, Columnist
New York’s MTA Is Saved Less by Fed and More by Kroll
The largest U.S. public transit system locked in much cheaper borrowing costs with the central bank thanks to one credit rating.
Thank the power of averaging.
Photographer: Scott Heins/Getty Images
This article is for subscribers only.
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority became the second municipal-bond issuer to tap the Federal Reserve’s $500 billion emergency lending facility for state and local governments, locking in cheaper borrowing costs than if it had stuck with Wall Street.
But before crediting Fed Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues for providing the MTA with more affordable funding, the state, city and subway riders alike might want to thank Kroll Bond Rating Agency.