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MuniMarket Pulse™, a podcast of DerivActiv, LLC, serves as a platform for top municipal professionals to speak directly to the issuers, advisors, and other finance professionals in the broad municipal marketplace. Tune in each week as Johan Rosenberg, CEO of DerivActiv asks the pertinent questions in exclusive interviews with different prominent municipal professionals.

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Friday, May 09, 2008
14 minutes 15 seconds
Ed Oswald Explains New Tax Reporting Requirements for Muni Issuers; IRS’s Push for Transparency
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Ed Oswald, Partner at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe speaks on the new post-issuance tax compliance reporting requirements for non-profit organizations as the IRS pushes for increased transparency in the tax-exempt sector. Oswald speaks on which entities are subject to the new standards and when, and the complexity of Schedule K.
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Thursday, May 08, 2008
11 minutes 29 seconds
Stienstra Says Ratings Reform is "Probably Inevitable," Explains Fund’s Use of Derivatives
Investor's Insight
Catherine Stienstra, Portfolio Manager and sector leader of the tax exempt team at RiverSource Investments, says certain credit spreads are at all time wides and describes trends in muni/treasury ratios. She also explains the use of derivatives in tax- exempt mutual funds and gives her opinion on the Kentucky versus Davis case and muni ratings reform.
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Tuesday, May 06, 2008
15 minutes 16 seconds
Wolfe Warns of a "Half-Baked Solution" to Student Loans, Predicts Inefficiencies
Special Series: Student Loan Credit Crunch
Jamie Wolfe, CFO of Northstar, the provider of the T.H.E. loan programs in Minnesota, speaks on the difficulties that lenders are facing and Congress’ failure come up with a long-term solution. He speaks on the worst case scenario for students and schools and the financial condition and future of Northstar Education Finance.
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Monday, May 05, 2008
9 minutes 56 seconds
Enright Says Auction Rate Conversions are at "Incredibly Attractive Levels" for Investors
Underwriter's Call
Tom Enright, Head of Underwriting at City Securities in Indianapolis describes the market conditions, volume trends, ratios, and gives his perspective on the recent volatility in rates, the ‘onslaught’ of volume in early March, and the push for global scale ratings for municipals.
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Monday, May 05, 2008
11 minutes 39 seconds
Flanagan Says, "We Do Not Have A Crisis" in Student Loans, Compares with Subprime
Special Series: Student Loan Credit Crunch
Sarah Flanagan, Vice President of Government Relations and Policy with the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities gives us the schools’ perspective on the pressures they are facing as student loan availability has diminished, and discusses the results of the recent NAICU survey. Also, the significance of the pending legislation.
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Thursday, May 01, 2008
17 minutes 21 seconds
Kantrowitz Discusses Legislation to Aid Student Loan Credit Crunch, Describes His Solutions
Special Series: Student Loan Credit Crunch
Mark Kantrowitz, Publisher of FinAid.org speaks on the student loan credit crunch, the potential impact on students and schools, and the momentum for legislation in the US Congress. He discusses his proposed solutions and advises schools to have a fallback plan.
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Monday, April 28, 2008
18 minutes 11 seconds
Paul Sheldon Says Student Loan Problems Will Persist Into 2009; Identifies Resources
Special Series: Student Loan Credit Crunch
Paul Sheldon of Student Loan Capital Strategies speaks on the current student loan market crisis and all of the constituents involved, including the students, schools, lenders, investors, and investment bankers. Sheldon provides insight on how all of these entities are being affected by the credit crunch.
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Thursday, April 24, 2008
13 minutes 44 seconds
Mitchell Savader Says Wall Street Woes May Negatively Impact New York Muni Credits
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Mitchell Savader, CEO of The Savader Group, speaks on the growing demand for independent municipal credit research in the midst of the insurer crisis. Also, auction rate restructuring, the strength of revenue bonds in an economic downturn, and the impact of Wall Street woes on New York government revenues.
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Tuesday, April 15, 2008
12 minutes 34 seconds
Stamper Focuses on Capturing "Upside Potential and Downside Protection"
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
B Clark Stamper, Chief Investment Officer and President of Stamper Capital & Investments describes why history repeats itself with failing hedge ratios for muni fund managers. Stamper also describes declining new issuance and predicts widening credit spreads.
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Friday, April 11, 2008
13 minutes 19 seconds
Ciccarone of McDonnell has "Strong Reservations" on Ratings Reform, Points To History
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Richard Ciccarone, Managing Director and Chief Research Officer at McDonnell Investment Management speaks on the untimely push for municipal ratings reform as the housing crisis will soon have an impact on government revenues. Also, the history of municipal ratings, and thoughts on the Supreme Court’s pending decision on individual state tax exemption.
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Friday, April 11, 2008
13 minutes 7 seconds
Hoadley of Wisconsin Says Merging Scales Would Be "Very Disruptive"
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Frank Hoadley, Capital Finance Director for the State of Wisconsin speaks on the recent push for a unified ratings system and voices his opinion on the ratings agencies’ initiative. Hoadley blames the insurers, the commoditization of munis, and the market’s misunderstanding of insured paper. Also, international buyers for Wisconsin’s refundings and the State’s Auction Rate disclosure system.
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Friday, April 04, 2008
19 minutes 15 seconds
Guy LeBas of Janney Says Auction Rate Failures Dependant on Max Rates; Predicts Recession
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Guy LeBas, Chief Economist and Fixed Income Strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott describes the state of the $165 billion-dollar auction rate securities market, the 70-percent failure rate, and the trends in the auctions that are clearing. Also, refinancing options for issuers and a projected steepening in the muni yield curve.
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Monday, March 31, 2008
17 minutes 6 seconds
Matt Fabian of MMA Speaks on the Transformed Investor Base; Dynamics of the MMA Consensus
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Matt Fabian, Managing Director at Municipal Market Advisors describes the state of the municipal market, the transforming investor base, and the continued de-leveraging and its impact. Fabian also discusses high Muni to Treasury ratios carrying into 2009, and the MMA Consensus Scale and the recent difficulty in reaching a consensus.
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Friday, March 28, 2008
15 minutes 26 seconds
Treasurer Bill Lockyer Pressures Ratings Agencies for Municipal Bond Ratings Reform
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Bill Lockyer, the Treasurer of the State of California, discusses his widely publicized letter to the ratings agencies urging them to endorse corporate equivalent credit ratings for municipal entities. He discusses the likelihood of the eighth largest economy in the world going into default, and the cost to taxpayers to obtain credit enhancement.
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Thursday, March 20, 2008
16 minutes 27 seconds
Dan Solender of Lord Abbett Says Underlying Credit Quality of Munis is "Staying Strong"
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Dan Solender, Director of Municipal Bond Management at Lord Abbett talks about the value found in municipals in the midst of the market uncertainty. Also, the attractiveness of auction rate paper for a high-yield fund, advice for borrowers converting out of auction rate, and widening credit spreads.
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Wednesday, March 19, 2008
20 minutes 4 seconds
T.J. Marta Of RBC Describes The "Implosion of the Financial System;" Applauds Fed Actions
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
TJ Marta, Economic and Fixed Income Strategist with RBC Capital Markets gives us a global perspective and comments on the "complete breach of trust in the global financial system" and the implications for the municipal market. Also, the current value found in municipals, advice for tax-exempt borrowers, and an applause for the Fed’s decisive actions.
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Tuesday, March 18, 2008
14 minutes 30 seconds
Pennsylvania’s Wiessmann Speaks on Solutions for the Municipal Short-Term Market Turmoil
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Treasurer of the State of Pennsylvania Robin Wiessmann reacts to the Fed action over the weekend and comments on the state of the municipal market. Wiessmann discusses her own solutions to stem the crisis resulting in high variable-rate borrowing costs for thousands of tax-exempt issuers across the nation.
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Friday, March 14, 2008
13 minutes 49 seconds
John Kautz of Ziegler Describes The "Unprecedented Volatility" In Muni Swap Spreads
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
John Kautz, Managing Director and Head of the Risk and Advisory Group at Ziegler Capital Markets describes the swap options for borrowers in a fluctuating market and the recent divergence between LIBOR, SIFMA, and MMD swaps rates. Also, swap volatility driven by an oversupply in muni fixed-rate bonds.
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Wednesday, March 12, 2008
14 minutes 12 seconds
Chris Mier of Loop Capital Says Fed Is "Throwing Gas on the Fire" In Terms of Stagflation
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Chris Mier, Managing Director and Chief Strategist at Loop Capital Markets talks about the Fed’s latest move to aid the credit markets with $200 billion available through weekly auctions, and the implications for municipals. Also, the attractiveness of municipals and all fixed income securities in the midst of high inflation.
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Friday, March 07, 2008
11 minutes 27 seconds
Rob Haines Says the Fundamentals of the Bond Insurers Are "Horrible"
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Rob Haines, Senior Analyst at CreditSights, an independent research firm in New York, describes the market’s "crisis of confidence." Haines speaks on Ambac’s successful sale of $1.5Bn of equity, the short-term and long-term implications for the company, and the necessary measures before the credit markets move back to normalcy.
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Monday, March 03, 2008
18 minutes 55 seconds
Matt Fabian of MMA Says U.S. Congress Is "Amenable" and Likely To Aid Auction Rate Issuers
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Matt Fabian, Managing Director at Municipal Market Advisors speaks on the latest developments in the Auction Rate market as Standard & Poor's has withdrawn their evaluations on 2800 auction rate securities. Fabian also describes the benchmark yield curves as ‘irrelevant’ in the midst of the current market turmoil.
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Thursday, February 28, 2008
13 minutes 22 seconds
Delahunt of Raymond James Offers Bond Insurer Solution, Discusses Ratings "Forbearance"
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Peter Delahunt, Senior Vice President and National Sales Manager of Municipals at Raymond James, shares an innovative and simple solution to the current bond insurer crisis relating to the accounting of CDO contracts. Also, "forbearance" granted to the bond insurers by the ratings agencies, and auction rate conversions pouring into the VRDB and fixed rate market.
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Tuesday, February 26, 2008
10 minutes 25 seconds
Ned Sher of Fifth Third Speaks On The "Tsunami" of LOC Requests From ARS Conversions
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Ned Sher, Vice President at Fifth Third Bank speaks on the volume of requests for Letter of Credits as borrowers are moving out of auction rate securities and into VRDBs. He explains the banks’ capacity to respond to these LOCs, the heightening cost of LOCs in the midst of the market turmoil, and the use of the banks’ balance sheet as a ‘scarce resource’.
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Friday, February 22, 2008
20 minutes 15 seconds
Bill Ackman Says, "We Want the Bond Insurers to Succeed;" Explains Insurer Restructuring
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Bill Ackman, managing partner and hedge fund manager at Pershing Square Capital Management LP explains his recent proposal to split the bond insurers and MBIA’s recent withdrawal from the Association of Financial Guaranty Insurers (AFGI). Ackman also discusses the implications of applying corporate credit ratings to municipals, and the future and ultimate need for the bond insurance industry.
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Thursday, February 21, 2008
10 minutes 6 seconds
Bob MacIntosh of Eaton Vance is Looking for "Good Value" In The Wake of Downgrades
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
Bob MacIntosh, Co-Director of the Municipal Group and Portfolio Manager at Eaton Vance, speaks on the value that investors are finding in the midst of bond insurer downgrades and the auction rate turmoil. MacIntosh also explains the insurer impact on Eaton Vance’s Closed-End Municipal Funds and where muni yields are expected to move relative to Treasuries in the month ahead.
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Monday, February 11, 2008
11 minutes 56 seconds
Mackey of Rice Financial Says there is a "Tremendous Cloud" Over the Ratings Agencies
Underwriter's Call
Howard Mackey, President of the Broker-Dealer Division of Rice Financial Products Company, speaks on the "dislocation" of the current municipal market and the criticism of the ratings agencies. Also, comparing the standard between municipal credit ratings and corporate credit ratings, and the implications of current market turmoil on the VRDB and auction rate markets.
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Thursday, February 07, 2008
15 minutes 2 seconds
John Mousseau of Cumberland Says Muni Market Turmoil Is In The "7th Inning Stretch"
DerivActiv MuniMarket Pulse
John Mousseau, Senior Portfolio Manager at Cumberland Advisors, says the market has overreacted to the current insurer situation, and explains his optimism for the near future after "one more scare," with a AAA insurer downgrade. Also, a deadline extension for the bond insurers by the ratings agencies, the current state of the auction rate market, and municipal hedge funds and their impact on the current market.