https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/891190/000168386320003566/f3655d1.htm497 1 f3655d1.htm VANGUARD TREASURY MONEY MARKET FUND 497
Vanguard Treasury Money Market Fund
Supplement Dated April 16, 2020, to the Prospectus and Summary Prospectus Dated December 20, 2019
Vanguard Treasury Money Market Fund (the "Fund") is closed to all new investors (with the exception of participants who invest in the Fund only through defined contribution plans that offer the Fund as an existing option).
The Fund will remain closed until further notice and there is no specific timeframe for when the Fund will reopen. During the Fund's closed period, all current shareholders may continue to purchase, exchange, or redeem shares of the Fund online, by telephone, or by mail.
The Fund may modify these transaction policies at any time and without prior notice to shareholders. You may call Vanguard for more detailed information about the Fund's transaction policies. Participants in employer-sponsored plans may call Vanguard Participant Services at 800-523-1188. Investors in nonretirement accounts and IRAs may call Vanguard's Investor Information Department at 800-662-7447.
Comments
https://pressroom.vanguard.com/news/Press-Release-Vanguard-Closes-Treasury-Money-Market-Fund-New-Investors-041620.html
Based on that, I would expect it to reopen in 3-6 months, when most of the portfolio has turned over. By then, rates should have stabilized (at 0?). So even if it has to buy more paper after reopening later, that shouldn't hurt the yield.
I could have sworn that this fund was yielding around 1.2% not long ago. It's now down do 0.63%. So one can understand Vanguard's interest in doing what it can to slow the decline.
Even now, that 0.63% is so low that I'd rather keep money in a bank account. There are several yielding 1.5% or better.
https://www.pionline.com/investing/fidelity-closes-3-money-market-funds-new-investors
or
https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/fidelity-shuts-three-money-market-funds-to-most-new-investors-2020-03-31
or
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/fidelity-shuts-three-money-market-205320236.html
Derf
Risks to a MMF include:
- Securities defaulting. Zero risk in a Treasury fund, regardless of whether fund is closed.
- Gating and/or redemption fees. Not on most government funds including Treasury funds.
- Too much money flowing in, forced to buy lower yielding securities. Closing "fixes" this.
- Too much money flowing out, forced to liquidate in a fire sale.
Clearly that last one isn't a risk now, else these funds would not close to new investors. But even if it were, the fact that market rates are declining means that the securities would if anything fetch a premium if the fund were forced to sell.
As noted, it is risk to yield that the closing of these funds is addressing. Rates are dropping. All a fund can do now is to slow the impact by purchasing as little as possible of newer, lower yielding securities. Nevertheless, as the portfolios turn over naturally, the funds' yields will still drop.
An alternative for addressing the risk of declining rates is a penalty-free CD. This is a CD thats lock in your rate for the term of the CD, but allows you to get your money out without penalty. FDIC insured, so it is virtually as safe as a fund filled with Treasuries.
It is slightly less liquid because (a) you can't get your money out for the first week, (b) a withdrawal is all or nothing, you must close the CD, and (c) you can't add money to them.
These restrictions are better viewed as limitations on flexibility, not liquidity, since you can get your money out at nearly any time. There's no yield risk; should rates go up, you can always close these CD and buy new ones at higher rates.
https://www.depositaccounts.com/blog/best-no-penalty-cd-rates.html
Right now, I'm thinking of moving it to one of the above two FDIC insured Bank MMs. Unless I hear what I want to hear in my other thread and want to try and eke out a bit more return with as low a risk as possible.