days, meeting investor demands and delivering on their investment objectives through good markets and bad.

Yet the Wall Street Journal seems determined to ignore this established history and the circumstances surrounding it. It has created a liquidity “measure” of its own devising—a test that no regulator has endorsed and no informed market participant would credit. The newspaper uses its self-invented process to imply that bond mutual funds are “pushing the limits” of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) guidelines governing fund liquidity.

New York Times Paints False Picture of Funds’ Emerging Market Investments

By Mike McNamee

August 24, 2015

With the global market turmoil over the past week, it’s no surprise that journalists are looking for hot stories of panic, investor flight, and impending crisis. Either they believe that investors are inherently flighty and panic-prone, or they believe that “this time is different” and investors who have not panicked before will panic now.

Ignore the IMF’s Uninformed Call for a Third Round of Reforms to U.S. Money Market Funds

By Jane Heinrichs and Chris Plantier

July 23, 2015

A year ago today, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted to adopt sweeping reforms to its rule governing money market funds.

The IMF on Asset Management: Handle Empirical Results with Care

By Chris Plantier

July 15, 2015

In this ICI Viewpoints series, we’ve examined the wide range of data errors, inconsistencies, results that don’t bear statistical scrutiny, and misinterpretations in the International Monetary Fund’s most recent Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR)—specifically, the chapter on “The Asset Management Industry and Financial Stability.” Those problems primarily involved poor understanding of funds and their investors. We didn’t need advanced statistical methods to uncover them.

ICI Welcomes IOSCO’S Call to Focus on Products and Activities in Asset Management

By Paul Schott Stevens

June 17, 2015

ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens today issued the following statement in response to the communiqué released today by the Board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)

How SIFI Designation Could Undermine Fund Governance: Parsing the Fed’s Proposal for GE Capital

By Paul Schott Stevens

June 16, 2015

Fund boards and independent directors have a long history of serving shareholder interests, yet today they face an alarming prospect that could threaten their ability to continue doing so.

Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in an Increasingly Connected World

By Todd Bernhardt

June 12, 2015

It’s increasingly obvious that we live in a world where cyber threats are evolving quickly and will remain persistent. But though such risks can never be eliminated, they can be managed, said panelists at ICI’s Operations and Technology Conference, held in conjunction with the Institute’s General Membership Meeting May 6–8 in Washington, DC.

Facing the Future: A Conversation with Former Chairmen

By Candice Gullett

June 11, 2015

On the second day of ICI’s annual General Membership Meeting (GMM), held May 6–8 in Washington, DC, three former ICI chairmen sat down with current ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens to share the lessons they learned over the course of their careers, as well as during their years of service as volunteer leaders at ICI.

Read more…

TOPICS: Mutual Fund Events GMM

Navigating Regulatory Developments and Meeting Investors’ Needs in a Global Industry

By Jeanne C. Arnold

June 9, 2015

There is a great opportunity for capital markets to develop all over the world, presenting a huge opportunity for the mutual fund industry, according to David Wright, secretary general of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO).

The IMF on Asset Management: Sorting the Retail and Institutional Investor “Herds”

By Sean Collins

June 4, 2015

Part of a series of ICI Viewpoints about problems in the IMF’s analysis of the asset management industry.

In this ICI Viewpoints series, we’re examining the wide range of data errors, inconsistencies, results that don’t bear statistical scrutiny, and misinterpretations in the International Monetary Fund’s April 2015 Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR)—specifically, the chapter on “The Asset Management Industry and Financial Stability.” These problems undercut the IMF’s conclusion that “Even simple investment funds such as mutual funds can pose financial stability risks.”

How Millennials Are Shaping the Evolution of Investment Advice

By Christina Kilroy

June 2, 2015

The future of investment advice—as embodied in the youngest cohort of working Americans, known as the Millennial Generation—was the focus of a panel of financial services industry leaders at ICI’s 57th General Membership Meeting. The approximately 75 million 18- to 34-year-olds that make up the group have now overtaken Generation X (ages 35 to 50) as the largest generational group in the workforce, according to Pew Research Center.

The IMF on Asset Management: Which Herd to Follow?

By Sean Collins

June 1, 2015

Part of a series of ICI Viewpoints about problems in the IMF’s analysis of the asset management industry.

In April 2015, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published its most recent Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR), which included a chapter titled, “The Asset Management Industry and Financial Stability.”

We have heard suggestions from more than one observer that the IMF’s GFSR Chapter on asset management provides a wealth of charts, tables, and data to support regulators’ case that regulated funds or asset managers could pose systemic risks.

Fresh Perspectives on a Changing World

By Miriam Bridges

May 29, 2015

Implications of globalization, the impact of the Millennial Generation on product development, the search for alpha in a world full of passive products—these were among the top priorities and concerns of the fund industry discussed by a panel of industry leaders at ICI’s 57th annual General Membership Meeting (GMM), held May 6–8 in Washington, DC.

The IMF on Asset Management: The Perils of Inexperience

By Sean Collins

May 28, 2015

Part of a series of ICI Viewpoints about problems in the IMF’s analysis of the asset management industry.

In April, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released its most recent Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR), including a chapter on “The Asset Management Industry and Financial Stability.”

Build Bridges, Not Walls: An Admiral’s Perspective on Global Security

By Rob Elson

May 27, 2015

If we are to strengthen global security, retired U.S. Navy Admiral James G. Stavridis says, we cannot continue to build walls—we must build bridges instead.

Read more…

TOPICS: Events GMM International

SEC Chair White Affirms Agency Has Tools to Address Risks in Industry

By Rachel McTague

May 8, 2015

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has the tools it needs to address systemic risks to the extent they exist in the asset management industry, said SEC Chair Mary Jo White at the opening session on the final day of ICI’s annual General Membership Meeting (GMM). White also announced that David Grim—who had been serving as acting director of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management—has just been named director of the division. White said she is thrilled that Grim, a 20-year veteran of the SEC in the investment management area, is taking the reins at a time when the Commission is moving forward to implement proactive regulations for the industry.

Nooyi’s Purpose, Pepsi’s Performance

By Rob Elson

May 7, 2015

We all have a moral compass. But for PepsiCo’s Indra Nooyi, “the moral compass of our lives must also be the moral compass of our livelihoods.”

Stirring words from the company’s chair and chief executive—and just a few of the many she delivered in a lively Q&A with Vanguard Chairman and CEO Bill McNabb at ICI’s 57th General Membership Meeting, which began yesterday in Washington, DC.

Opinion: The Tax Threat to Your Mutual Fund

By Mike McNamee

May 7, 2015

Vanguard Chairman and CEO Bill McNabb sent “an open letter to all mutual fund investors” in the opinion pages of Thursday’s Wall Street Journal. His message: fund investors face a clear threat of higher costs, weaker returns, and a bailout tax to salvage other failing financial institutions—all if regulators get their way in imposing new rules on funds or their managers.

GMM Policy Forum: “It Always Comes Down to Trust”

By Todd Bernhardt

May 6, 2015

Over the 75-year history of the modern mutual fund industry, funds have helped to democratize investing, providing a tremendous array of investing options at a reasonable cost for millions of people. And given rapid advances in technology and the efficiencies that they can bring, the future looks even brighter, said Walter W. Bettinger II at the opening session of ICI’s 57th General Membership Meeting (GMM).

2015 Investment Company Fact Book: Letter from the Chief Economist

By Brian Reid

May 4, 2015

A version of this letter by ICI Chief Economist Brian Reid was released today in our 55th edition of the Investment Company Fact Book.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the Investment Company Act and the Investment Advisers Act—the key statutes under which mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), closed-end funds, and unit investment trusts are regulated and governed. In 1940—the same year that Congress enacted these laws—the fund industry formed the National Committee of Investment Companies, the trade group that became the Investment Company Institute (ICI).

ICI Global Welcomes the Announcement of More Stock Connects in Asia Pacific

By Qiumei Yang

April 22, 2015

In response to the announcement about a launch date for the Taiwan Stock Exchange and Singapore Exchange trading link, and recent reports of a possible Shenzhen–Hong Kong Stock Connect, ICI Global’s Qiumei Yang offers the following comment:

The IMF Quietly Changes Its Data, but Not Its Views

By Chris Plantier

April 21, 2015

On Friday, April 10, we pointed out that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) apparently had vastly overstated the size and growth of bond fund holdings of emerging market bonds in its latest Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR).

Federal Reserve Reverse Repo Facility Helps Stabilize Short-Term Money Markets

By Chris Plantier

April 17, 2015

Following a pattern observed at the end of recent quarters, money market fund holdings of European issuers dropped at the end of March, although the decline was not as large as the previous quarter, ending December 2014. As we have noted before, for regulatory reasons European banks have been paring their balance sheets at the end of each quarter, resulting in a temporary decline in their desire to borrow from money market funds.

More Unfounded Speculation on Bond ETFs and Financial Stability

By Shelly Antoniewicz and Mike McNamee

April 13, 2015

A recent column in the Financial Times warns of “another accident in waiting” in the growth of fixed-income exchange-traded funds (ETFs)—described as “financial alchemy” that converts illiquid bonds into “baskets” that “trade moment to moment on the stock exchanges.” This “illusory” ETF liquidity will disappear, the author warns, when investors “want to move en masse, and quickly, when the going gets less good.”

The IMF Is Entitled to Its Opinion, but Not to Its Own Facts

By Sean Collins and Chris Plantier

April 10, 2015

On Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund released its latest Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR), including a chapter on the asset management industry and financial stability.

On Fiduciary Rule, New York Times Relies on Fatally Flawed Research

By Paul Schott Stevens

April 8, 2015

Today I submitted the following letter to the editor of the New York Times:

Designation’s Vast Reach into Investor Portfolios

By Paul Schott Stevens

March 24, 2015

On Wednesday, March 25, I’ll testify before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs about the Financial Stability Oversight Council’s process for designating nonbank firms as “systemically important financial institutions,” or SIFIs.

Once Again, Information Moves Markets

By Sean Collins

March 18, 2015

Treasury yields fell sharply today and the stock market jumped. Wouldn’t it be nice if mutual funds could take credit? Unfortunately, they can’t. Any orders that mutual fund investors place to buy or sell shares anytime today before 4:00 p.m. won’t hit the market until 4:00 p.m., just like any other day. And, if you are reading this blog post at the time of its posting, 4:00 p.m. is still 10 minutes away.

Does Liquidity in ETFs Depend Solely on Authorized Participants?

By Shelly Antoniewicz and Jane Heinrichs

March 16, 2015

ICI recently conducted a survey of its members that sponsor exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to collect information on authorized participants (APs)—typically market makers or large institutional investors with an ETF trading desk that have entered into a legal contract with an ETF to create and redeem shares of the fund.

Why Long-Term Fund Flows Aren’t a Systemic Risk: Multi-Sector Review Shows the Same Result

By Sean Collins

March 4, 2015

In a recent blog post discussing why we believe flows from long-term mutual funds do not pose risk to the financial system, we posted a chart showing that outflows from bond funds are modest even during periods of stress in the financial markets.

Getting the Numbers Right on Investment Advice for Retirement Savers

By Brian Reid

February 26, 2015

As the Wall Street Journal noted this morning, ICI has deep concerns about the data used in a White House memorandum to support the Department of Labor’s push for tighter standards for financial advisers who help investors in employer plans—such as 401(k)s—and individual retirement accounts (IRAs).

Simple Answers to the Federal Reserve’s Quandaries

By Mike McNamee

February 24, 2015

The Federal Reserve System can’t get past its perplexities on the role of mutual funds in financial stability. Time and again, the Fed’s governors, regional presidents, and staff return to the same hypothetical risks and speculative scenarios in which mutual funds somehow pose a threat to the financial system.

Why Long-Term Fund Flows Aren’t a Systemic Risk: Understanding the Data on Institutional and Retail Investors

By Sean Collins

February 20, 2015

In two previous ICI Viewpoints posts, I discussed the muted response of investors in long-term funds―which invest primarily in stocks, bonds, or both―to financial stresses, and examined some of the characteristics of funds and their investors that help explain that muted response.

Why Long-Term Fund Flows Aren’t a Systemic Risk: Plus Ça Change, Plus C’est La Même Chose

By Sean Collins

February 19, 2015

As discussed in a previous ICI Viewpoints post, regulators and others have voiced concerns that long-term funds―funds that invest primarily in stocks, bonds, or both―might experience large outflows during a financial crisis, adding pressure on financial markets.

Why Long-Term Fund Flows Aren’t a Systemic Risk: Past Is Prologue

By Sean Collins

February 18, 2015

A recent Brookings Institution conference on Asset Management, Financial Stability, and Economic Growth aired the “active policy debate on how to regulate asset managers to maximize economic growth without endangering financial stability.”

European Banks Borrow Less from MMFs; the Federal Reserve Borrows More

By Chris Plantier

January 20, 2015

As we discussed in April and July of last year, due to regulatory pressures European banks generally have become less willing to borrow from U.S. money market funds (MMFs), especially at the end of the quarter. This quarter-end effect was particularly large at the end of December 2014.

Plenty of Players Provide Liquidity for ETFs

By Shelly Antoniewicz

December 2, 2014

A recent article in the Financial Times’ FT Alphaville blog (“Lies, Damned Lies, and Liquidity Expectations”) focused on a paper published by the Committee on the Global Financial System, an organization that monitors developments in global financial markets for central bank governors.

What’s Driving Retirement Plan Access?

By Peter Brady

October 17, 2014

Most workers who are likely to have the ability to save and who are focused primarily on saving for retirement have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan—and nearly all of these workers choose to participate.

The IMF Makes All of OFR’s Mistakes—And More

By Sean Collins and Chris Plantier

October 10, 2014

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) just released its latest Global Financial Stability Report. In the immortal words of Yogi Berra, it is déjà vu all over again.

The IMF report bears more than a passing resemblance to Asset Management and Financial Stability, published by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Research (OFR) in September 2013. The OFR report was met with widespread criticism for its misinformed discussion of hypothetical “vulnerabilities” posed by mutual funds and other asset managers.

Bloomberg Ignores the Evidence on Bond ETFs

By Mike McNamee

September 26, 2014

In response to “Pimco ETF Probe Spotlighting $270 Billion Market Vexing FSB,” we posted the following comment on Bloomberg News’ website:

Why Regulated Funds Are a Relatively Stable Source of Foreign Investment for Emerging Economies

By Chris Plantier

September 26, 2014

The press and policymakers focus a great deal of attention on flows to U.S. and European regulated mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), in part because these funds are perhaps the most easily observed and readily measured players in capital markets.

A Look Inside ETFs and ETF Trading

By Rochelle Antoniewicz and Jane Heinrichs

September 23, 2014

Investors in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are trading shares with each other far more than they are turning to authorized participants to create or redeem shares.

For Money Market Funds, Massive Preparation Has Paid Off in Smooth Transition

By Marty Burns

WAMs and WALs of Prime Money Market Funds Are at All-Time Lows Number of days; weekly, January 6, 2015–September 20, 2016

Summary of the new money market fund rules

Funds are working toward smooth implementation

What does this mean for investors?

US T+2 Is Coming—and Bringing Many Benefits with It

By Ahmed Elghazaly

Revised Fed Data Show Mutual Funds’ Share of Corporate Bond Market Is Small and Stable

By Shelly Antoniewicz

Cybersecurity at Work: The Risks of Information Sharing

By Peter Salmon

Ten Years After the PPA, the Path to Retirement Saving Is Easier

By Sarah Holden and Elena Barone Chism

Secure Choice Is Risky for Workers and for the State

By Paul Schott Stevens

Matching Models to Reality: Bond Market Investors Don’t Follow the “First-Mover” Script

By Brian Reid

Matching Models to Reality: In a Falling Market, the Real “Movers” May Be...the Buyers

By Brian Reid

Matching Models to Reality: The Real-World Challenges to Regulators’ “First-Mover” Hypothesis

By Sean Collins

Matching Models to Reality: Doomsayers Are Disappointed—Again—as Funds Weather Brexit Shock

By Paul Schott Stevens

Building on the Success of the Private-Sector Retirement System Is the Real “Secure Choice”

By David Blass

It’s Time: SEC Proposals Show the Need to Reexamine the Role of Fund Boards

By Amy B. R. Lancellotta

The Liquidity Provided by ETFs Is No Mirage

By Todd Bernhardt

Cybersecurity at Work: The Benefits of Information Sharing Networks

By Peter Salmon

When Investor Protection Becomes Protectionism

By Patrice Bergé-Vincent

Industry Operations Leaders Address Needs of Investors and Advisers

By Candice Gullett

Industry Leaders Address Changing Industry Terrain

By Miriam Bridges

Conducting Business in a Rapidly Changing World

By Jeanne Arnold

A Changing Landscape for the Fund Industry—and Fund Investors

By Rob Elson

Ops Leaders Extol the Transformational Power of Data and Analytics

By Todd Bernhardt

The SEC’s Historic Success: Six Key Ingredients

By Paul Schott Stevens

SEC Chair White Expects Continued ‘Bright Spotlight’ on Asset Management

By Rachel McTague

Walter Isaacson: Where Art Meets Science

By Rob Elson

GMM Policy Forum: Michael Bloomberg and the Focus on Value

By Todd Bernhardt

To the SEC and FINRA: It’s Your Move

By David W. Blass

Cybersecurity at Work: Exercise Is Important

By Peter Salmon

The SEC’s Online-Delivery Gift to Fund Shareholders

By David W. Blass

Factors Contributing to the Decline of Expense Ratios in 2015

By Sean Collins and James Duvall

Cybersecurity at Work: Incident Response Plans and What They Entail

By Peter Salmon

Yes, Funds Come and Go—Without Government Help

By Todd Bernhardt

The “Waterfall Theory” of Liquidity Management Doesn’t Hold Water

By Sean Collins and Chris Plantier

Three Reasons Why You Should Consider an IRA

By Sarah Holden

Getting Started in a 401(k) Plan—and Getting the Most Out of It

By Christina Kilroy

How America Supports Retirement: The Incentive to Save Is Not Upside Down

By Peter J. Brady

Models vs. the Real World—Why Bond Funds Aren’t the Bond Market

By Chris Plantier and Sean Collins

How America Supports Retirement: What Do Tax Rates Have to Do with the Benefits of Tax Deferral? Less Than You Think

By Peter J. Brady

MetLife Case Shows That “Assuming the Worst of the Worst of the Worst” Doesn’t Work

By Mike McNamee

How America Supports Retirement: No, Benefits Are Not “Tilted” to the Higher Earners

By Peter J. Brady

WAMs and WALs of Prime Money Market Funds Are at All-Time Lows
Number of days; weekly, January 6, 2015–September 20, 2016