The Treasury securities held in escrows that were bid in recent years have likely appreciated substantially in value due changes in interest rates, and we are seeing that dealers are willing and often eager to buy back these securities
Many issuers with outstanding variable rate demand bonds (“VRDBs”) have been closely tracking the SIFMA index in recent weeks, due to increased market volatility
tilizing a GIC as opposed to a Repurchase Agreement (“Repo”) for the reinvestment of bond proceeds can result in a higher yield of approximately 25 basis points, depending on the balance invested, the time period for which the balance is invested, and the type of collateral that is eligible under a Repo agreement
A money-market fund offers a short-term variable rate that, in the current inverted yield curve environment, is often higher than the long-term fixed rate offered by a laddered portfolio investment
Generally, in a positively sloped yield curve environment, issuers benefit from investing the bond proceeds in their project funds by purchasing investments with a longer duration that offer a higher yield when compared with money market funds or other short duration instruments
Rather than investing the entire reserve fund in a single longer-term security, clients are choosing to purchase a laddered portfolio of securities, scheduled to mature over several years. As each security matures, it can be rolled over and reinvested at then prevailing interest rates
By design, the yields on State and Local Government Series (SLGS) securities are slightly lower than the yields on open market securities (OMS)
The National Association of Bond Lawyers (NABL) held a conference this month where a panel entitled “Tax Hot Topics” inspired a discussion on taxable advance refundings
Given the elimination of tax-exempt advance refundings as a result of the 2017 tax reform act and the precipitous decline in interest rates over the past few months, many borrowers are finding that a taxable advance refunding achieves their savings goals and may even be preferable by potentially eliminating tax compliance concerns
While there has since been some speculation that the White House will continue its support of the agreement, it would offer a solution for spending considerations
