ICI.org – Washington, DC – Total money market fund assets¹ increased by $10.51 billion to $2.68 trillion for the week ended Wednesday, September 28, the Investment Company Institute reported today. Among taxable money market funds, government funds² increased by $102.07 billion and prime funds decreased by $85.65 billion. Tax-exempt money market funds decreased by $5.92 billion.

 

Assets of Money Market Funds Billions of dollars

	9/28/2016	9/21/2016	$ Change*	9/14/2016
Government	1,965.41	1,863.34	102.07	1,786.93
Retail	538.02	527.06	10.96	517.06
Institutional	1,427.39	1,336.28	91.11	1,269.87
Prime	583.43	669.08	-85.65	729.26
Retail	279.39	292.84	-13.44	300.10
Institutional	304.04	376.25	-72.20	429.16
Tax-exempt	131.57	137.48	-5.92	142.99
Retail	107.41	111.07	-3.66	112.49
Institutional	24.16	26.41	-2.25	30.50
Total	2,680.41	2,669.90	10.51	2,659.18
Retail	924.82	930.97	-6.14	929.65
Institutional	1,755.59	1,738.94	16.65	1,729.53

^* Change in money market fund assets is primarily driven by flows and can be used as a proxy for net new cash flows.

Note: Components may not add to the total or compute to the $ change due to rounding.

 

Retail:³ Assets of retail money market funds decreased by $6.14 billion to $924.82 billion. Among retail funds, government money market fund assets increased by $10.96 billion to $538.02 billion, prime money market fund assets decreased by $13.44 billion to $279.39 billion, and tax-exempt fund assets decreased by $3.66 billion to $107.41 billion.

 

Institutional:³ Assets of institutional money market funds increased by $16.65 billion to $1.76 trillion. Among institutional funds, government money market fund assets increased by $91.11 billion to $1.43 trillion, prime money market fund assets decreased by $72.20 billion to $304.04 billion, and tax-exempt fund assets decreased by $2.25 billion to $24.16 billion.

 

Since January 2015, prime and tax-exempt money market funds have seen a decrease in assets of $1.00 trillion, in response to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s 2014 money market fund reforms, which must be implemented by October 14. During the same period, government money market funds have seen an increase in assets of $974.77 billion, and total money market fund assets have remained consistently close to $2.7 trillion.

 

“Retail and institutional investors, intermediaries, and funds have reacted to the requirement for floating net asset values and the prospect of liquidity fees and redemption gates by significantly reducing assets held in prime and tax-exempt money market funds,” said ICI Chief Economist Brian Reid. “Extensive preparation by money market fund sponsors has helped funds, investors, and markets manage those flows and make a smooth transition so far to the new rules.”

 

Notes: ICI reports money market fund assets to the Federal Reserve each week. Data for previous weeks reflect revisions due to data adjustments, reclassifications, and changes in the number of funds reporting. Weekly money market assets for the last 20 weeks are available on the ICI website.

 

¹ Data for exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and funds that invest primarily in other mutual funds were excluded from the series.

² Government money market funds, formerly referred to as “Treasury (including agency and repo),” are money market funds that invest in cash, securities issued by the U.S. Treasury (including repurchase agreements collateralized fully by U.S. Treasury securities), and securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or its agencies, and repurchase agreements for those securities.

³ ICI classifies funds and share classes as institutional or retail based on language in the fund prospectus. Retail funds are sold primarily to the general public and include funds sold predominantly to employer-sponsored retirement plans and variable annuities. Institutional funds are sold primarily to institutional investors or institutional accounts purchased by or through an institution such as an employer, trustee, or fiduciary on behalf of its clients, employees, or owners. For a detailed description of ICI classifications, please see ICI Open-End Investment Objective Definitions.