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Investment Research 9 August 2016 The US Money Market Reform The Scandi angle Over the summer, we have seen a pronounced rise in USD Libor rates, FRA-OIS spreads, EUR/USD CCS basis and TED spreads have all widened. The main culprit is the US money market reform (MMR) and the new regulatory requirements that will come into effect on 14 October this year. The MMR reform has resulted in large flows in the US money market, where assets of more than USD500bn have left prime money market funds that will have to adopt the new requirements and into government money market funds that are exempt. We ask the question, when will we find a new equilibrium in the market that can put a brake on the relentless rise in USD Libor fixings? We argue: The higher rates in the money and the CP market should start to attract new investors. For eurozone banks, we are now approaching a level where it may soon be cheaper to get USD funding through the ECB USD facility than in the market. Finally, it seems that many banks have accepted a shorter maturity on their funding, though it might collide with other regulatory incentives, especially LCR. Investors have moved out of money market funds and into government money market funds Source: Bloomberg, Danske Bank Markets However, it is probably too early to call an end to the move higher in USD Libor fixings and spillover to other markets as long as the outflow from prime money market funds continues. But the speed should, in our view, moderate now as we have already seen a USD500bn flow out of a stock of around USD1,500bn. The Scandi angle In Sweden, the net effect from the US MMR has been a downward pressure on Stibor fixings. The US MMR has dented demand for USD CPs issued by Swedish banks and banks’ need for USD funding seem instead to have been met through the USDSEK FX forward market indirectly pushing Stibor fixings lower. In Norway, money market rates have risen on the back of NIBOR fixings’ connection to USD/NOK FX forwards and tight NOK liquidity. The higher NIBOR-policy rate spread is an implicit monetary tightening in Norway that Norges Bank historically has referred to when cutting rates. In isolation, the US MM-reform thereby supports our call for additional rate cuts. The higher NIBOR fixings have meant that ASW-spreads for shorter-dated NGBs have widened significantly relative to longer-dated NGBs. If the USD Libor continues to rise, then this will add to the ASW-spread widening. The impact on the Danish market is mainly seen in the USDDKK FX forward, whereas there is no effect to be seen on CIBOR fixings. In general, the moves in the USD/NOK and USD/SEK FX forward and USDSEK and USDNOK CCS basis make it attractive for investors to buy short-dated DKK and SEK government papers and swap them into USD for an extra pick-up relative to US T-bills. The high NIBOR fixings mean it is not attractive to swap NOK T-bills into USD despite the positive NOK T-bill yield. Important disclosures and certifications are contained from page 10 of this report. Chief Analyst, Head of Fixed Income Research Arne Lohmann Rasmussen +45 4512 85 32 [email protected] Senior Analyst Carl Milton +46 (0)8-567 80698 [email protected] Analyst Kristoffer Kjær Lomholt +45 4512 8529 [email protected] Analyst Mathias Røn Mogensen +45 4514 7226 [email protected] www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform The Money Market Reform The US money market reform (MMR) was decided on in 2014 and came as a response to the collapse of the Reserve Primary Fund in 2008. The reform was adopted in July 2014 and will Money market funds come into effect on 14 October this year. A money market fund is a type of fund typically investing in short-term securities, such as government securities, certificates of deposit and commercial papers. There are several types of money market funds, e.g. funds investing primarily in government securities or corporate debt securities. Money market funds that primarily invest in corporate debt securities are referred to as prime funds. (Source: US Securities and Exchange Commission) The most controversial part of the reform is the rules for NAV and the liquidity fees and redemption gates: NAV: The MMR introduces a floating net asset value (NAV) for sales and redemptions based on the current market value of the securities in the portfolio. Historically, focus has been on the ability to preserve the value of investments at USD1 a share. Hence, the risk has increased, all else equal, that a fund will ‘break the buck’. (NAV going below USD1). Liquidity Fees and Redemption Gates: Will provide new tools to money market funds to address a potential run on a fund. The new tool tools will give funds the ability to impose liquidity fees or to suspend redemptions. They will be enacted if a fund’s level of ‘weekly liquid assets’ falls below a certain threshold. Hence, investors in money market funds are now facing liquidity and redemption risks from 14 October and onwards. Given that money market funds are often used as liquidity instruments and conceived as low risk by investors, the new rules have not been welcomed. Importantly, government money market funds would not be subject to the new fees and gates provisions. Therefore, we are currently witnessing an outflow from prime money market funds, where the new rules will be effective, to government money market funds that are exempt. Furthermore, the rules of when a fund can be labelled Government money market funds have been tightened. A fund would only be defined as such if it invests 99.5 percent (formerly 80 percent) or more of https://www.sec.gov/answers/mfmmkt. htm https://www.sec.gov/spotlight/mone y-market.shtml its total assets in cash, government securities and/or repurchase agreements that are collateralised solely by government securities or cash. Consequences of the MMR The move we have seen out of US prime money market funds this year has been very comprehensive, with close to USD500bn leaving this type of money market funds. Importantly, the move out of money market reforms has accelerated over the last couple of months, especially as 3M papers now extend over the 14 October MMR date. Assets have instead moved to government money market funds exempt from the controversial parts of the reform. Shift of assets in the US money market Source: Macrobond Financial 2| 9 August 2016 www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform This move has had some notable consequences. USD liquidity has become less abundant and we have seen a significant move higher in USD Libor rates. The effect has been more pronounced in longer tenors and USD Libor fixings continue to set new highs and we are at levels not seen since 2009. Furthermore, the move higher in USD Libor rates has accelerated Outflow from US prime money market funds and increasing FRA/OIS spread over the summer. The move indirectly works as a tightening of US monetary policy. The move out of prime money market funds and the move higher in USD Libor rates have come through a widening of the FRA-OIS spread as seen in the graph to the right. The move out of prime money market funds has also affected the Commercial Paper (CP) market. The demand for CP has dropped as assets have been moved out of the prime money market funds. Hence, the USD funding costs for e.g. European banks using USD CPs have gone up. The US TED spread (difference between USD Libor – 3M generic US T-bill yield) has also moved higher in 2016 compared to 2015 as assets have moved into government money market funds, depressing the yield on US T-bills relative to the USD Libor. Note that the move in the TED spread is mainly a move higher in USD Libor, whereas the 3M T-bill level has been more or less stable. Source: Macrobond Financials, Danske Bank Markets US TED spread has widened USD Libor at levels not seen since 2009 Source: Bloomberg, Danske Bank Markets Source: Bloomberg, Danske Bank Markets When will a new equilibrium be found? The big question now is when we will find a new equilibrium in the market that can put a brake on the relentless rise in USD Libor fixings and stop the spill-overs and feedback mechanisms to and from other markets such as CCS basis, FX forwards, CP market, etc. ECB USD weekly fixed USD rates still below 3M USD Libor First of all, the higher rates in the money and the CP market should start to attract new investors. Some of the ‘old investors’ in short-dated government bonds will probably start to switch into the higher-yielding money market products, including the CP market. It could be everything from retail investors, corporate clients with excess cash or foreign accounts with USD assets. But in that respect note that we have a ‘hump’ of CP programmes maturing ahead of the 14 October deadline, as the cost for issuing CPs with a maturity beyond the 14 October deadline has been high for a long time. 3| 9 August 2016 Source: Bloomberg, Danske Bank Markets www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform Secondly, especially for foreign banks including eurozone banks, we are now approaching a level where it may soon be cheaper to get funding through ECB utilising the USD swap lines that were established in the wake of the financial crisis. However, the use of these liquidity facilities are probably still attached with some kind of stigma and it is also lending against collateral. Furthermore, it is a weekly USD facility that the ECB is offering. Hence, this can create other issues especially in a LCR (Liquidity Coverage Ratio) world. The rate on the latest USD tender operation from the ECB was a weekly fixed rate of 0.90%, close to the current 3M USD Libor rate of 0.79%, but still well above the 0.50% 1M USD Libor rate. Finally, it seems that many banks have accepted a shorter maturity on their funding. But of course such a strategy again can collide with other regulatory incentives, especially LCR requirements. Furthermore, it is important to remember that the ‘amount’ of USD liquidity in the US market is unchanged. It is the preference for placing USD in different assets that has changed. One consequence being that USD liquidity is flowing less ‘frictionless’ to Europe through, for instance, CPs. All in all, it is probably too early to call an end to the move higher in USD Libor fixings and spill-over to other markets as long as the outflow from prime money market funds continues. But the speed should, in our view, moderate now as we already see a USD500bn flow out of a stock of around USD1,500bn. The amount of CPs maturing ahead of the 14 October deadline is a clear risk factor here. In respect of the outright level, the recent move higher also has an effect on US monetary policy and makes a September rate hike even more unlikely despite the latest strong labour market report. If 3M USD Libor moves another 10bp higher, it will basically mirror a 25bp hike in the Fed Funds rate. FX forwards and CCS market The big flows in the US money market and the issues with CP programmes have also affected the cross currency basis (CCS) market, where USD has become more expensive against EUR. It reflects that an alternative to e.g. an USD CP programme is to ‘create’ USD using the FX forward or CCS market. The 3M EURUSD CCS has declined as the relative liquidity component (Eonia/OIS CCS basis) has weighed more on the 3M EURUSD CCS than the opposite drag from the relative credit component (FRA/OIS - FRA/Eonia). Hence, the liquidity preference (USD shortage) has outweighed the increase in the USD 3M relative to 3M EUR. Note that we have seen no effect on Euribor from the higher USD Libor. 3M EURUSD CCS: relative credit and liquidity Source: Bloomberg, Danske Bank Markets The front-end of the USD FRA/OIS spread curve has increased substantially, in particular in the front–end and to some extent in the belly, while the move has been more muted in longer tenors. EURUSD CCS spot curves USD FRA/OIS spread curves 50 bp 0 -10 40 -20 30 bp -30 20 -40 10 -50 Tenor -60 3m 6m 1y 18m 2y Current curve (08-Aug-16) 3y 4y 5y -1m (08-Jul-16) Source: Danske Bank Markets 4| 9 August 2016 6y 7y 8y 9y 10y -6m (08-Feb-16) Tenor 0 1y 2y 3y 4y 5y 6y Current (08-Aug-2016) 7y 8y 9y 10y 11y 12y 13y 14y 15y -1m (08-Jul-16) -6m (08-Feb-16) Source: Danske Bank Markets www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform This pattern is also reflected in the USD ASW curve (3M). Hence, the recent move in the US ASW curve seems to have been driven mainly by the change in the USD FRA/OIS spread curve. The move of assets into government money market funds seems to have depressed the yield on US T-bills, with some spill-over to also shorter (sub 5Y) US Treasury yields. This is reflected by moves in the US ASW OIS curve that has widened (become less negative) more in the 2y compared to the 10y US ASW OIS. US 2Y ASW 3M: FRA/OIS and ASW OIS US 10Y ASW 3M: FRA/OIS and ASW OIS Source: Danske Bank Markets, Bloomberg Source: Danske Bank Markets, Bloomberg In the FX forward market, we have seen as a consequence of the changes in the CCS basis and the higher USD Libor some significant moves in EUR/USD FX forwards, and it has become increasingly expensive to ‘create’ USD in the FX forward market. That said it is difficult to say whether it is the higher USD Libor fixings that have an effect on the EURUSD FX forwards or vice versa. The causality is not always clear. Expensive to create USD in FX forward market Basis explains a large part of expensive USD in the FX forward market (EUR/USD FX forward decomposed into basis and OIS spread on different tenors) Short EUR/USD 2.5% 1.240 1.220 2.0% 1.200 1.160 1.140 1.0% 1.120 Forward level 1.180 1.5% 1.100 0.5% 1.080 1.060 0.0% 1.040 Spot 1M 2M Nominal interest rate difference Source: Bloomberg, Danske Bank Markets 5| 9 August 2016 3M 6M 9M Tenors Basis spread 12M 18M 2Y Forward level (right axis) 3Y 5Y Annualized carry Source: Danske Bank Markets www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform Sweden – downward pressure on Stibor In Sweden, the net effect from the U.S. money market framework changes has meant downward pressure on fixings, with front-end Ted spreads (FRA vs Riba) trading in clear negative territory (-4bp for FRA DEC16 vs Riba Mar17). We see this very unusual situation as driven by price action in USDSEK FX forwards. More on that below. Big move USDSEK FX forwards, pips Source: Macrobond financials If we take a step back, Swedish banks have historically been large issuers of USD-denominated CPs and have no doubt been impacted by the upcoming regulatory changes. One reason for the significant issuance of USD denominated papers is the structural demand from SEK-based investors for USD funding. Several large domestic pension funds hold significant amounts of foreign assets, but have wanted to avoid the outright FX exposure. This has created a large aggregate USD funding need, generally met though banking counterparts. This is nothing new and has been highlighted as a risk factor by the Riksbank on numerous occasions (see for instance:http://www.riksbank.se/Documents/Rapporter/FSR/2013/FSR_1/rap_fsr1_130527_en g.pdf from page 52). Sizeable USD CP programmes by Swedish banks Prime MMF Holdings of Bank Related Securities, by Country, June 2016 160 USD, billions 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Source: SEC However, in conjunction with the new U.S. rules, demand for USD CPs issued by Swedish banks has fallen, and banks’ need for USD funding seems instead to have been met through the USDSEK FX forward market. Despite a gradual rise in the 3M USD Libor fixing, when swapped to SEK 3M USD Libor it has implied a lower 3M Stibor fixing. 6| 9 August 2016 www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform The chart below shows how 3M Stibor compares to 3M Euribor and 3M USD Libor swapped to SEK using the FX forward market. As can be seen, historically the relationship has been fairly strong between 3M Euribor swapped to SEK and 3M Stibor. For a long time, swapped 3M USD Libor has pointed towards lower 3M Stibor fixings, but this has accelerated during the summer. Downward pressure on STIBOR 1.0% 3M Euribor swapped to SEK 3M USD Libor swapped to SEK 3m STIBOR 0.5% 0.0% -0.5% -1.0% -1.5% Jan-14 Jul-14 Feb-15 Aug-15 Mar-16 Sep-16 Source: Danske Bank Markets The more explicit framework by the Swedish Bankers’ Association implemented in 2012 (http://www.swedishbankers.se/Documents/Stibor/Ramverket%20del%202%20och%203%20 EN%20%204_0%20febr%202016%20.pdf) includes a reference to USD funding swapped to SEK. It is obviously this component that has been a significant in driving Stibor fixings lower. One could argue, however, that the composition of banks’ funding has shifted as the access to the USD CP market is significantly more difficult, meaning that the share of USD CP funding should have decreased. Or the low implied Stibor fixings from swapped USD Libor may simply reflect the fact that price movements in FX forwards have moved much faster than the stickier USD Libor fixing. In that case, the negative Ted spreads observed may simply be an overreaction that may settle over time. Continued volatility and Stibor below Riksbank repo rate for now On a longer horizon, it will be of significant importance what happens with demand for USDdenominated CPs issued by Swedish banks. Swedish banks clearly remain among the most solid European banks and are therefore well placed once the uncertainty regarding the new regulations decreases. In such a scenario, Ted spreads should quickly normalise towards positive levels (albeit low levels, given the large excess of SEK liquidity accumulated after Riksbank QE). However, we could see continued volatility before the regulations are in place. Thus, 3M Stibor below the current Riksbank repo rate could remain a lasting feature over the next months. So far, partly because it is a new development, there has been little discussion regarding the negative fixing spreads outside financial markets. From a Riksbank perspective, a smaller deviation in Stibor will probably not attract much attention. Rather, potential implications for longer-term financial stability may come into more focus if demand for CP issued by European banks in USD does not recover in coming months. 7| 9 August 2016 www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform Higher NIBOR fixings in Norway In Norway, the benchmark NIBOR rate fixings are based on FX forwards as specified by the rules laid down by Finance Norway. Specifically, a panel of six banks report daily fixings NIBOR fixing methodology backed out from USD/NOK FX forwards using individually estimated costs of borrowing unsecured USD in the interbank market (for more info see box to the right and Additional Guidelines for panel banks’ Nibor submissions). NIBOR fixings are backed out from the In practice, this has the important implication that NIBOR fixings are not only influenced by domestic monetary policy expectations, but also by international conditions even if this is not expected to influence the domestic interbank market. As the chart below-left shows, NIBOR rose during the European debt crisis as a result of eurozone money market stress. Over the last few years, the NIBOR-policy rate spread has again risen as a result of first ECB QE and now the US money market reform both widening the relative USD-shortage premium in combination with relatively tight NOK money market liquidity, cf. mid chart below. USD/NOK FX forward via the covered interest rate parity (CIP), 1 i NOK F S 1 iUSD , such that: NIBOR = FX Forward (in %) + ‘USD rate’ As Norges Bank aims at keeping reserves within a fixed interval, the relatively tight NOK liquidity means that a wider US FRA/OIS spread will have a tendency to push NIBOR fixings are determined via USD/NOK FX forwards… …which leaves the NIBOR-policy rate spread vulnerable to basis. NIBOR fixings higher, cf. chart below. Nibor fixings have risen on the back of a higher USD ‘shortage’ premium Source: Macrobond Financial, Danske Bank Source: Macrobond Financial, Danske Bank The higher NIBOR fixings result in an unwanted de facto monetary tightening in Norway. Indeed, the NIBOR-policy rate spread is one of the most cited factors in Norges Bank’s monetary policy for a lower rate path. In June, Norges Bank implicitly assumed that the 3M NIBOR-policy rate spread would fall back to an average of 28bp in Q3 - i.e. a much tighter spread than now – whilst at the same time signalling a 100% probability of a 25bp rate cut in September under a ‘Bremain’ scenario. In isolation, the money market reform in the US therefore supports our call for a September rate cut – a call strengthened by the drop in the oil price, lower global rates and Brexit-related uncertainties. In this respect, it is important that the import-weighted NOK only is modestly weaker than NB assumed in June (c. 0.6%), which is not enough to prevent a cut. Also, it is noteworthy how the NOK has followed the oil price development closely while it has stayed fairly immune to higher NOK rates. The NOK has followed oil closely… Source: Macrobond Financial, Danske Bank …and been remarkably immune to higher NOK rates Source: Macrobond, Danske Bank Markets Norges Bank projected a tighter NIBOR-policy rate spread in June Source: Macrobond Financial, Danske Bank Source: Macrobond, Danske Bank Markets 8| 9 August 2016 www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform The higher NIBOR fixings have started to have an impact also on the Norwegian swap curve as market participants start to see this as being a more permanent feature of the US money market and henceforth NIBOR fixings. Most notable has been a recent widening for short NGB asset swap spreads as seen in the chart below. Norwegian asset swap spreads have widened 0 NGB 4.50 22MAY2019 NGB 3.75 25MAY2021 NGB 2 24MAY2023 NGB 1.75 13MAR2025 NGB 1.50 19FEB2026 -10 -20 -30 -40 -50 -60 -70 -80 Jan-15 Apr-15 Jul-15 Oct-15 Jan-16 Apr-16 Jul-16 Source: Danske Bank Markets 9| 9 August 2016 www.danskeresearch.com The US Money Market Reform Disclosures This research report has been prepared by Danske Bank Markets, a division of Danske Bank A/S (‘Danske Bank’). The authors of the research report are Arne Lohmann Rasmussen, Chief Analyst, Head of Fixed Income Research, Carl Milton, Senior Analyst, Kristoffer Kjær Lomholt, Analyst, and Mathias Røn Mogensen, Analyst. Analyst certification Each research analyst responsible for the content of this research report certifies that the views expressed in the research report accurately reflect the research analyst’s personal view about the financial instruments and issuers covered by the research report. Each responsible research analyst further certifies that no part of the compensation of the research analyst was, is or will be, directly or indirectly, related to the specific recommendations expressed in the research report. Regulation Danske Bank is authorised and subject to regulation by the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority and is subject to the rules and regulation of the relevant regulators in all other jurisdictions where it conducts business. Danske Bank is subject to limited regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority (UK). Details on the extent of the regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority are available from Danske Bank on request. The research reports of Danske Bank are prepared in accordance with the Danish Society of Financial Analysts’ rules of ethics and the recommendations of the Danish Securities Dealers Association. 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In addition, the research analysts of Danske Bank who have prepared this research report are not registered or qualified as research analysts with the NYSE or FINRA but satisfy the applicable requirements of a non-U.S. jurisdiction. Any U.S. investor recipient of this research report who wishes to purchase or sell any Relevant Financial Instrument may do so only by contacting Danske Markets Inc. directly and should be aware that investing in non-U.S. financial instruments may entail certain risks. Financial instruments of non-U.S. issuers may not be registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and may not be subject to the reporting and auditing standards of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 11 | 9 August 2016 www.danskeresearch.com