Following the initial outbreak of COVID-19 and the ensuing economic turmoil that immediately followed, the BDA has led the broker-dealer response from advocating for muni relief in multiple stimulus packages, to helping shape the muni and corporate liquidity facilities currently being developed at the Federal Reserve. Below is an Outline of Actions Taken by the…
Author: Bond Dealers of America
Fed Expected to Begin Purchases in Primary and Secondary Corporate Credit Facility
Today, the New York Fed announced that the Primary and Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facilities will begin making purchases soon, starting with ETF’s. The Fed expects to operationalize the Secondary Facility first, followed “shortly after” by the Primary Market Facility. The BDA recently wrote in favor of the Feds Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility. The…
MSRB Seeks to Amend Certain Rules to Align With Regulation Best Interest
Today, the MSRB filed proposed amendments with the SEC to align MSRB rules with the requirements of SEC Regulation Best Interest . The MSRB’s proposal is designed to reduce complexity in financial regulation and facilitate compliance with Reg BI. The proposed effective date is the compliance date for Reg BI, June 30, 2020. The filing can be…
The Washington Weekly: Bankruptcy or Direct Support?
Legislative Recap: Political furor has struck the US Senate as state and local governments begin to feel the negative effects of the COVID-19 shutdown. In the past week, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has indicted that further stimulus may not be needed, and that states should rely on bankruptcy instead of federal bailout. His…
BDA Hosts Reg BI Conference Call with SEC, FINRA, and MSRB
Today, the BDA along with Retail Committee leaders hosted a conference call with representatives from the SEC, FINRA, and the MSRB to discuss the implementation of the best interest standard known as Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI), which has a compliance date of June 30th. Following the SEC announcement stating that the Commission will continue to…
House to Feature PABs and BABs in State and Local Stimulus Package
House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) today announced on a call with a group of Mayors that the House is putting together legislation to aide state and local governments struggling with lost revenues due to the ongoing COVID – 19 pandemic. On top of the expected direct funding, the package will include “tax-advantaged…
BDA Submits Comments on Draft Amendments to MSRB Rule A-3: Membership on the Board
Today, following extensive work with BDA membership committees and leadership, the BDA submitted comments in response to the MSRB request for comment on Draft Amendments to Rule A-3. The comment letter can be viewed here. The BDA comments, among other points, requests that the MSRB consider: A five-year separation requirement for independent directors is too…
Fed Expands Scope and Duration of Municipal Liquidity Facility
Announcement Follows BDA Requests for Expansion This afternoon, the Federal Reserve announced it has expanded the scope and duration of the Municipal Liquidity Facility. The press release can be viewed here. This decisions follows BDA recommendations including in a BondBuyer op-ed and the April 15th comments in which the BDA urged the Fed to expand the scope of…
BDA Op-Ed: The Fed Took a Big Step Into the Municipal Market, But it Won’t be Enough
Today, the BondBuyer featured an op-ed by BDA’s Michael Decker on the Fed’s recent actions in the municipal market including the creation of the Municipal Liquidity Facility(MLF). The op-ed can be viewed here. In the piece, the Fed’s positive initial steps are discussed, while also potential problems caused by limiting access to the MLF to only…
BDA Survey Results – Broker Dealer Workforce Re-Integration
BDA is pleased to present results from our recent member survey – completed by approximately two dozen firms – on Workforce Re-Integration given health concerns related to COVID-19 and both Federal and State government recommendations on social distancing. BDA is organizing a member firm conference call to discuss the survey results and for member to…