Heavy lobbying continues in the lead-up to what some expect will be an Aug. 29 Securities and Exchange Commission vote on controversial money market reforms.
- Over one dozen organizations and companies involved with the retirement plan industry, including the Investment Company Institute, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries sent a letter to the SEC on Monday expressing concern about expected SEC proposals.
- A group including the mayors of 14 U.S. cities submitted a letter to the SEC earlier this week objecting to reported SEC proposals. They included the mayors of Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, Indianapolis, Baltimore, Raleigh, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
- Institutional Cash Distributor (ICD), a San Francisco-based company that provides, among other things, a money market fund trading platform with exposure analytics, jumped into the fray with the publication of a “ICD Intelligencer – Closing Arguments: In Defense of Money Market Funds.” The publication was mailed to more than 320 key regulators and policymakers last week and a press release was issued this week.
It is expected that the SEC’s proposal would require money funds to allow their net-asset values to float rather than remain fixed at $1 per share, or set aside capital to protect against losses while holding back a portion of shareholders’ cash for 30 days when they seek to withdraw all their money. The Aug. 29 date for a public vote by all five commissioners could reportedly be delayed as SEC chairman Mary Schapiro works to gain support for the proposal.
An SEC spokeswoman declined to comment.
