The Wall Street Journal writes "Money Funds to Benefit From Bank Outflow". It says, "Managers of U.S. money-market funds are expecting an influx of cash between now and year-end as customers brace for the end of a program that covers their deposits in case their bank goes under. Starting in 2008, after the collapse of Lehman Brothers hit investor confidence, the government began guaranteeing an unlimited amount of non-interest-bearing deposits at banks. But that program, now called the Dodd-Frank Deposit Insurance Provision, is set to expire at the end of the year. The limit is expected to be reset to $250,000 per account. About $1.6 trillion now sitting in those deposit accounts could be looking for a new home in the coming months. Industry analysts say the bulk of this newly uninsured cash will be routed into safe-haven Treasurys or money-market funds -- places that aren't quite as flexible as checking accounts but would at least offer a slight return." In other news, see `Bloomberg's "Money Fund Dealmaking Resumes After Geithner Breaks Logjam", which says, "One month ago, a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposal to tighten rules for the $2.6 trillion money-market mutual fund industry was declared dead. Now, it's coming back to life. The revival was sparked by Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner, who added fuel to a new round of dealmaking among regulators, funds and banks when he used the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act to force the issue back onto the SEC's agenda." See also, WSJ's "Money-Fund Curbs Test Council's Mettle" and Bloomberg Businessweek's "The Money Market Fund Death Match, Part II".
