US Fed reverse repos jump at quarter-end

NEW YORK: The Federal Reserve on Thursday awarded $303.85 billion of one-day, fixed-rate reverse repurchase agreements to 99 bidders at an interest rate of 0.25 percent, the New York Fed said on its website.

This was the highest amount allotted since the $474.49 billion total to 109 bidders on Dec. 31. The reverse repurchase agreement program is seen as a critical policy tool for the Fed to drain money from the financial system in an effort to achieve its interest-rate objectives.

On Wednesday, the Fed allotted $127.12 billion in one-day reverse repos to 59 bidders, including Wall Street dealers, money market mutual funds and mortgage finance agencies, also at an interest rate of 0.25 percent.