BofA Calls For “War-Time Measures”, Urges Near-Total Fed Takeover Of Capital Markets March 23, 2020
from ZeroHedge:
Last Sunday, when the Fed threw what appeared to be the kitchen sink at crashing markets, cutting rates to 0%, unveiling a $700BN QE (since expanded to include another $100BN in MBS), and enhancing G-5 central bank FX swap lines (since expanded to include numerous non-G5 banks), many wondered why the Fed withheld the one instrument considered critical in restoring market stability, preventing the commercial paper market from seizing up and preventing mutual fund runs, namely a commercial paper backstop facility. Then, just 48 hours later, the Fed did just that as stocks continue to plunge, and even though the Fed has since unveiled even more Lehman-era anti crisis measures, it has now become apparent that merely redoing what the Fed did in 2008 won’t be enough. Trying to one-up itself, and reverse the market panic, on Friday morning the Fed also announced a municipal bond bailout by including munis to the MMLF, yet even that was not sufficient to prevent stocks from crashing on quad-witching Friday.
So here we are late on Sunday night, with S&P futures just shy of limit down, waiting for Congress to pass a massive multi-trillion bailout legislation with Democrats and Republicans putting on a good show of sticking to their ideological talking points and roadblocking the bill’s passage even though everyone knows it will pass, the only question is how much more pain will markets take before this too shall pass.
And yet, to some – such as Bank of America which was most vocal in demanding a commercial paper facility last weekend (which now seems like years ago) – not even a massive bailout package passed by Congress, one that would grant the Fed de facto powers to buy corporate bonds, will be enough.
Instead, as BofA’s rates strategist Marc Cabana writes, there is “growing potential for the Fed to step up its already impressive policy response as lender of last resort.” Specifically, in the coming days and weeks BofA sees a growing likelihood of:
> Adoption of UST yield curve targeting
> Full and unlimited backstop to the Agency MBS market
> Addressing regulatory constraints that have plagued intermediation of Fed repo
> Re-launch of a new TALF-like program offering senior funding on ABS, CMBS, CLOs, longer-dated munis, and investment grade corporates
> Provide guidance on the potential resolution plan for any failing entities to avoid fire sales of less liquid, riskier assets such as high yield debt, mezzanine structured product tranches, CRTs, and MSRs. Hurdles for this may prove high.
In short, BofA agrees with Zoltan Pozsar, who last week once again assessed the damage and said that the Fed will effectively have to backstop everyone and everything, in declaring a virtually total takeover of capital markets by the Fed, which is now in critical triage mode, designed to prevent further asset losses which from this point on, would have dire social and perhaps civilizations implications, potentially even the civil war that Time Magazine once mocked us for predicting back in 2010 when we said that the Fed has put the US on collision course with armed social conflict.
And so, with days, if not hours left for capital markets them before the Federal Reserve effectively takes over all risk assets, here is BofA’s note urging the Fed to go all the way, which we deem is a fitting eulogy for the free markets and capitalism.
Without further ado, here is Marc Cabana’s note explaining why “Bolder Fed Action is Likely”, by which he means the total takover of capital markets by a group of academics who have never even held a real job in their lives:
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Poster Comment:
Oh dear.