HiddenLevers Accelerates Stress Testing on Fixed Income Assets

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwired - May 13, 2016) - HiddenLevers, the leading portfolio stress testing platform for Financial Advisors and Asset Managers, now has universal fixed income modeling. Financial professionals subscribing to HiddenLevers risk management software can get instant risk analytics on millions of fixed income securities.

"Our bond universe coverage just got a huge shot in the arm," said Praveen Ghanta, Co-founder HiddenLevers. "When the Oil Crash started taking its toll on fixed income in 2015, it was proof that our risk model works. Stress testing laid bare which high-yield issues would be most impacted by Oil volatility. Our audience started asking for every name under the sun, and we listened."

High-yield bonds were ground zero for the impact of tanking Oil prices, but only a fifth of them were related to energy. Advisors using the HiddenLevers RIA risk toolkit could distinguish divergent behavior in high-yield issues, for both themselves and for their clients.

To get best-of-breed fixed income data, HiddenLevers tapped Interactive Data Corporation, a leading provider of fixed income evaluated pricing and subsidiary of Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE).

"Combining Interactive Data's expertise and range of fixed income evaluations with HiddenLevers risk analytics engine and scenario-based stress testing gives the market a powerful new tool," said Andrew Hausman, President of Interactive Data's pricing and reference data division. "We are pleased to support HiddenLevers innovation in risk technology."

Better Bond Models = Better Discussions

"Other risk analytics providers might only use one or two proxies for all bonds -- and many advisors might not realize this," said Raj Udeshi, Co-founder HiddenLevers. "We are a big data platform, with the ability to get more specific -- identify each individual bond's vulnerability to Oil Prices, several market indices, and of course, 10y Treasuries. The ability to illustrate these vulnerabilities for the client or prospect is what makes asset gatherers love us."

By digging deeper to show the divergent behavior of bonds to certain macro indicators, HiddenLevers creates new opportunities in fixed income. A portfolio manager can use stress testing to replace fixed income allocations damaged by exposure to Oil prices. An RIA can show why their allocation should withstand the impact of market events like Oil volatility, a Housing Rebound, Tech Bubble 2.0, and more. A registered rep can articulate why a more expensive managed fixed income product was chosen over an individual bond, fulfilling the DOL fiduciary mandate.

"The first HiddenLevers success stories came when US Treasuries got downgraded in the 2011 debt ceiling debacle," said Ghanta. "Our scenario analysis showed that the bond market would stay strong, counter-intuitively, and the pros have been using us to stress test fixed income assets ever since."

"We can now offer a strong risk profile for every CUSIP out there," said Udeshi. "New audiences with huge bond exposure should be able to take advantage of our stress testing platform now, from fixed income asset managers and corporate treasuries to pensions and endowments. Their need on risk analysis is no less."

About HiddenLevers
HiddenLevers is quickly becoming the premier portfolio stress testing solution for both portfolio managers and financial advisors everywhere. Cloud-based since its inception, the comprehensive risk tech platform includes a library of macro scenario research, interactive stress testing and scenario analysis, risk profiles for portfolios, automated risk monitoring, and thoughtful client-facing output. HiddenLevers has offices in New York City and Atlanta.