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What is the repo market, and why does it matter?
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What is the repo market, and why does it matter?


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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Analytical
  • Background
  • For Beginners

Recommendation

Early in 2020, repurchase agreements, or repos, were getting a great deal of attention from financial professionals and markets. In this accessible overview, experts Jeffrey Cheng and David Wessel tell you why you need to know about this mechanism for financial stability. The authors explain how financial institutions rely on repos to manage their cash and how the Federal Reserve uses them to conduct monetary policy, particularly since the 2008 financial crisis.

Take-Aways

  • The repurchase agreement market calibrates institutional cash holdings and Federal Reserve-targeted interest rates.
  • The repo rate turned volatile starting in September 2019.
  • Both the federal deficit and financial regulations might be overstretching the repo market.

About the Authors

Jeffrey Cheng is a researcher with the Brookings Institution’s Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy, headed by David Wessel