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Thank you to all who attended and supported Crane'​s Money Fund Symposium last week in Minneapolis! (​We had a record 502 attendees.) The conference binder, recordings and Powerpoints are now available to attendees and to Crane Data Subscribers at the bottom of our "Content" page. Watch for excerpts and coverage of the sessions in coming days on www.​cranedata.​com and in the July issue of our Money Fund Intelligence newsletter. Our next event is European Money Fund Symposium, Sept 17-​18 in Dublin, our next "​basic training" Money Fund University is Jan. 19-​20 in Boston. Next year'​s Money Fund Symposium will be in Philadelphia, June 22-​24, 2016. Also, in today'​s "News," we excerpt from our latest Bond Fund Intelligence, Crane Data'​s new publication focusing on the bond fund and conservative ultra-​short bond fund marketplace. (​Contact us to see the latest issue and our BFI XLS "​complement" or to subscribe. BFI is $​500 a year, or $​1K including BFI XLS.)

The June issue of our new Bond Fund Intelligence newsletter features a profile of Gregory Nassour, Senior Portfolio Manager at Vanguard Investments. Nassour manages the new Vanguard Ultra Short Term Bond Fund, which launched earlier this year. Nassour tells us about the important gap that this new fund fills in the Vanguard lineup and why the space between money market funds and short term bond funds is so critical for investors in this market. As Nassour says, it'​s all about giving investors choices. Below, we reprint our latest BFI interview.

BFI: How long have you managed funds? Nassour: I'​ve been with Vanguard since 1992 and I'​ve been within the fixed income group since 1994. I'​m principal and senior portfolio manager within the group. I co-​head all of our actively managed investment grade corporate bond portfolios. I'​m portfolio manager on the Ultra Short Term Bond Fund (​along with David Van Ommeren), the Short Term Investment Grade Portfolio, the Intermediate Term Investment Grade Portfolio, and the Long Term Investment Grade Portfolio.

BFI: How have Vanguard'​s short term products evolved? Nassour: The oldest one we have is our Short Term Tax Exempt Portfolio which started back in 1977. On the taxable side, the Short Term Investment Grade portfolio started in October of 1982. When you look at the whole gamut, Vanguard runs a lot of short term bond portfolios. We have a Short Treasury, a Short TIPs, a Short Term Federal Portfolio, Short Term Investment Grade, a Short Term Government Bond Index Fund, a Short Index Fund, a Short Corporate Index Portfolio, and a Limited Tax Exempt Fund.

BFI: So the new Ultra Short Term Bond Fund fills a gap in the lineup? Nassour: Exactly. We have an equivalent short term tax exempt portfolio, but we did not have one on the taxable side. So this is basically to fill out our fund lineup. Our Short Term Investment Grade portfolio is right around two and a half years duration. If investors wanted to go shorter, they had to go to our money market portfolios, so we wanted to fill that gap. The Ultra Short Term Bond Fund has a one year duration and that'​s going to be its home. The biggest challenge right now in this space is yield; hopefully this will be short lived. It'​s important to point out that it'​s not a money fund. It has a variable rate NAV, so if rates go up, prices will go down on this particular bond fund. We'​ve made it very clear, not only on all of the PR that we did, but to all of our clients who are considering the product that this is an extension of our bond fund lineup.

BFI: How has the fund been received? Nassour: One of the neat things about this portfolio launch has been its consistency. This fund is just under $​230 million in assets right now and the cash flow has been very consistent. Overall, Vanguard is great at keeping hot money out of the portfolios. We have policies in place to make sure that doesn'​t happen so that we can protect the current fund holders. That'​s a true benefit of the portfolios here; money tends to be sticky. That'​s great from the shareholder standpoint and it helps us manage the portfolio much better.

BFI: What is the investment strategy? Nassour: About 25% of the portfolio will look similar to the securities we would hold in a money fund. The rest of the portfolio has around 25% in corporate bonds, 25% to 30% in asset backed securities -- mostly high quality AAA auto loans and credit cards. There will be a small amount of CMBS, mostly the triple-​A enhanced tranches. So the portfolio is very conservative. It has 10% Agency bullets and about 10% Treasuries. Yes, it has some money market securities in it, but I look at it as more closely related to the Short Term Investment Grade Portfolio -- just a little bit more conservative. We know that investors want a little more yield than money market funds because money market funds are not yielding anything. At the same time they'​re not in a longer duration portfolio where they'​re worried about a rate rise.

BFI: Are there concentration limits or diversification requirements? Nassour: We are going to keep this portfolio right around the one year duration. One of the hallmarks of Vanguard is, we give you exactly what the fund says it is going to be. For example, a long term investment grade fund is never going to become an intermediate fund because rates are going to rise, the inter-​mediate funds are not going to shorten up to where it becomes a short term fund, and on down the line. This fund is going to be right around one year duration. It will give shareholders some decent current income. Right now the SEC 30-​day yield is 65 basis points yield to maturity. The duration is not going to fluctuate too much up or down from that one year.

We offer enough funds that we give the investors the ability to choose what they want. If you want a Treasury fund, we have short, intermediate, and long Treasury funds. If you want an investment grade fund we have short, intermediate, and long investment grade funds. We give investors choices and we stay exactly within what the portfolio says it'​s going to be. In terms of concentration limits, all of our investment portfolios are highly diversified. If it is a lower quality security like a triple-​B, we wouldn'​t own more than 25 basis points exposure in the portfolio. If it'​s single-​A, we might hold up to 50 basis points in the security, and at AAA obviously we can hold more.

BFI: Can you invest in any junk or any below investment grade? Nassour: All of our investment grade portfolios have the ability to go up to 5% in high yield securities -- this way, in case securities get downgraded by the rating agencies we'​re not forced sellers and we can sell when the time is right. But we do not plan on investing in the high yield sector as a strategy in [​this fund] at this time. Even in our Short Term Investment Grade Portfolio we'​re only around 1.​25% of high yield exposure. But in this fund it is currently zero.

BFI: What types of investors are using it? Nassour: We'​ve been looking at the behavior of our investors, and we have found a lot of investors moved out of money market funds and into this particular fund. I think that'​s just a yield play. Yields are so low in the money market space that they wanted to get a little bit more out of their money so they moved into this fund. And that'​s what we thought would happen. Certainly some investors moved down from short term investment grade into this fund just to get a little bit shorter duration in case rate rises. From a shareholder perspective, if they have a long term investment plan and they'​re dollar cost averaging into the funds, then yes, when interest rates go up, bond fund prices will go down. But as you continue to buy, you'​ll be buying at yields that will be higher and higher in the portfolio and you'​ll be buying the fund at a slightly lower price.

BFI: What is your outlook for rates? Nassour: We believe the Fed is going to move, probably in 2015, in a more gradual pace, so we don'​t think it'​s going to be a real shock to the portfolio. We don'​t think it'​s going to be a straight line -- they'​ll probably pause along the way to take a look at how the economy is performing. I think this fund will actually fare pretty well in that sort of environment. As rates slowly begin to rise, we'​ll be able to invest in product that will have a slightly higher yield and because it will be slow, it'​ll be able to absorb the rate hike. What investors need right now is yield. They'​re not making anything on money funds, short term yields are still not exceptional, and everyone can do with a little bit more income.

BFI: Are there any lessons to be learned from past rate hike cycles, like 1994? Nassour: I think the Fed learned a lot during that period. If you get behind the curve, then you wind up with a 1994 scenario where you'​re just jumping too quickly, in fifty basis point increments. They don'​t want to do that, but they also don'​t want to go too slow either. We'​re in an economy now where inflation is not rearing its ugly head. We'​re not getting macro-​economic data that is fantastic; we'​re just muddling through. The Fed is very aware of that environment, so I do believe they'​re keeping that front and center in terms of how they'​re going to proceed with the rate rise. It will be painful on the way up, but when rates normalize, it'​s definitely a longer term positive for investors. Investors are really feeling the pain of low yields, especially those who are either nearing retirement or in retirement. From that standpoint, a higher rate environment will certainly be better.

BFI: What is the future of ultra short bond funds in general? Nassour: One of the lessons that a lot of investors learned, especially during the crisis, is the importance of having a balanced portfolio -- money funds, bond funds, equities. So bond funds are going to be very important. In terms of the future of ultra short term bond funds, they'​re going to have a place because investors have different needs for their allocations.

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Crane Data released its June Money Fund Portfolio Holdings Wednesday, and our latest collection of taxable money market securities, with data as of May 31, 2015, shows jumps in holdings of Other (​Time Deposits), CD, Repo, and CP, and drops in holdings of Treasuries and Agencies. Money market securities held by Taxable U.​S. money funds overall (​those tracked by Crane Data) increased by $​31.​6 billion in May to $​2.​436 trillion, after dropping $​49.​3 billion in April, $​19.​2 billion in March, and $​52.​1 billion in February. Repos remained the largest portfolio segment, just ahead of CDs. Treasuries stayed in third place, followed by Commercial Paper. Agencies were fifth, followed by Other (​mainly Time Deposits), then VRDNs. Money funds' European-​affiliated securities represented 28.​8% of holdings, down from 29.​3% the previous month. Below, we review our latest Money Fund Portfolio Holdings statistics.

Among all taxable money funds, Repurchase agreements (​repo) increased $​10.​7 billion (​2.​1%) to $​527.​5 billion, or 21.​7% of assets, after decreasing $​113.​6 billion in April and increasing $​98.​7 billion in March. Certificates of Deposit (​CDs) were up $​10.​8 billion (​2.​1%) to $​524.​1 billion, or 21.​5% of assets, after rising $​1.​7 billion in April and dropping $​37.​4 billion in March. Treasury holdings decreased $​4.​2 billion (​1.​0%) to $​408.​8 billion, or 16.​8% of assets, while Commercial Paper (​CP) jumped $​4.​1 billion (​1.​1%) to $​390.​3 billion, or 16.​0% of assets. Government Agency Debt decreased $​3.​2 billion (​1.​0%) to $​331.​6 billion, or 13.​6% of assets. Other holdings, primarily Time Deposits, jumped $​13.​7 billion to $​230.​1 billion, or 9.​4% of assets. VRDNs held by taxable funds decreased by $​100 million to $​23.​5 billion (​1.​0% of assets).

Among Prime money funds, CDs still represent over one-​third of holdings at 34.​5% (​up from 34.​4% a month ago), followed by Commercial Paper at 25.​7%. The CP totals are primarily Financial Company CP (​15.​1% of total holdings), with Asset-​Backed CP making up 5.​5% and Other CP (​non-​financial) making up 5.​1%. Prime funds also hold 6.​7% in Agencies (​up from 6.​5%), 4.​2% in Treasury Debt (​down from 5.​0%), 4.​7% in Other Instruments, and 5.​8% in Other Notes. Prime money fund holdings tracked by Crane Data total $​1.​520 trillion (​up from $​1.​492 trillion last month), or 62.​4% of taxable money fund holdings' total of $​2.​436 trillion.

Government fund portfolio assets totaled $​441 billion in May, the same as April, while Treasury money fund assets totaled $​475 billion in May, down from $​472 billion at the end of April. Government money fund portfolios were made up of 52.​0% Agency Debt, 25.​1% Government Agency Repo, 3.​9% Treasury debt, and 18.​1% in Treasury Repo. Treasury money funds were comprised of 69.​1% Treasury debt, 30.​1% Treasury Repo, and 0.​8% in Government agency, repo and investment company shares. Government and Treasury funds combined total $​916 billion, or 37.​6% of all taxable money fund assets.

European-​affiliated holdings rose $​4.​5 billion in May to $​702.​2 billion (​among all taxable funds and including repos); their share of holdings fell to 28.​8% from 29.​0% the previous month. Eurozone-​affiliated holdings decreased $​400 million to $​378.​3 billion in May; they now account for 15.​5% of overall taxable money fund holdings. Asia & Pacific related holdings increased by $​5.​3 billion to $​291.​4 billion (​12.​0% of the total). Americas related holdings increased $​23.​0 billion to $​1.​440 trillion, and now represent 59.​1% of holdings.

The overall taxable fund Repo totals were made up of: Treasury Repurchase Agreements (​up $​20.​0 billion to $​273.​6 billion, or 11.​2% of assets), Government Agency Repurchase Agreements (​down $​9.​2 billion to $​164.​8 billion, or 6.​8% of total holdings), and Other Repurchase Agreements ($​89.​1 billion, or 3.​7% of holdings, same as last month). The Commercial Paper totals were comprised of Financial Company Commercial Paper (​up $​2.​8 billion to $​228.​8 billion, or 9.​4% of assets), Asset Backed Commercial Paper (​down $​800 million to $​83.​8 billion, or 3.​4%), and Other Commercial Paper (​up $​2.​0 billion to $​75.​7 billion, or 3.​2%).

The 20 largest Issuers to taxable money market funds as of May 31, 2015, include: the US Treasury ($​408.​8 billion, or 18.​3%), Federal Home Loan Bank ($​208.​9B, 9.​4%), Federal Reserve Bank of New York ($​137.​6B, 6.​2%), Wells Fargo ($​71.​8B, 3.​2%), Credit Agricole ($​70.​6B, 3.​2%), BNP Paribas ($​63.​9B, 2.​9%), JP Morgan ($​60.​4B, 2.​7%), RBC ($​58.​8B, 2.​6%), Bank of Nova Scotia ($​57.​4B, 2.​6%), Bank of Tokyo-​Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd ($​55.​5B, 2.​5%), Bank of America ($​52.​2B, 2.​3%), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Co. ($​45.​1B, 2.​0%), Toronto-​Dominion Bank ($​43.​9B, 2.​0%), Natixis ($​43.​2B, 1.​9%), Barclays PLC ($​42.​9B, 1.​9%), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Co ($​42.​3B, 1.​9%), Federal Farm Credit Bank ($​42.​0B, 1.​9%), Credit Suisse ($​40.​1B, 1.​8%), Mizuho Corporate Bank Ltd. ($​37.​0B, 1.​7%), DnB NOR Bank ASA, ($​35.​4B, 1.​6%), and Bank of Montreal ($​35.​3B, 1.​6%).

In the repo space, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York'​s RPP program issuance (​held by MMFs) remained the largest program with $​137.​6B, or 26.​1%, up from $​106.​2B a month ago. The 10 largest Fed Repo positions among MMFs on 5/​31 include: JP Morgan US Govt ($​16.​1B), State Street Inst Lq Res ($​8.​5B), Morgan Stanley Inst Lq Govt ($​7.​7B), BlackRock Lq T-​Fund ($​6.​4B), UBS Select Treas ($​6.​1B), JP Morgan US Trs Plus ($​5.​5B), First American Govt Oblg ($​5.​0B), Wells Fargo Adv Trs Plus ($​4.​6B), Schwab Govt MMkt ($​4.​2B), and Fidelity Cash Central Fund ($​4.​4B). The 10 largest Repo issuers (​dealers) (​with the amount of repo outstanding and market share among the money funds we track) include: Federal Reserve Bank of New York ($​137.​6B, 26.​1%), Bank of America ($​40.​8B, 7.​7%), BNP Paribas ($​38.​9B, 7.​4%), Wells Fargo ($​37.​7B, 7.​1%), Credit Agricole ($​30.​7B, 5.​8%), JP Morgan ($​29.​5B, 5.​6%), Societe Generale ($​24.​2B, 4.​6%), Barclays PLC ($​22.​7B, 4.​3%), Credit Suisse ($​22.​1B, 4.​2%), and Citi ($​21.​1B, 4.​0%).

The 10 largest issuers of "​credit" -- CDs, CP and Other securities (​including Time Deposits and Notes) combined -- include: Bank of Tokyo-​Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd ($​48.​3B, 4.​8%), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Co ($​42.​3B, 4.​2%), RBC ($​41.​5B, 4.​1%), Bank of Nova Scotia ($​40.​1B, 3.​9%), Credit Agricole ($​39.​9B, 3.​9%), Toronto Dominion Bank ($​37.​2B, 3.​7%), DnB NOR Bank ASA ($​35.​4B, 3.​5%), Natixis ($​35.​3B, 3.​5%), Wells Fargo ($​34.​0B, 3.​4%), and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB ($​32.​5B, 3.​2%).

The 10 largest CD issuers include: Bank of Tokyo-​Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd ($​37.​6B, 7.​2%), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Co ($​35.​2B, 6.​7%), Toronto-​Dominion Bank ($​33.​5B, 6.​4%), Mizuho Corporate Bank Ltd ($​30.​6B, 5.​9%), Bank of Montreal ($​28.​8B, 5.​5%), Bank of Nova Scotia ($​28.​3B, 5.​4%), Wells Fargo ($​25.​1B, 4.​8%), RBC ($​21.​5B, 4.​1%), Natixis ($​19.​2B, 3.​7%), and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank ($​18.​5B, 3.​5%).

The 10 largest CP issuers (​we include affiliated ABCP programs) include: JP Morgan ($​22.​3B, 6.​8%), Commonwealth Bank of Australia ($​17.​2B, 5.​3%), Westpac Banking Co ($​17.​2B, 5.​3%), RBC ($​15.​7B, 4.​8%), National Australia Bank Ltd ($​12.​0B, 3.​7%), Lloyds TSB Bank PLC ($​12.​0B, 3.​7%), BNP Paribas ($​11.​4B, 3.​5%), Bank of Nova Scotia ($​10.​9B, 3.​3%), HSBC ($​10.​6B, 3.​3%), and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd ($​9.​4B, 2.​9%).

The largest increases among Issuers include: Federal Reserve Bank of New York (​up $​31.​5B to $​137.​6B), Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (​up $​6.​2B to $​32.​5B), ING Bank (​up $​4.​1B to $​27.​8B), Swedbank AB (​up $​3.​9B to $​22.​4B), Federal Home Loan Bank (​up $​3.​7B to $​208.​9B), DnB NOR Bank ASA (​up $​3.​4B to $​35.​4B), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (​up $​3.​4B to $​20.​6B), Goldman Sachs (​up $​2.​8B to $​14.​0B), Lloyds TSB Bank PLC (​up $​2.​8B to $​25.​1B), and RBC (​up $​2.​6B to $​58.​8B). The largest decreases among Issuers of money market securities (​including Repo) in May were shown by: Barclays PLC (​down $​7.​6B to $​42.​9B), Bank of America (​down $​4.​7B to $​52.​2B), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Co. (​down $​4.​4B to $​45.​1B), US Treasury (​down $​4.​2B to $​408.​8B), BNP Paribas (​down $​3.​4B to $​63.​9B), Standard Chartered Bank (​down $​2.​3B to $​14.​6B), Federal National Mortgage Association (​down $​2.​0B to $​32.​2B), Citi (​down $​1.​9B to $​29.​5B), Credit Mutuel (​down $​1.​3B to $​19.​0B), and FMS Wertmanagement (​down $​900M to $​8.​4B).

The United States remained the largest segment of country-​affiliations; it represents 49.​1% of holdings, or $​1.​199 trillion (​up $​13B). France (​9.​9%, $​240.​7B) remained in second, followed by Canada (​9.​8%, $​238.​8B), and Japan (​7.​4%, $​181.​3B). The U.​K. (​5.​1%, $​124.​2B) moved up to fifth, while Sweden (​4.​3%, $​104.​2B) was sixth. Australia (​3.​6%, $​86.​8B), The Netherlands (​3.​1%, $​74.​7B), Switzerland (​2.​5%, $​60.​1B), and Germany (​2.​0%, $​49.​4B) round out the top 10 among country affiliations. (​Note: Crane Data attributes Treasury and Government repo to the dealer'​s parent country of origin, though money funds themselves "​look-​through" and consider these U.​S. government securities. All money market securities must be U.​S. dollar-​denominated.)

As of May 31, 2015, Taxable money funds held 27.​3% of their assets in securities maturing Overnight, and another 13.​8% maturing in 2-​7 days (​41.​1% total matures in 1-​7 days). Another 22.​1% matures in 8-​30 days, while 12.​2% matures in 31-​60 days. Note that three-​quarters, or 75.​4% of securities, mature in 60 days or less, the dividing line for use of amortized cost accounting under the new pending SEC regulations. The next bucket, 61-​90 days, holds 11.​5% of taxable securities, while 10.​5% matures in 91-​180 days and just 2.​7% matures beyond 180 days.

Crane Data'​s Taxable MF Portfolio Holdings (​and Money Fund Portfolio Laboratory) were updated yesterday, and our MFI International "​offshore" Portfolio Holdings and Tax Exempt MF Holdings will be released late this week. Visit our Content center to download files or visit our Portfolio Laboratory to access our "​transparency" module. Contact us if you'​d like to see a sample of our latest Portfolio Holdings Reports or our new "Holdings Reports Funds Module." The new file allows user to choose funds (​pick a fund then click its ticker) and show Performance alongside Composition, Country breakout, Largest Holdings and Fund Information.

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As we make final preparations for our upcoming 7th annual Crane'​s Money Fund Symposium, which will take place in just over 2 weeks in Minneapolis, June 24-​26, we are also prepping for our 3rd Annual European Money Fund Symposium, the largest money market event in Europe. The preliminary agenda is set for this year'​s show, scheduled for September 17-​18 in Dublin, Ireland. Read on for details, but first, if you haven'​t already registered for Money Fund Symposium, you can still do so via www.​moneyfundsymposium.​com. (​For those attending, safe travels and see you in Minneapolis!)

Looking ahead, the agenda is still being tweaked for Crane'​s European Money Fund Symposium in Dublin, but registrations are now being accepted. Last year'​s event in London attracted over 100 attendees, sponsors and speakers, and we expect our return to Dublin to be even bigger and better. "European Money Fund Symposium offers European, Asian and "​offshore" money market portfolio managers, investors, issuers, dealers and service providers a concentrated and affordable educational experience, as well as an excellent and informal networking venue," says Peter Crane, President, Crane Data.

"Our mission is to deliver the best possible conference content at an affordable price to money market fund professionals." EMFS will be held at the The Conrad Hilton in Dublin. Book your hotel room before Friday July 17 and receive the discounted room rate of E199 for a single and E209 for a double. Registration for our 2015 Crane'​s European Money Fund Symposium is $​1,​000. Visit www.​euromfs.​com to register or contact us to request the PDF brochure, for Sponsorship pricing and info, and for more details.

The EMFS agenda features sessions led by many of the leading authorities on money funds in Europe and worldwide. The Day One Agenda for Crane'​s European Money Fund Symposium includes: "Welcome to European Money Fund Symposium" by Peter Crane of Crane Data; a "State of MMFs in Europe & IMMFA Update" with Reyer Kooy and Susan Hindle Barone of IMMFA; "Major Issues in European Money Funds" with Jonathan Curry of HSBC Global AM, Kathleen Hughes of Goldman Sachs , and Marc Pinto of Moody'​s; "Euro Money Funds and Negative Yields," with David Callahan of Lombard Odier Investment Managers and Jason Granet, of Goldman Sachs; and "Sterling Money Funds & UK Money Market," with Jennifer Gillespie of LGIM and Dennis Gepp of Federated.

Day One also includes: "Senior Portfolio Managers Roundtable" with Joe McConnell of JP Morgan AM, Debbie Cunningham of Federated, and Paul Mueller of Invesco; "Dealer Update & Supply Discussion" with Kieran Davis of Barclays, Jean-​Luc Sinniger of Citi Global Markets, and David Hynes of Northcross Capital; "Distribution Panel: New Markets & Concerns" with Jim Fuell, of JP Morgan AM and James Finch of UBS Global AM; and "Regulatory Update: European MMF Reforms" with John Hunt of Nutter McLennen & Fish, Dan Morrissey of William Fry; and Kevin Murphy, of Arthur Cox.

The Day Two Agenda includes: "Money Market Funds in Ireland" with Pat Lardner of Irish Funds Industry Association and Fearghal Woods, of Northern Trust; "French Money Market Funds and VNAV" with Thierry Darmon of Amundi, Charlotte Quiniou of Fitch Ratings, Yann Marhic of CA-​CIB and Vanessa Robert of Moody'​s; "EFAMA MM Working Group on Regulations" with Rudolf Siebel of BVI; and, "Strategist'​s Update: Rates, Reform, and Supply" with Vikram Rai of Citi.

The afternoon of Day Two features: "Major Issues in US and USD Money Funds" with Charlie Cardona of BNY Mellon CIS, Greg Fayvilevich of Fitch Ratings, and Peter Crane; "Money Market Funds in Asia & Emerging Markets with Andrew Paranthoiene of Standard & Poor'​s and David Castle of Standard Chartered Bank; "Fund Servicing Issues and Update; and "Monitoring European & Offshore Money Funds" with Peter Rizzo of Standard & Poor'​s, Alastair Sewell of Fitch Ratings, and Peter Crane.

In other news, Fitch a report on the "China Asset Management Industry." Mutual fund assets have grown sharply in the past year, thanks in large part to the growth in money market funds. It says, "​China'​s asset-​management industry is expanding rapidly with the total amount handled, in the form of mutual funds and mandates, having reached CNY6.​7trn (​USD1.​1trn) as of end-​2014, 61% higher than a year ago. Fitch Ratings sees growth continuing, given the large amount of domestic savings deposits, rapid accumulation of assets and relatively low asset-​management penetration compared with developed markets. Money market funds (​MMF) expanded more rapidly than other classes to CNY1.​3trn, driven by retail investors buying online; that helped raise China on Investment Company Institute'​s (​ICI) large global fund domicile rankings."

Fitch continues, "​Unlike the typical mutual funds' asset mix in other developing countries, equity funds dominated the market until 2012 when strong growth in MMFs changed the mutual fund landscape. MMF assets accounted for roughly 50% of the total mutual funds as of end-​March 2015 (​CNY2.​2trn). MMFs expanded in particular as the CNY1.​3trn that flowed into these funds dwarfed the gains of all the other asset classes. The rapid expansion of MMFs had started in 2H13, and has become the largest asset class, mainly driven by retail demand for e-​commerce MMFs. MMF AUM increased sixfold within 18 months to CNY2.​2trn as of end 2014."

Finally, it adds, "​The greatest concentration by asset manager is in QDII (​Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor) funds and MMFs, with Yu'​E Bao alone accounting for more than 30% of the latter'​s assets. Yu'​e Bao is managed by Tian Hong Asset Management. The top 10 largest MMF asset managers are: Tian Hong Asset Management (​CNY580B), ICBC Credit Suisse (​CNY184B), China AMC (​CNY140B), Bank of China Investment Management (​CNY107B), China Southern Fund (​CNY106B), E Fund Management Co (​CNY102B), Harvest Investment (​CNY96B), CGB Principal AM (​CNY87B), China Merchants Fund (​CNY70B), and China International Fund Management (​CNY69B)."

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