G23 - Non-bank Financial Institutions; Financial Instruments; Institutional Investors

• Creations and Redemptions in Fixed-Income Exchange-Traded Funds: A Shift from Bonds to Cash

  Staff Analytical Note 2019-34 Rohan Arora, Sébastien Betermier, Guillaume Ouellet Leblanc, Adriano Palumbo, Ryan Shotlander

  The creation and redemption activity of fixed-income exchange-traded funds listed in the United States has shifted. Funds of established issuers have traditionally exchanged their shares for baskets of bonds. In contrast, young funds managed by new issuers tend to create and redeem their shares almost exclusively in cash. Cash transactions imply that new funds are taking on exposure to liquidity risk. This has implications for financial stability.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Analytical Notes Topic(s): Financial markets, Financial stability JEL Code(s): G, G1, G2, G20, G23

• Borrowing Costs for Government of Canada Treasury Bills

  Staff Analytical Note 2019-28 Jessica Lee, Jabir Sandhu, Adrian Walton

  The cost of borrowing Government of Canada treasury bills (t-bills) in the repurchase (repo) market is mainly explained by the relationship between the parties involved. Some pairs of parties conduct most of their repos for t-bills rather than bonds, and at relatively high borrowing costs. We speculate that these pairs have formed a mutually beneficial service relationship in which one party consistently receives t-bills, while the other receives cash at a relatively cheap rate.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Analytical Notes Topic(s): Financial markets JEL Code(s): G, G1, G10, G11, G12, G2, G20, G21, G23, G3, G32

• Relative Value of Government of Canada Bonds

  Staff Analytical Note 2019-23 Jean-Sébastien Fontaine, Jabir Sandhu, Adrian Walton

  Government of Canada bonds in circulation that promise very similar payoffs can have different prices. We study the reason for these differences. Bonds that trade more often and earn high rental income in the repurchase agreement (repo) market tend to have higher prices. Bonds with longer tenors and times to maturity tend to have lower prices. This contrast between cheap and expensive bonds is important because trading volume and rental income can change rapidly, unlike tenor and time to maturity, which are stable.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Analytical Notes Topic(s): Financial markets JEL Code(s): G, G1, G10, G11, G12, G2, G23, G3, G32

• Canadian Securities Lending Market Ecology

  Staff Discussion Paper 2019-5 Jesse Johal, Joanna Roberts, John Sim

  This is the fourth of the Financial Markets Department’s descriptions of Canadian financial industrial organization. The paper discusses the organization of the securities lending market in Canada. We outline key characteristics of securities lending contracts, participants in the securities lending market, the market infrastructures that support securities lending activities, and aggregated statistics describing the Canadian market.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Discussion Papers Topic(s): Financial Institutions, Financial markets, Financial system regulation and policies, Market structure and pricing JEL Code(s): G, G1, G18, G2, G21, G23

• Could Canadian Bond Funds Add Stress to the Financial System?

  Staff Analytical Note 2019-9 Rohan Arora, Guillaume Bédard-Pagé, Guillaume Ouellet Leblanc, Ryan Shotlander

  We create a hypothetical scenario to study the role bond funds play in intensifying shocks to the financial system. Using data from 2018 and 2007, we find that bond funds play a larger role now than they did in the past.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Analytical Notes Topic(s): Financial markets, Financial stability JEL Code(s): G, G1, G2, G20, G23

• Bond Funds and Fixed-Income Market Liquidity: A Stress-Testing Approach

  Technical Report No. 115 Rohan Arora, Guillaume Bédard-Pagé, Guillaume Ouellet Leblanc, Ryan Shotlander

  This report provides a detailed technical description of a stress test model for investment funds called Ceto.

  Content Type(s): Technical Reports Topic(s): Economic models, Financial Institutions, Financial markets, Financial stability JEL Code(s): G, G1, G12, G14, G2, G20, G23

• Non-Bank Financial Intermediation in Canada: An Update

  Staff Discussion Paper 2019-2 Guillaume Bédard-Pagé

  Non-bank financing provides an important funding source for the economy and is a valuable alternative to traditional banking. It helps enhance the efficiency and resiliency of the financial system while giving customers more choices for their financial services. Unlike banking, it is not prudentially regulated.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Discussion Papers Topic(s): Financial Institutions, Financial markets, Financial stability JEL Code(s): G, G0, G01, G2, G20, G23

• Liquidity Management of Canadian Corporate Bond Mutual Funds: A Machine Learning Approach

  Staff Analytical Note 2019-7 Rohan Arora, Chen Fan, Guillaume Ouellet Leblanc

  When redeeming shares for investors, bond fund managers must choose a mix of cash and bond sales to honour their commitments. This note uses machine learning algorithms to uncover new patterns in decisions fund managers make to meet redemptions.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Analytical Notes Topic(s): Financial markets, Financial stability JEL Code(s): G, G1, G2, G20, G23

• Following the Money: Evidence for the Portfolio Balance Channel of Quantitative Easing

  Staff Working Paper 2018-33 Itay Goldstein, Jonathan Witmer, Jing Yang

  Recent research suggests that quantitative easing (QE) may affect a broad range of asset prices through a portfolio balance channel. Using novel security-level holding data of individual US mutual funds, we establish evidence that portfolio rebalancing occurred both within and across funds.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Working Papers Topic(s): Monetary Policy, Monetary policy implementation, Transmission of monetary policy JEL Code(s): E, E5, E58, G, G2, G23

• Redemption Runs in Canadian Corporate Bond Funds?

  Staff Analytical Note 2018-21 Rohan Arora

  Mutual funds employ a host of tools to manage redemption run risk. However, our results suggest that Canadian corporate bond funds may be vulnerable to redemption runs, especially when they are less liquid and when market volatility is high.

  Content Type(s): Staff Research, Staff Analytical Notes Topic(s): Financial Institutions, Financial markets JEL Code(s): G, G0, G01, G2, G23