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Copyright © 2011 Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC, a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Anthony Ivancich
Client Business Manager, Associate Director
Fund Ratings & U.S. Public Finance Ratings
March 21, 2012
Standard & Poor’s Fund Ratings
How S&P applies its Fund Ratings Criteria to
Local Government Investment Pools
Government Investment Officers Association Annual Conference
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Agenda/Talking Points
• Overview of the Fund Ratings Group
• Principal Stability Fund Ratings (PSFRs) or ‘m’ ratings
• Fund Credit Quality & Volatility Ratings (FCQRs & FVRs) or ‘f’ ratings
• Differences between ‘m’ & ‘f’ ratings
• Reasons Why Pools Request Ratings
• Fund Rating Process and Additional Services
• Surveillance Process
• Rated Government Investment Pools (LGIPs) Indices
• Impact of Recent US Downgrade on Rated LGIPs
• Q&A
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Overview of Standard & Poor’s Fund Ratings
• Rating Funds Since December 1983
• Funds Group Officially Formed In 1989
• Provide value-added fund safety, credit and volatility ratings, portfolio
evaluations, monitoring for fixed-income funds, government investment pools,
exchange traded funds, separate accounts and municipal debt issuers
• Comprised of 20+ fund analysts in 5 countries averaging 10+ years of fixed-
income and fund ratings experience
• Provides ratings and evaluations for over 950+ “funds” globally, from over 250
sponsors:
750+ Principal Stability Fund Ratings
200+ Fund Credit and Volatility Rated funds
Includes 90+ Local Government Investment Pools
Includes approximately 60+ Liquidity Assessments
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States with Rated Local Government Investment Pools/Portfolios
ID
AZ
UT
MT
WY
NM
CO
AL
FL
SC
TN
KY
IN
OH
NC
SD
KS
NE
MN
WI
IA
IL
MO
AR
MS
OK
ND
OR
CA NV
WA
TX
PA
ME
VA
NY
LA
GA
MIRI
MD
CT
HI
DE
NJ
AK
MA
Puerto Rico has a Rated LGIP which is Sub-Advised (YELLOW)
States With Standard & Poor's Rated Local Government Investment Pools/Portfolios
LEGEND
No Pool Ratings
Rated & Run by Gov't Entity(State/County/City)
Rated & Run by Non-Gov't Entity(Sub- Advisor/Private Firm)
Rated & Run by Gov't Entity & Non-Gov't Entity(State/County/City/Private Firm/Sub-Advisor)
VT
NH
WV
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Number of Rated Pools
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Total S&P Rated LGIP Assets
Year MonthMarket Value
Totals (Mil.)
2001 December $69,064.90
2002 December $81,204.73
2003 December $81,147.79
2004 December $99,023.64
2005 December $117,860.12
2006 December $139,186.27
2007 December $185,784.32
2008 December $208,510.00
2009 December $180,611.00
2010 December $201,493.00
2011 November $182,008.00
(As of November 2011)
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List of Principal Stability Rated LGIP’s
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List of Principal Stability Rated LGIP’s (continued)
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List of Fund Credit Quality Rated LGIP’s
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Types of Government Investment Pool (Fund) Ratings
Principal Stability Fund Ratings
• Assigned to funds whose investment
policies are consistent with providing a
stable or accumulating NAV (i.e. 2a-7 $1.00
NAV funds) max WAM to Reset 60 days (AAAm)
max WAM to Final 90-120 days (AAAm)
max final maturity 397 days (fixed rate)
high credit quality (Tier 1 only)
highly diversified (issuers, counterparties,
etc.)
• Also known as Money Market Fund Ratings
or Stable NAV Fund Ratings
• Represented by ‘m’ suffix after the
traditional rating symbology (AAAm)
• Address the ability of a fund to maintain
principal stability and to limit exposure to
principal losses due to credit risk
Fund Credit Quality & Volatility Ratings
• Assigned to funds with investment policies
beyond what is permitted by rule 2a-7 (i.e.
Variable NAV Funds)
max WAM to Reset > 90 days
max WAM to Final > 120 days
max final maturity > 397 days (fixed
rate)
• Fund Credit Quality Ratings
Addresses level of protection a fund’s
portfolio holdings provide against
losses from credit defaults
Represented by ‘f’ suffix after the
traditional rating symbology (AAAf)
• Fund Volatility Ratings
Represented by ‘S’ scale (S1, S2, etc.)
Addresses a fund’s sensitivity to
changing market conditions
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Estimated Risk/Reward Tradeoff of S&P Fund Ratings
AAAm
AAm
Am
AAAf
S1+ & S1
AAf
S2
Af
S3
BBBf
S4
Reward
Ris
k (
Cre
dit
& M
ark
et)
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Principal Stability Fund Ratings
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Rated Principal Stability Fund (MMF) Statistics (US)
# Rated Taxable Funds # Rated Tax Exempt Funds Total # Rated Funds
May-07 666 100 766
Jun-08 728 127 855
Jun-09 675 104 779
Jun-10 657 109 766
Jun-11 652 114 766
Rated Taxable-Assets (Billions) Rated Tax-Exempt-Assets (Billions) Overall Rated Funds-Assets (Billions)
May-07 $ 1,016 $ 90 $ 1,106
Jun-08 $ 1,737 $ 150 $ 1,887
Jun-09 $ 2,091 $ 139 $ 2,230
Jun-10 $ 1,525 $ 106 $ 1,631
Jun-11 $ 1,549 $ 97 $ 1,646
Source: Rated Money Fund Report
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Principal Stability Fund Ratings Definitions
AAAm A fund rated 'AAAm' demonstrates extremely strong capacity to maintain principal
stability and to limit exposure to principal losses due to credit risk. 'AAAm' is the highest
principal stability fund rating assigned by Standard & Poor's.
AAm A fund rated 'AAm' demonstrates very strong capacity to maintain principal stability and to
limit exposure to principal losses due to credit risk. It differs from the highest-rated funds
only to a small degree.
Am A fund rated 'Am' demonstrates strong capacity to maintain principal stability and to limit
exposure to principal losses due to credit risk, but is somewhat more susceptible to the
adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than funds in
higher-rated categories
BBBm A fund rated 'BBBm' demonstrates adequate capacity to maintain principal stability and to
limit exposure to principal losses due to credit risk. However, adverse economic conditions
or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a reduced capacity to maintain
principal stability.
BBm A fund rated 'BBm' demonstrates speculative characteristics and uncertain capacity to
maintain principal stability. It is vulnerable to principal losses due to credit risk. While such
funds will likely have some quality and protective characteristics, these may be outweighed
by large uncertainties or major exposures to adverse conditions.
Dm A fund rated 'Dm' has failed to maintain principal stability resulting in a realized or
unrealized loss of principal.
Plus (+) or minus (-) The ratings may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to
show relative standing within the rating categories.
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Overview of Standard & Poor’s Fund Ratings
A S&P Principal Stability Fund Rating Is…
• An opinion on relative safety of invested
principal.
• An indication of the extent to which a
portfolio is comprised of high credit quality
instruments.
• A weekly review of the investment holdings
and key fund statistics including but not
limited to NAV, WAM and asset flows.
• An indication of the extent to which a fund
provides principal stability.
• An independent, third party review of
management’s experience, operations and
controls.
A S&P Principal Stability Fund Rating Is NOT…
• A guarantee.
• An indication of the willingness and/or ability of
sponsor to provide support.
• A comment on the yield or performance.
• An indication investments are risk free.
• Impacted by fund management’s decision to
make payments in kind versus cash.
• Impacted by a fund management’s decision to
suspend redemptions (i.e. do not guarantee daily
liquidity).
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PSFR Criteria Summary Table (Changes in Red)
*Exposures to securities rated below 'A-1' are "higher-risk investments."
¶ May be adjusted upward by 30 days if invested only in government/GSE floaters rated 'AA-' or higher. If a fund
invests in a combination of government floaters rated 'AA-' or higher and nongovernment floating-rate
instruments (or sovereigns rated below 'AA-'), the maximum is based on the weighted average of exposures to
each type of floater.
§For all funds, regardless of rating, daily portfolio pricing, daily marked-to-market NAV calculations, and daily
stress testing commence when NAV goes beyond +/- 0.15% deviation or 0.9985 or 1.0015.
Rating
Minimum
A-1+ &
A-1 ≤ 5
business
days
Maximum
A-1
> 5 business
days*
Maximum
WAM (R) in
Days
Maximum
WAM (F) in
Days¶
NAV
Ranges §
Max Final
Maturity
Per Fixed Rate
Security
Max Final
Maturity
Per Floating
Rate Security
AAAm 50% 50% 60 90 0.25%
(0.9975 to 1.0025)
13 months
(397 days)
Two Years
(762 days)
AAm 20% 80% 70 100 0.30%
(0.9970 to 1.0030)
13 months
(397 days)
Three Years
(1,127 days)
Am 0% 100% 80 110 0.35%
(0.9965 to 1.0035)
13 months
(397 days)
Four Years
(1,492 days)
BBBm 0% 100% 90 120 0.40%
(0.9960 to 1.0040)
13 months
(397 days)
Five Years
(1,857 days)
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Differences in Criteria for Rated & Unrated PSFRs
Non AAAm AAm Am
Rated Rated Rated
Rated
Maturity
Max Fund WAM (R) 60 days 60 days 70 days 80 days
Max Fund WAM (F) 120 days 90* days 100* days 110* days
Max maturity per security None 2 years 3 years 4 years
(Floating - Government)
Max maturity per security 397 days 397 days 397 days 397 days
(Fixed & Floating - Corp)
Credit Quality
Minimum A-1+ allocation N/A 50% 20% 0%
Maximum A-1 allocation N/A 50% 80% 100%
Maximum A-2 allocation 3% 0% 0% 0%
Pricing
Frequency Discretionary Weekly Weekly Weekly
Diversification
Max per Security/Industry 5%/25% 5%/25% 5%/25% 5%/25%
Max per Repo Counterparty Unrestricted Restricted Restricted Restricted
Minimum Liquidity
Overnight/7 days 10%/30% N/A N/A N/A
* WAM(F) criteria for all rating categories may be adjusted upward by 30 days (e.g. 'AAAm' 120 days) if a fund invests only in national government (sovereign)
and/or government-sponsored entity (GSE) floating-rate notes. In addition, if a fund invests in a combination of government and nongovernment floating-rate
instruments, a sliding scale between 90 and 120 days will be applied based on percentage exposures to each type of floater.
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Cure Periods
Metric/Threshold Category Cure Period*
NAV
Up to 5 business days
Downgrades below ‘A-1’
% of portfolio
≤0.5% = 397 calendar days
>0.5% ≤ 1.0% = 120* calendar days
>1.0% ≤ 5.0% = 60* calendar days
>5% = 7 calendar days
* Regardless of the short-term rating, if the long-term rating is 'BBB+' and on CreditWatch
negative or 'BBB' or lower, the cure period drops to seven calendar days.
Maturity
10 business days
10% illiquid/limited liquidity bucket
10 business days
Diversification
10 business days
Overall Credit Quality
(i.e., 50% maximum in A-1)
10 business days
* NOTE: The cure period related to a breach applies only to that specific metric/threshold and to no others and
begins on the date the breach occurs. All cure periods are based on a fund's NAV remaining within the ranges
outlined for each rating category (i.e., AAAm +/- 0.25%)
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Fund Credit Quality & Volatility Ratings
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Fund Credit Quality Ratings Symbols & Definitions
AAAf Portfolio holdings provide EXTREMELY STRONG protection against losses
from credit defaults
AAf Portfolio holdings provide VERY STRONG protection against losses from
credit defaults
Af
Portfolio holdings provide STRONG protection against losses from credit
defaults
BBBf Portfolio holdings provide ADEQUATE protection against losses from credit
defaults
BBf Portfolio holdings provide UNCERTAIN protection against losses from credit
defaults
Bf
Portfolio holdings provide VULNERABLE protection against losses from
credit defaults
CCCf Portfolio holdings provide EXTREMELY VULNERABLE protection against
losses from credit defaults
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Fund Credit Quality Ratings Methodology
Evaluation of Fund’s Portfolio Credit Risk
Use of credit matrix approach derived from S&P’s historical default and ratings transition studies based on singular, discrete, worst-case one-year default rates experienced since 1981.
Factors and scores from matrix applied to fund’s portfolio holdings.
All securities rated by a nationally recognized statistical rating organisation.
Maturity of Securities Considered
Maturity buckets within matrix distinguish long term securities from short term securities.
Recognises that probability of default decreases as security nears maturity.
Treatment of Non-Standard & Poor’s Rated Issues
Securities rated by other rating agencies (not exceeding 25% in total) are “haircut” for purposes of credit matrix score.
Management
Detailed assessment of depth and quality of research and analysis, consistency of approach, and risk tolerance.
Qualitative Credit Overlay Process
The strength of manager’s overall credit analysis may allow rating to be enhanced by one notch.
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S&P Fund Credit Quality Rating Matrix
Enter Fund %s Here
RATING Factors < = 90 days
> 90 but
< = 365 days > 365 days
Contribution
to Score
AAA 0 0.00 Scores Rating Fixed Score
AA+ 20 0.00 0 - 7 AAAf 7
AA 20 0.00 8 - 10 AA+f 10
AA- 20 0.00 11 - 20 AAf 20
A+ 50 0.00 21 - 25 AA-f 25
A 50 0.00 26 - 35 A+f 35
A- 50 0.00 36 - 50 Af 50
BBB+ 250 0.00 51 - 90 A-f 90
BBB 250 0.00 91 - 150 BBB+f 150
BBB- 250 0.00 151 - 250 BBBf 250
BB+ 1000 0.00 251 - 450 BBB-f 450
BB 1000 0.00 451 - 775 BB+f 775
BB- 1000 0.00 776 - 1000 BBf 1000
B+ 4000 0.00 1001 - 1850 BB-f 1850
B 4000 0.00 1851 - 2520 B+f 2520
B- 4000 0.00 2521 - 4000 Bf 4000
CCC+ 20000 0.00 4001 - 7800 B-f 7800
CCC 20000 0.00 7801 - 14700 CCC+f 14700
CCC- 20000 0.00 14700 + CCCf 20000
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00
0.00%
TOTALS =
A-1+
A-1
A/A-2
BBB-/A-3
A-/A-2
BBB+/A-2
BBB/A-2
BBB/A-3
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Principal Stability Fund Ratings Definitions
Pool’s Sensitivity To
Rating Changing Market Conditions Aggregate Risk Level
S1* Low 1 To 3 Year U.S. Governments
S2 Low To Moderate 3 To 7 Year U.S. Governments
S3 Moderate 7 To 10 Year U.S. Governments
S4 Moderate To High 10+ Year U.S. Governments
S5 High Concentrated, Illiquid /Leveraged
S6 Highest Highly Speculative
* Within the S-1 category certain pools may be designated with a plus sign (+). This indicates the
pool’s extremely low sensitivity to changing market conditions. Additionally, these pools possess a risk
level that is less than or equal to a portfolio comprised of the highest quality instruments with an
average maturity of one year or less.
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Volatility Ratings Methodology
Portfolio-level risk analysis
Focuses on interest rate risk, currency risk, credit quality, liquidity, concentration,
call and option risks. The effects of various portfolio strategies such as the use of
leverage, hedging, and derivative instruments are also factored in.
Historical return volatility analysis
A minimum of 36 months are looked at in relation to established fixed income
government indices with different maturity bands and we review how past volatility
relates to the portfolio’s investment objectives and construction process
Management assessment
In depth understanding of different factors that could affect a fund’s overall risk
profile: Management sophistication and experience, portfolio strategies, internal
research capabilities, risk controls, portfolio rotation, etc.
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Process & Application of Criteria
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Summary of Main Differences Amongst ‘m’& ‘f’ ratings
Principal Stability Fund Ratings; aka Money Market Fund
Ratings (eg. ‘AAAm’)
Fund Credit Quality & Volatility Ratings; aka Bond
Fund Ratings
(eg. ‘AAAf/S1’)
Eligible Investments
(According to Rating)
We require a short term rating of at least ‘A-1’. If it is not rated by
S&P but has the highest short-term rating of another NRSRO, it
must either be backed by a highly rated LOC provider, or have an
S&P long term rating of at least ‘AA’.
The securities must be rated by S&P or another NRSRO.
If it is unrated by S&P, certain notching rules may apply.
Ratings Breakdown For ‘AAAm’ rated funds, at least 50% must be in ‘A-1+’, with the
other 50% in ‘A-1’ securities. For ‘AAm’ funds, 20% is required in
‘A-1+’, with the other 80% in ‘A-1’ securities, with up to 5% in
overnight ‘A-2’ securities. For ‘Am’ funds, 100% may be in ‘A-1’,
with up to 10% in overnight ‘A-2’ securities.
There is no minimum requirement, but the outcome of the
rating will be dependent on our “ratings matrix.” The Fund
Credit Quality Ratings Matrix takes into account the
rating on the security (long term or short term), the
maturity (< 90 days, > 90 but < = 365 days, > 365 days),
and the percentage held by the fund in each security.
Types of Securities Common security types are Repurchase Agreements, Fixed and
Floating Corporate Bonds, Commercial Paper, Certificates of
Deposits, U.S. Treasury Securities, U.S. Agency Securities, etc.
Common security types are Mortgage Backed Securities,
Fixed and Floating Rate Corporate Bonds, Commercial
Paper, Certificates of Deposits, U.S. Treasuries, U.S.
Agencies, Municipal Bonds, etc.
Reporting Frequency Fund must submit weekly surveillance. Fund must submit monthly surveillance.
NAV When the NAV of a ‘AAAm’ rated fund moves outside 0.9985 and
1.0015, daily pricing is required. If the NAV for a ‘AAAm’ fund
continues to deviate beyond 0.9975 or 1.0025, rating action may
be taken.
The NAV may fluctuate but a material deviation may
impact the fund volatility rating.
Weighted Average
Maturity (WAM)
Guidelines
‘AAAm’ - 60 days, ‘AAm’ - 75 days, ‘Am’ and ‘BBBm’ - 90 days There is no WAM limit, but the longer the maturity dates,
the more likely it is that the security will contribute to a
lower rating.
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Why Do Managers Request an S&P Fund Rating?
Asset Growth / Retention
Third Party Credibility
Board Oversight
Diversified Product Mix
Regulatory/Compliance
N.A.I.C. Reduced Capital Reserve Requirements - Investments by insurance
companies in AAAm rated funds have 0% capital reserve requirements.
Capital reserve requirements are reduced to 1% when investing into AAm or
Am rated money market funds or AAAf rated government bond funds.
State & Local Governments - GFOA recommends AAAm rated funds as
investments for local & state governments.
Bond Proceeds - AAAm rated funds are Eligible Investments for bond
proceeds of Standard & Poor’s rated debt issues
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How are Funds/Pools Rated?
Source : Guide to Credit Rating Essentials
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Sample Components of S&P Fund Rating Analysis
Quantitative
• Overall portfolio credit quality
• Individual security credit quality
• Counterparty risk and exposure
• Diversification of securities
• Credit Deterioration vs. Default
• Net Asset Value Stability
• Weighted Average Maturity (WAM) /
Duration
• Maturity Structure (Ladder vs. Barbell)
• Pricing
• Liquidity
• Shareholder Composition/Asset
Volatility
• Structured & Variable / Floating Rate
Notes
• Leverage: Rev Repo/Sec Lending
Qualitative
• Depth and stability of organization &
management team
• Experience and track record of fund
manager
• Operating policies and risk preferences
• Internal controls
• Fund Governance
• Communication with S&P and commitment
to rating
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Surveillance (Monitoring) of Fund Ratings
• Dedicated Staff of Surveillance Analysts & Proprietary Systems (WebDC &
MFDB)
• Portfolio Holdings, Cash Flows & Risk Parameters are reviewed:
• Weekly for Stable NAV Pools
• Monthly for Variable NAV Pools
• Portfolio Level & Security Level Analysis
» portfolio maturity
» credit quality
» illiquid and market sensitive securities
» sector allocations
» variable / floating rate instruments
» net asset value (pricing) fluctuations
» comparison of CDS vs. current ratings
» highest yielding fund analysis
• Internal Monthly Surveillance Meetings to Review Material Events
• Frequent Communication with Fund Management
• Annual On-Site Management Review Meeting
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Sample of Surveillance Summary Information
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PSFR Sensitivity Matrix
WAM (R) 60 Copyright© 2010 by Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC (S&P) a subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
WAM (F) 120
Shares Outstanding: 501,000,000.00
Total Fund Assets: 500,248,500.00
Market Value (NAV): 0.998500
Credit Spread Movement (bps): 50
% Total Credit (Non Gov't) Securities (of portfolio) 25%
% Corporate Floaters (of portfolio) 15%
Total $ Loss: ($751,500)
Total $ Gain: $0
Basis Point Shift Selected Shareholders
Largest Redemption
over 5 consecutive
business days Gain (Loss)
300 0.992310 0.991220 0.991550 0.992489 0.992884 0.993240 0.993562 0.994366 (3,386,897)
250 0.993245 0.992288 0.992577 0.993402 0.993749 0.994062 0.994344 0.995051 (2,975,116)
200 0.994180 0.993355 0.993604 0.994315 0.994614 0.994884 0.995127 0.995736 (2,563,336)
175 0.994648 0.993889 0.994118 0.994772 0.995047 0.995295 0.995519 0.996079 (2,357,445)
150 0.995115 0.994423 0.994632 0.995228 0.995479 0.995705 0.995910 0.996421 (2,151,555)
125 0.995583 0.994956 0.995146 0.995685 0.995912 0.996116 0.996301 0.996764 (1,945,664)
100 0.996050 0.995490 0.995659 0.996142 0.996345 0.996527 0.996693 0.997106 (1,739,774)
75 0.996517 0.996024 0.996173 0.996598 0.996777 0.996938 0.997084 0.997449 (1,533,884)
50 0.996985 0.996558 0.996687 0.997055 0.997210 0.997349 0.997476 0.997791 (1,327,993)
25 0.997452 0.997091 0.997200 0.997511 0.997642 0.997760 0.997867 0.998134 (1,122,103)
0 0.997920 0.997625 0.997714 0.997968 0.998075 0.998171 0.998258 0.998476 (916,212)
-25 0.998387 0.998159 0.998228 0.998425 0.998508 0.998582 0.998650 0.998818 (710,322)
-50 0.998855 0.998692 0.998741 0.998881 0.998940 0.998993 0.999041 0.999161 (504,432)
-75 0.999322 0.999226 0.999255 0.999338 0.999373 0.999404 0.999432 0.999503 (298,541)
-100 0.999790 0.999760 0.999769 0.999795 0.999805 0.999815 0.999824 0.999846 (92,651)
-125 1.000257 1.000294 1.000283 1.000251 1.000238 1.000226 1.000215 1.000188 113,240
-150 1.000725 1.000827 1.000796 1.000708 1.000671 1.000637 1.000607 1.000531 319,130
-175 1.001192 1.001361 1.001310 1.001164 1.001103 1.001048 1.000998 1.000873 525,021
-200 1.001659 1.001895 1.001824 1.001621 1.001536 1.001459 1.001389 1.001216 730,911
-250 1.002594 1.002962 1.002851 1.002534 1.002401 1.002281 1.002172 1.001901 1,142,692
-300 1.003529 1.004030 1.003878 1.003447 1.003266 1.003103 1.002955 1.002586 1,554,473
Redemptions/Subscriptions -12% -23% -20% -10% -5% 0% 5% 20%
Shares Outstanding 440,444,861 385,770,000 400,800,000 450,900,000 475,950,000 501,000,000 526,050,000 601,200,000
Shift Upon NAV = NAV - (WAM/365) * (Bp/10,000)
Dilution Upon NAV= (NAV + Change) / (1+ Change)
FILL IN/ADJUST AREAS SHADED GREEN TO RUN SCENARIOS
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PSFR Sensitivity Matrix
Top 10 Shareholders % of Fund
Stress
Redemption Largest Five Day Redemption (%) 23%
Shareholder 1 50,000,000.00$ 10.00% No
Shareholder 2 40,444,200.00$ 8.08% Yes
Shareholder 3 38,456,871.00$ 7.69% No
Shareholder 4 15,067,896.00$ 3.01% No
Shareholder 5 12,456,985.00$ 2.49% Yes
Shareholder 6 10,871,596.00$ 2.17% No
Shareholder 7 9,875,645.00$ 1.97% No
Shareholder 8 7,563,121.00$ 1.51% Yes
Shareholder 9 5,312,879.00$ 1.06% No
Shareholder 10 3,215,468.00$ 0.64% No
Stress Top 10 193,264,661.00$ 38.63% No
Total Fund Assets 500,248,500.00$ 100% 60,464,306.00
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Sample Press Release
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Sample Investment Pool Profile
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S&P’s Principal Stability Rated GIP Indices
S&P Rated GIP Index 1.61% 1.61% 1.86% 1.87% 43 $57.4
(Week Ended August 30, 2002) Billion
S&P Rated
Government Investment Pool
Indices
7 Day
NET
Yield %
30 Day
NET
Yield %
7 Day
GROSS
Yield %
Average
Maturity
(Days)
S&P Rated GIP Index/ALL 0.08% 0.08% 0.20% 0.21% 42 $102.4
(Week Ended Dec. 16, 2011) Billion
S&P Rated GIP Index/Government 0.06% 0.06% 0.14% 0.15% 41 $33.5
(Week Ended Dec 16, 2011) Billion
S&P Rated GIP Index/G.P. Taxable 0.09% 0.09% 0.22% 0.23% 43 $68.8
(Week Ended Dec 16, 2011) Billion
30 Day
GROSS
Yield %
Reported Weekly By Standard & Poor’s
Note: Indices comprised Of ‘AAAm’ Rated Government Investment Pools
To View In Bloomberg: LGIP <Index> <Go>
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Sample of S&P Principal Stability Rated Fund Indices
Index Name 7 Day Net Yield % 30 Day Net Yield % Avg. Maturity (days)
S&P 'AAAm' Money Fund Index/Government 0.01 0.01 46
S&P 'AAAm' Money Fund Index/Taxable 0.02 0.02 43
S&P 'AAAm' Money Fund Index/Tax-Free 0.02 0.02 36
Index Name 7 Day Net
Yield %
30 Day Net
Yield %
Avg.
Maturity
(days)
Total Net Assets
(billions)
Credit Quality%
(A-1+/A-1)
S&P 'AAAm' European and
Offshore PSFR – EUR 0.90 0.89 21 EUR 161.90 73/27
S&P 'AAAm' European and
Offshore PSFR – GBP 0.53 0.52 30 GBP 122.50 70/30
S&P 'AAAm' European and
Offshore PSFR – USD 0.06 0.05 34 USD 308.40 81/19
S&P Rated Money Fund Indices (Week ended December 20, 2011)
AAAm European & Offshore PSFR Risk Metrics (as of September 30, 2011)
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S&P’s Principal Stability Rated GIP Index – Quartile Rankings
7 Day 30 Day
Ranking Top Yield Low Yield Top Yield Low Yield
Gross Yields (%)
Top Quartile 0.31 0.25 0.31 0.24
Second Quartile 0.25 0.20 0.24 0.20
Third Quartile 0.20 0.15 0.20 0.15
Fourth Quartile 0.15 0.08 0.15 0.08
Net Yields (%)
Top Quartile 0.25 0.11 0.23 0.12
Second Quartile 0.11 0.05 0.12 0.05
Third Quartile 0.05 0.03 0.05 0.03
Fourth Quartile 0.03 0.01 0.03 0.01
(As of September 30, 2011)
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Recent Developments
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Impact of USA Rating Actions on S&P’s Pool Ratings
July 14, 2011: United States of America 'AAA/A-1+' Ratings Placed On CreditWatch Negative On
Rising Risk Of Policy Stalemate
(CreditWatch placement signals our view that, owing to the dynamics of the political debate on
the debt ceiling, there is at least a one-in-two likelihood that we could lower the long-term
rating on the U.S. within the next 90 days.)
July 15, 2011: 73 Fund Credit Quality Ratings Put On CreditWatch Negative Following
Sovereign Ratings CreditWatch Placement
NO impact to PSFR pools as the short term rating of the USA remains at A-1+
August 5, 2011: United States of America Long Term Rating Lowered To 'AA+' On Rising Debt
Burden And Political Risks; Outlook Negative
(The Negative Outlook means we could lower the long-term rating to 'AA' within the next two
years if we see that less reduction in spending than agreed to, higher interest rates, or new
fiscal pressures during the period result in a higher general government debt trajectory than
we currently assume in our base case.)
August 8, 2011: 73 Fund Credit-Quality Ratings Lowered And Removed From CreditWatch
Following U.S. Sovereign Downgrade
NO impact to PSFR pools as the short term rating of the USA remains at A-1+
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More Details on Pool Rating Changes
We lowered our FCQRs on 73 of the 206 funds (including 14 GIPs) managed in the U.S.,
Europe, and Bermuda because of their significant exposures (generally greater than 50%) to
direct or indirect investments in U.S. Treasury and U.S. government agency securities.
The ratings were lowered by up to two notches as determined by our fund credit-quality
matrix approach.
Our FCQR methodology utilizes a fund credit-quality matrix to apply a set of credit factors for
each rating category (e.g., 'AAA', 'AA', 'A') and a set of credit scores for each FCQR category
(e.g. 'AAAf', 'AAf', 'Af'). The factors are based on our historical ratings stability and ratings
transition studies and do not differentiate between rating notches within a specific rating
category (e.g., the same factor is applied for exposure to 'AA+' securities as to 'AA' or 'AA-‘
securities).
Because the probability of a rating transition and default decreases as a security nears
maturity, we evaluate investment-grade holdings that mature in 365 days or less in the matrix
at a lower credit factor, reducing the impact to the overall fund rating score. For example, a
portfolio comprised 60% of 'AA+' rated securities that mature in more than 365 days with the
remainder in 'AAA' rated securities would result in the FCQR category of 'AAf' according to
our fund credit-quality matrix approach.
San Mateo (CA), Manatee County (FL), City of LA (CA) and Santa Barbara County (CA) have
since withdrawn their ratings
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Appendix
Additional Information on LGIP Ratings & S&P
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S&P’s Credit Rating Guides
Additional resources are available @
www.UnderstandingRatings.com & www.AboutCreditRatings.com
To help raise awareness, S&P has published guides to credit ratings
essentials, performance and criteria
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Principal Stability Fund Ratings Definitions (Effective January 5, 2010)
• A Standard & Poor's principal stability fund rating, also known as a "money
market fund rating," is a forward-looking opinion about a fixed income fund's
capacity to maintain stable principal (net asset value). When assigning a principal
stability rating to a fund, Standard & Poor's analysis focuses primarily on the creditworthiness of the
fund's investments and counterparties, and also its investments’ maturity structure and
management's ability and policies to maintain the fund's stable net asset value. Principal stability
fund ratings are assigned to funds that seek to maintain a stable or an accumulating net asset value.
• Generally, when faced with an unanticipated level of redemption requests during periods of high
market stress, the manager of any fund may suspend redemptions for up to five business days or
meet redemption requests with payments in-kind in lieu of cash. A temporary suspension of
redemptions or meeting redemption requests with distributions in-kind does not
constitute a failure to maintain stable net asset values. However, higher rated funds are
expected to have stronger capacities to pay investor redemptions in cash during times of high market
stress because they generally comprise shorter maturity and higher quality investments.
• Principal stability fund ratings, or money market fund ratings, are identified by
the 'm' suffix (e.g., ‘AAAm’) to distinguish the principal stability rating from a Standard & Poor's
traditional issue or issuer credit rating. A traditional issue or issuer credit rating reflects Standard &
Poor’s view of a borrower’s ability to meet its financial obligations. Principal stability fund ratings are
not commentaries on yield levels.
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Diversification Subfactors
AAAm AAm Am BBBm
Maximum per issuer (including debt guaranteed by the same
issuer)--except for the items below 5% 5% 5% 5%
Maximum per sovereign (i.e., national government)
entity rated 'AA-' or higher 100% 100% 100% 100%
Maximum per sovereign entity rated 'A-1' or 'A+' and
that matures in one business day 25% 25% 25% 25%
Maximum per sovereign entity rated 'A-1' or 'A+' and
that matures between two and five business days 10% 10% 10% 10%
Maximum per sovereign entity rated 'A-1' or 'A+' and
that matures in more than five business days 5% 5% 5% 5%
Maximum per bank rated 'A-1' or higher or 'A+' or
higher for uncollateralized overnight bank deposits,
including uninvested cash 10% 10% 10% 10%
Tiered maximums for investments that are fully
(100%) collateralized or overcollateralized (more than
100%)
See charts 2, 3 and 4 in “Methodology: Principal Stability
Fund Ratings Criteria” for details
Maximum exposure per sovereign government
related/guaranteed entity rated 'AA-' or higher¶¶ 33% 50% 67% 75%
Maximum exposure to another Standard & Poor's
rated fund 10% 15% 20% 25%
¶¶GRE or government-guaranteed investments rated 'AA-' or higher with final maturities of 30 days or less are excluded from these limits.
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Maturity Subfactors
AAAm AAm Am BBBm
Maximum WAM(R) (days)§ 60 70 80 90
Maximum WAM(F) (days)§^ 90 100 110 120
Maximum final maturity per fixed-rate
investment, nonsovereign government
floating-rate investment, and sovereign
floating-rate investments rated below
'AA-'
13 months
(397 days)
13 months
(397 days)
13 months
(397 days)
13 months
(397 days)
Maximum final maturity per sovereign
government (including sovereign
government related/guaranteed)
floating-rate security rated 'AA-' or
higher
Two years
(762 days)
Three years
(1,127 days)
Four years
(1,492 days)
Five years
(1,857 days)
§ The maximum WAM(R) and WAM(F) limits may be reduced for funds with certain characteristics (such as limited operating history
or start-up funds, small asset size, a concentrated shareholder base, or a new shareholder base with uncertain liquidity needs).
^ May be adjusted upward by 30 days if invested only in government/GSE floaters rated 'AA-' or higher. If a fund invests in a
combination of government floaters rated 'AA-' or higher and nongovernment floating-rate instruments (or sovereigns rated below 'AA-
'), the maximum is based on the weighted average of exposures to each type of floater.
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Portfolio Credit Quality Metrics
AAAm AAm Am BBBm
Minimum 'A-1+' and 'A-1'
investments maturing
within five business days 50% 20% 0% 0%
Maximum 'A-1'
investments maturing in
more than five business
days** 50% 80% 100% 100%
Maximum exposure to
unrated municipal bonds
secured by escrow account 25% 33% 40% 50%
Maximum exposure to
municipal securities rated
only by Moody's or Fitch¶ 15% 20% 25% 30%
Maximum exposure to
unrated credit-enhanced
variable-rate demand
obligations (VRDOs) 10% 15% 20% 25%
** Exposures to securities rated below 'A-1' are "higher-risk investments.“
•¶ This limit does not apply to securities that possess a direct pay letter of credit that Standard & Poor's rates 'A-1+' or 'A-1'.
Imputing Short-Term Ratings
From Long-Term Ratings
Long-Term Rating Imputed Short-Term Rating
'AAA' through 'AA-' 'A-1+'
'A+' 'A-1'
'A' or lower "Higher-risk investment"
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Sample MMF Portfolio – Maturity Calculations
ABC MONEY MARKET FUND 31-Mar-10
A B C D E F G
Security Description Market Value
Days to
Maturity
Maturity
Date
Days to
Reset
Next Reset
Date %
REPO $ 3,500,000,000 1 04/01/10 52.63%
COPORATE BOND $ 300,000,000 244 11/30/10 91 06/30/10 4.51%
COPORATE BOND $ 250,000,000 334 02/28/11 3.76%
AGENCY $ 500,000,000 244 11/30/10 60 05/30/10 7.52%
AGENCY $ 1,000,000,000 183 09/30/10 30 04/30/10 15.04%
AGENCY $ 350,000,000 157 09/04/10 5.26%
TREASURY $ 750,000,000 91 06/30/10 11.28%
Total Fund: $ 6,650,000,000 100.00%
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Money Market Fund Industry Events on ‘Richter Scale’
* Dates noted on graph indicate regulatory rule changes
Feb-70
Jul-83
Mar-86 Feb-91
Jun-96
10-Jan
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10Jul-69
Jul-71
Jul-73
Jul-75
Jul-77
Jul-79
Jul-81
Jul-83
Jul-85
Jul-87
Jul-89
Jul-91
Jul-93
Jul-95
Jul-97
Jul-99
Jul-01
Jul-03
Jul-05
Jul-07
Jul-09
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Noteworthy Events in the Money Market Industry
Feb-70 4.0 First MMF Created
Jul-83 5.5 SEC Adopts Rule 2a-7
Mar-86 4.0 SEC Amends Rule 2a-7
Feb-91 4.0 SEC Amends Rule 2a-7
May-94 6.0 Derivatives in MMFs
Jun-94 6.0 Community Bankers US Government Fund breaks the buck
Dec-94 5.5 Orange County Bankruptcy
Jun-96 4.0 SEC Amends Rule 2a-7
Jan-97 5.5 Mercury Finance CP Default
Aug-99 5.0 General American Funding Agreement Problems
Apr-01 5.5 PG&E Default (CA Energy Crisis)
Aug-07 5.5 XABCP
Sep-07 5.5 SIV-lites
Oct-07 6.5 SIVs
Nov-07 4.0 FL SBA LGIP
Feb-08 4.5 Auction Rate Securities, Bond Insurers
Mar-08 4.0 Bear Stearns
Sep-08 10.0 Lehman Bankrupt; Reserve Primary Fund ‘Breaks the Buck’ & Govt Gty
Oct-08 4.0 Lehman/Reserve Fallout
Nov-08 4.0 Lehman/Reserve Fallout
Dec-08 4.0 Very Low Yields
Jan-09 4.0 G30 Report on Financial Reform
Mar-09 4.0 ICI MMF Working Group Report
Jul-09 5.5 SEC Propose Money Market Fund Reforms
Jan-10 5.0 SEC Adopts Amendments to Rule 2a-7
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Standard & Poor’s Initiatives
Action Steps & Initiatives
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Key Leadership Actions Taken Since February 2008*
Governance, Analytics, Education, Information
*Representative listing of Standard & Poor’s Leadership Actions. For more information please visit the Leadership Actions section on standardandpoors.com.
Strengthen
the ratings
process
Better serve
the markets
Enhance
Governance
- Re-launched standardandpoors.com providing easy
access to ratings, criteria, reports of ratings
performance, updates on leadership actions and
related information
- Published “Guide to Credit Ratings Essentials”, “Guide
to Ratings Performance” and “Guide to Credit Ratings
Criteria”
- Published Landmark Deal reports
- Separated the criteria management and development,
quality assurance and policy governance groups from
the analytic teams within ratings
- Implemented ‘look-back’ reviews of analysts work
whenever one leaves to work for an issuer
- Instituted an analyst rotation program
- Enhanced criteria used to rate U.S. RMBS, CMBS
and CDOs
- Introduced hypothetical stress scenarios to be used as
benchmarks for calibrating criteria across different
sectors and over time
- Incorporated stability as a ratings factor
- Launched new tools for surveillance
- Created a Model Quality Review group
- Established “what if” scenarios for the majority of
rated structured finance securities
- Instituted a new credit analyst certification
program and increased analyst continuing
education requirements
- Issued RFCs on non-default risks focusing on
liquidity, volatility, correlation and recovery
- Added the “SF” symbol to all ratings on structured
finance instruments on a global basis (to comply
with a European Union regulation)
- Launched Recovery Analytics for U.S. RMBS,
CLOs and issued a market feedback request
(MFR) for CMBS recovery analytics
- Established new leadership in ratings criteria,
structured finance, compliance and quality review
- New personnel and resources in compliance
functions and enhanced global compliance training
- Established the Enterprise Risk Oversight
Committee
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Standard & Poor’s Globally
• 150 years of experience
• Global office network in 23 Countries and markets. European operations
established in 1984, with offices in London, Frankfurt, Paris, Madrid, Milan,
Stockholm, Moscow, Dubai, Johannesburg and Tel Aviv. Asia Pacific
operations commenced 1986 with an office in Tokyo followed by Melbourne,
Hong Kong, Singapore, Taipei and Mumbai
• Over 1,300 credit ratings analysts globally
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Copyright © 2011 by Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC. All rights reserved.
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