Investment Grade
Also called: IG, investment grade bond, BBB rated
Investment grade means a credit rating of BBB−/Baa3 or better — the threshold at which most institutional mandates are allowed to buy. The line is arbitrary and enormously consequential: a downgrade from BBB− to BB+ forces mechanical selling by funds that cannot hold sub-investment-grade debt, so spreads gap far more than the change in fundamentals warrants. The build-up of debt clustered just above the line is a standing systemic concern.
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