MFDF Webinar: Evaluated Bond Pricing - A New Paradigm?

Evaluated bond pricing is one of the most widely used methods for mutual funds and other investors to meet their obligations to fair value their portfolios on a regular basis. Typically illiquid and thinly traded, fixed income products require the deployment of some kind of valuation technique to be able to produce a daily price for NAV calculations.

For many decades this business was an esoteric and arcane pursuit, conducted by a small number of firms living happily beneath the regulatory radar. In recent years, however, the industry has been experiencing a shake up, with more regulatory scrutiny and a burst of consolidation and realignment amongst providers. This has called into question some longstanding operational norms and assumptions amongst pricing vendors and their users.

This process has culminated in three developments that we expect will produce a profound paradigm change in the evaluated bond pricing market in 2018. Revised audit rules from the PCAOB, new pricing technical standards from the AICPA and a determination by the SEC to revisit it's established mutual fund valuation guidance will drive far reaching change in both the production and use of this valuation technique.

These changes will have significant and extensive operational and governance implications for the mutual fund users of evaluated bond pricing and the vendors who produce the data. There will also be material changes in the way these parties interact, in terms of due diligence obligations on the behalf of users and transparency and creditation by the providers.

Voltaire Advisors have produced a detailed Special Report reviewing and analyzing these developments. The issues, and their implications for fund board directors, will be discussed in this webinar.

This webinar will be broadcast live from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm Eastern time on Tuesday, March 13, 2018. Register online.