Federal Funds
The Federal funds market is an interbank lending market for short-term loans between banks that helps to manage the overnight cash reserves of banks. Banks that have excess reserves can lend to banks that need additional reserves to meet their daily reserve requirements. These loans are typically unsecured and have maturities of one day or less.
The interest rate in the Federal funds market is called the Federal funds rate, which is the rate at which banks lend to each other overnight. The Federal Reserve sets a target for the Federal funds rate and uses open market operations to adjust the supply of reserves in the banking system to keep the actual rate as close to the target rate as possible. Changes in the Federal funds rate can have a ripple effect on other interest rates, including consumer loans, mortgages, and credit card rates.
The Federal funds market plays an important role in the U.S. monetary system as it helps to ensure that banks have sufficient liquidity to meet their daily obligations. It also helps to stabilize the overnight interest rate, which is an important benchmark for other short-term interest rates. The Federal Reserve closely monitors activity in the Federal funds market to ensure that the market functions smoothly and efficiently.
While the Federal funds market is specific to the United States, other countries have similar interbank lending markets. In the Eurozone, for example, the European Central Bank operates the Eurozone overnight interbank lending market, or EONIA. In Japan, the interbank lending market is called the Call Market. These markets operate in a similar way to the Federal funds market, with banks lending to each other overnight to meet reserve requirements and manage their daily liquidity needs. The interest rates in these markets are also important benchmarks for other short-term interest rates in their respective economies.