TheMuniCenter, an online municipal securities trading platform, has secured the backing of bond insurer Financial Security Assurance (FSA) and brokerage Lehman Brothers.
As part of their strategic investment, the two firms will have representation on TheMuniCenter's board of directors, joining founding firms Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Salomon Smith Barney and Chapdelaine.
"The addition of Lehman Brothers as a strategic partner allows us to provide our customers with an even larger and more diverse inventory of fixed income securities while FSA's presence will provide clients with the ability to access on-line municipal bond insurance," says Thomas Vales, CEO of TheMuniCenter.
Launched in July 2000, the platform offers users the ability to trade anonymously municipal bonds and, more recently, US Treasury bonds, bills and notes, in a live, centralised trading environment. Customers can access news, analytics, and conduct customised searches to find specific types of issues and can execute transactions using click-through trading technology.
The platform currently claims 4000 approved viewers from 400 financial institutions.