Services

Assay
Debt Intelligence

An assay is an investigative procedure for qualitatively assessing or quantitatively measuring the presence, amount, or functional activity of the target being studied. Much like scientists using assays to search for molecules, Columbia Capital gives issuers and borrowers access to powerful tools to understand, analyze and report on their debt portfolios.

MuniVault®

Taking a deep-dive into your debt portfolio

Assay Debt Intelligence is a significant improvement to the typical systems governments use to manage debt, particularly spreadsheets that do not allow for automated aggregation or reporting, that delete debt history for bonds that have been refunded or retired, that are inconsistent in formatting, that do not tie out to the official record of debt outstanding, and that are incomplete.

Assay uses sophisticated analytics to identify errors or omissions in an issuer's or borrower's debt database versus records of the MSRB or CUSIP bureau. This allows Columbia to provide high-quality, error-free debt reporting to our clients. We work with staff and other professionals to understand our client's full debt profile, financial policies, strategic plan, and capital plan.

Assay is a suite of custom-built tools that allow us to use our client's debt database as a tool to:

  • Enhance debt reporting for staff, governing body and the public
  • Catalogue in a non-destructive repository a database of outstanding, refunded, and retired debt, organized by security type (i.e., general obligation, excise tax, airport revenue, water revenue, etc.)
  • Evaluate the market’s perceptions of the client's credit quality in real-time using MSRB secondary market trading activity
  • Manage GASB 87 lease obligations and GASB 96 subscription-based information technology arrangements
Using Assay, Columbia is able to instantaneously produce reporting for our clients, including:
  • Debt outstanding and debt service demands by credit both today and as of any date in the past
  • Debt service demands by principal and interest or total debt, series-based or aggregated, fiscal year or bond year
  • Debt outstanding or debt service demands across series for certain purposes
  • Secondary trading information aggregated over customizable time periods and compared to ‘AAA’ benchmarks, allowing the client to see trends in market valuation of its credits over time
  • Information to assist our client in preparing debt-related notes to its annual financial statements

Key Features

01

Non-Destructive
Debt Database

02

Sophisticated
Error Checking

03

Highly Flexible
Reporting

04

Secondary Trade
Analytics

05

Tax Compliance
Support

06

Tailored to
Your Needs

Columbia Capital

Trusted

Issuers and borrowers large and small, from coast to coast, have relied upon Columbia Capital as a strategic advisor for 26 years.

Columbia Capital

Experienced

Columbia Capital combines 150 years of public finance expertise among its team of highly experienced, proven professionals.

Columbia Capital

Independent

Columbia Capital is unaffiliated with commercial and investment banks, insurance companies and others in the financial services industry.