North Carolina Local Government Investment Association Winter Meeting – 2013 Investments 101 Presented by : Lee Carter Gary Porter Capital Management of the Carolinas, LLC

General Requirements (G.S ) Moneys may be deposited or invested Finance Officer manages investments Subject to governing board restrictions These are usually in investment policies Types of securities allowed Approvals for trades Maturity limitations Allowable concentrations Managed so that cash is available when needed - liquidity

Basic Guidelines Safety Liquidity Yield Governments should evaluate: Eligibility under G.S (c) Appropriateness Request prospectus or other information before investing

Depository Accounts Board must designate official depositories Insured or collateralized as required through G.S (b) Financial soundness of institution is the best safety mechanism Deposit placement systems Authorized in G.S (b1) CDARs, Finistar, etc. Deposits in institutions up to insurance limits Don’t use depository that a government utilizes directly Out-of-state institutions – reciprocal flows Financial soundness of depositories LGC 203 reporting Deposit broker must keep accurate records “Funds in transit”

U. S. Treasuries & U. S. Government Guaranteed U.S. Treasuries U.S. Government Guaranteed GNMA Prepayment risk REFCORP (from S&L bailout) FDIC-guaranteed corporate notes Other securities possible Must be specifically guaranteed as to principal and interest

Government Agencies and Instrumentalities Agency must be specifically listed in G.S “Direct” obligations only – not agency-guaranteed Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac under U.S. conservatorship – form may change in 2013 or later Best known issuers are Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. (Freddie Mac), Fannie Mae

State and Local Obligations State of North Carolina and NC local governments and public authorities only Bonds and notes only – not COPs Notes being rolled into bonds eligible, not notes being rolled into COPs

Commercial Paper A1 / P1 / F1 only No split ratings “+” ratings for S&P Term vs. overnight commercial paper

Bankers Acceptances No specific rating on security Issuer must be either of the following: Long-term rating is “AAA” Bank or holding company headquartered in NC No U.S. bank currently qualifies – only a few international banks are AAA-rated

NCCMT SEC-registered funds (both cash and term portfolios) AAA-rated (cash portfolio) Investments limited to G.S Certified by LGC

Other Investments Stripped securities Repurchase agreements Third-party safekeeping Collateral must be Treasuries or U.S. government guaranteed Counterparty must be a primary dealer or bank Marked to market daily (at least 100% of value) Other mutual funds Bond proceeds only – subject to arbitrage provisions Fundamental investment limitations limited to G.S Ratings, arbitrage tracking – check with bond attorney Other pools STIF Interlocal pools

Other Investments (Not Under G.S (c)) OPEB Trust Fund LEO Separation Allowance Trust Fund Special investment legislation

Not Authorized Corporate notes Brokered CDs Foreign securities – only domestic subsidiaries are allowed Bonds and notes from other states Euro dollar CDs “Retail” repos

Investment Instruments Select the Proper Investment Instruments – Cash -Money in the bank, s/b an interest bearing account NCCMT – Basis of your liquidity, AAA rated, state certified, money market fund, same day liquidity; Term Portfolio offers longer option w/ next-day liquidity U.S. Treasuries – default risk free; Bills, issued at a discount, Notes and Bonds issued with coupons; does have interest rate risk U.S. Agency Securities – discount notes (like T-bills), bullet coupon issues, callables, step-ups, floaters. Best known issuers are Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. (FHLMC), Federal National Mortgage Assoc. (FNMA) and Government National Mortgage Assoc. (GNMA)

Investment Instruments Certificates of Deposit and Other Deposits – Collateralized through pooling method, dedicated method or covered under FDIC insurance Commercial Paper – unsecured promissory note of issuing corporation. Types are: Stand Alone, Letter of Credit, Asset Backed Bankers’ Acceptances – used to finance foreign trade or working capital Repurchase Agreements – need to use a tri-party repurchase agreement with an independent custodian Flex Repo – repurchase agreements but flexible drawdown schedules

Investment Instruments Agencies – Discount Notes – Priced at a discount, resemble T-bills ($10,000 bond - $9,950 cost = $50 discount/interest) Bullets – Issued with coupons, like notes and bonds, trade on a 30/360 day basis (bad days & good days) Callables – Coupon issues with call options built-in. Option allows issuer to call issue at some point in the future. Types of call options : American Call – anytime after a specified lockout period (CC) Bermuda Call – callable on interest payment dates (IPD) by predetermined schedule European Call – callable one-time after a specified lockout (one-time call)

Investment Instruments Step-Ups – Coupons step-up at preset times to higher levels, issues are usually callable on step-up dates. Ex. – Coupon starts at 1% and steps-up every 6 months to 1.25%, 1.50%, 1.75% respectively, final maturity is 2 years

Investment Instruments Commercial Paper – Promissory notes issued by corporations and maturing in 270 days or less (no split ratings) Stand Alone – Backed solely by the credit worthiness of the issuer Letter-of-Credit – Security for purchaser is provided by a letter- of-credit provided by issuer’s bank that allows issuer to draw down funds to pay off maturities Asset Backed (ABCP) – Security interest in some type of asset backing up the issue is the purchaser’s protection. Assets could be credit card receivables, trade receivables, etc…

Foundations of a Solid Investment Program Safekeeping/Custody Authorized Dealers & Financial Institutions – maintain a list Internal Controls – need to have in place Delivery vs. Payment (DVP) – to a 3 rd party custodian in the unit’s name Custodian - responsible for accurate record keeping and accounting of assets, timely delivery of securities, safekeeping of the assets and reporting to the client Suitable and Authorized Investments Investment types – what is allowed by law Collateralization – which method (pooling or dedicated) Repurchase Agreements – must comply with all provisions of state law

Safekeeping – Signed Agreement Transaction Deadline – usually between 10:00am and 12:00pm Online access to account information Services – Safekeeping of assets Receipt of income (interest) Market value reporting Compensation – usually included in banking services contract, may be a charge based on market value held

Foundations of a Solid Investment Program Investment Parameters Diversification – By issuer By credit quality By maturity –should have a stated maximum Reporting Methods – how often and what reported (individual securities, cost, market value, realized and unrealized gains and losses, weighted average maturity (WAM) Performance Standards – appropriate benchmarks s/b established Marking-to-Market – How often will market value or “fair value” be calculated GASB #31, at least annually at 6/30

Foundations of a Solid Investment Program The Investment Process Local Unit Local Unit S/K Agent Local FED Dealer’s S/K Agent NY FED DTC Broker /Dealer Issues S/K Receipt Issues Trade Confirms Executes Trades Purchases or Sales Issues S/K Receipt Settles Transaction

Cash Flow Forecasting Prepare a Cash Forecast – “The Holy Grail” Cash Flow Projection - inflows and outflows of cash, use known amounts and estimates Payroll, debt service, scheduled agency payments Capital project estimates, departmental spending estimates Maturities, tax receipts, state funds Projection of Investable Balances - shows how the timing of cash flows and maturities affect investable balances

Cash Flow Forecasting Always have a liquidity pool for unforeseen expenditures. Ex. – Commissioners buy land at their Tuesday night meeting, and by-the-way the closing is Friday. GFOA recommends: “continuously investing a portion of the portfolio in readily available funds, such as local government investment pools (LGIPs), money market funds, or overnight repurchase agreements to ensure that appropriate liquidity is maintained to meet ongoing operations.” - GFOA Recommended Practices

Investment Instruments Default Risk Scale (Highest-to-Lowest) Higher Degree Prime Commercial Paper A1/P1 of RiskCollateralized Bank CD’s Bankers’ Acceptances U.S. Treasury Repos (DVP) U.S. Government Agencies U.S. Government Guaranteed (GNMA) Risk Free U.S. Treasury (Bills, Notes, Bonds)

Investment Instruments Liquidity Scale (Highest-to-Lowest) Most LiquidOvernight Repos NCCMT T-Bills Other short-term Treasuries Government Agencies Bankers’ Acceptances Commercial Paper Long-term government bonds Long-term U.S. Agency Bonds Illiquid Certificates of Deposit

The Investment Process 1. Identify unit’s objectives and constraints 2. Develop an investment policy 3. Develop administrative systems and internal controls 4. Prepare a cash forecast 5. Determine investment horizon 6. Establish an investment outlook and strategy 7. Analyze the yield curve 8. Select optimizing investments 9. Monitor markets and investment results 10. Report results 11. Adjust and rebalance the portfolio accordingly From Investing Public Funds, 2 nd Edition, Girard Miller, GFOA

Establish an Investment/Economic Outlook Most public investors are not trained economists Most have an unwritten or implicit investment outlook A formalized investment outlook may help improve communications and accountability The outlook may include long-term, macroeconomic, cyclical and short-term expectations

Analyze the Yield Curve Yield Curve – graphical representation of interest rate levels What type of yield curve environment are you in? Normal Flat Inverted How do you think the yield curve will change in the future?

Bond Math is Not Complicated

Interest Rates and Bond Prices Bond Pricing Bond prices move inversely to interest rates Interest Rates goBond Prices go Need To Know This! You will have a Fair Value Adjustment at Year-end

5.50% decline 5.00+% decline

Where Are We Now? Source: Investing Public Funds, 2 nd Ed.

Standard Business Cycle and Interest Rate Tendencies (USA: 1940 – 1996) Source: Investing Public Funds, 2 nd Ed.

Where are we on the business cycle? Probably late trough phase Looking for interest rates to increase in future Rates are at historic lows so you won’t be “going out on a limb” with this prediction

Bond Pricing Bond purchased at par (price = 100%) 2 year maturity, -.25% coupon bond Cost = Principal Amt. x Price ($1,000 x 100% = $1,000) Interest rate moves to 1.0% New Price = % New Market Value = $985.19FVA($14.81) Interest rate moves to 2.0% New Price = % New Market Value = $ FVA($34.15) 10 year maturity, % coupon bond Interest rate moves to 2.0% New Price = % New Market Value = $954.89FVA($45.11) Interest rate moves to 3.0% New Price = % New Market Value = $871.23FVA($128.77)