Hedge Funds Get Access to $200 Billion

Hedge funds will be allowed to borrow from the Federal Reserve for the first time under a landmark $200 billion program intended to support consumer credit. The Fed said on Friday it would offer low-cost three-year funding to any US company investing in securitized consumer loans under the Term Asset-backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF). This includes hedge funds, which have never been able to borrow from the US central bank before, although the Fed may not permit hedge funds to use offshore vehicles to conduct the transactions. The TALF is a key plank of the unorthodox strategy set out by the Fed last week as it cut interest rates virtually to zero.