Buy side

The muni market finances the "fabric of our nation, and now, because of Citi's exit, the cost of financing for state and local governments is going to go up," a sell-side source said.

Buying technology can be a relatively safe bet, especially if it comes from an established brand, and it comes with support, maintenance and expertise from vendors. Internally building it allows for exclusivity and a potential competitive advantage.

The firm plans to launch a pair of high-yield muni funds in January.

"The big question is: who's next? I don't think UBS is the end," said a veteran sellside market participant.

With nearly two years of volatility, The Bond Buyer wants to know your expectations for the year to come, from interest rates and bond volume to ESG and technology.

Winterstein's firm advises buy-side and sell-side clients on vetting vendors, looking at synergies between different technologies and advising on their product set.

The recent rise in yields has created an opportunity for those investors waiting to "jump into the market," said Roberto Roffo, portfolio manager at SWBC Investment Company.  

Data for the second quarter show the face amount of munis outstanding rose 0.4% quarter-over-quarter, or $15.5 billion, to $4.043 trillion.

The long-time high-yield muni manager left Nuveen in April when the firm settled a contentious lawsuit with Preston Hollow.

Loop Capital Markets CEO Jim Reynolds, Jr. said he would gladly pay a bit more for a muni bond that tackled gang violence in Chicago during a debate on ESG factors among market veterans at The Bond Buyer's infrastructure conference this week.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic Gretchen Sherwood has co-lead Nixon Peabody's Project Finance and Public Finance practice groups' 50 member bi-weekly team calls.

Building off his success in creating a revolutionary website as Massachusetts assistant treasurer of debt management, BondLink founder Colin MacNaught has grown his firm into 45 states.

With around 30% of bonds trading near the de minimis threshold, a new study takes a deep dive into how the rule drives illiquidity as mutual funds dump paper that's approaching the threshold.

In other asset classes, there has been more transparency, activity and efficiency due to electronic trading. The muni market has been behind in realizing how beneficial electronic trading can be, sources said.

Healthcare and transportation had the biggest contraction in issuance volume.

Bond for the private Florida passenger railroad have outpaced their high-yield muni peers as trading volume increased.

July's total volume was $25.939 billion in 542 issues, down from $28.258 billion in 619 issues a year earlier, the smallest percentage drop in monthly issuance year-over-year in 2023, according to Refinitiv data.