In this section, we have our best content on bond insurance. Bond insurance (or financial guaranty insurance) can help protect investors from default risk while often reducing an issuer’s financing cost. When a bond is insured, the insurer guarantees timely payment of the scheduled interest and principal payments owed by the bond issuer to the bondholder. In addition to default protection, investors may enjoy other benefits such as a higher rating, enhanced market liquidity, relative price stability and the credit selection, underwriting and surveillance provided by the bond insurer. For new issues, the issuer pays the insurance premium, and the bond is generally issued with a reduced yield. Insurance may also be added in the secondary market. Read the articles in this section to find out more about bond insurance.
Municipal Bond Insurance: What You Need To Know Before Buying
2024-10-31Insurance coverage has an important place in daily life: Americans insure homes, cars, lives and...
Climate Change & Muni Bond Insurance
2022-04-27Municipal bonds continue to remain a popular way for investors to gain powerful tax advantages...
Understanding the Prospects of Insured Municipal Debt
2022-01-05In a well diversified portfolio, municipal debt plays a key role in adding to its stability and...
Bond Insurance Makes a Comeback—And It Might Be Worth the Cost
2021-12-28The COVID-19 pandemic has put a lot of pressure on municipal bonds. While general obligation...
Why the Extra Safety You Get Through Bond Insurance Is Worth the Modest Yield Reduction
2018-11-14Bond insurance protects investors and benefits issuers at a modest cost.
How to Evaluate the Strength and Performance of Bond Insurers
2018-10-17The last time a bond insurer was rated AAA was in 2010 when Assured Guaranty was downgraded by...
Do Non-Municipal Exposures Help or Hurt a Bond Insurer?
2018-09-19The bond insurance industry was devastated in the financial crisis of 2008-2009. The failure of...
How Rising Interest Rates and Widening Credit Spreads Will Drive Greater Use of Bond Insurance
2018-08-22The use of municipal bond insurance has diminished substantially since the financial crisis. Low...
Where Bond Insurance Fits in the Push for Infrastructure
2018-08-02The United States has a tremendous need for infrastructure investment, but it remains slow in...
Top 5 Reasons You Should Choose Insured Muni Bonds Over Uninsured
2017-11-02Bond insurance has been experiencing a resurgence in popularity following a series of crises...
How to Avoid Municipal Bankruptcy Headaches With Bond Insurance
2017-06-29The municipal bond market may be known for its rock-solid stability, but bond insurance can...
What Happens to Bonds When a Municipality Goes Bankrupt?
2017-01-20One of the most obvious values of municipal bond insurance is the protection it provides the...
Bond Insurance and the Secondary Market
2016-10-18Although many investors may be familiar with the concept of municipal bond insurance, they may...
The Municipal Bond Insurance Industry: A Chronology
2016-09-06The history of the Municipal Bond Insurance Industry dates back to 1971 with the founding of the...
How to Look at Insured Municipal Bonds
2016-07-21The municipal bond market is a very large, complicated place but there are ways to sort it out....
Municipal Bond Insurance: Reaching Middle Age and Still Working Hard
2016-06-17Municipal bond insurance has been a part of the muni bond marketplace for 45 years. During that...