How to Read the Fed's Senior Credit Officer Opinion Survey (SCOOS) — Dealer Financing Terms, Leverage and Net Percentages

As of 2 November 2026, 01:11 KST; most recently published survey: the September 2026 Senior Credit Officer Opinion Survey on Dealer Financing Terms (SCOOS) from the Federal Reserve Board, covering changes between June and August 2026 reported by 17 dealers and surveyed between August 11 and August 24, 2026. The survey pages show a last update of September 24, 2026; the sources used give no time of day, and the index page, which describes the survey as quarterly, showed no next date when checked. Primary source: https://www.federalreserve.gov/data/scoos/scoos-202609.htm^[1][2][4]

Comparison basis: values are net percentages from the exhibit data published with the September 2026 survey, where each survey is dated by its quarter-end (06/30/2026, 09/30/2026, 09/30/2025). They are printed to up to two decimals and are not rounded further here; the response tables print shares to one decimal (for example 5.9 where the exhibit data show 5.88). Changes are this page's calculations in percentage points. In this page's reading, a net percentage matches the share of dealers reporting tightening (or an increase) minus the share reporting easing (or a decrease) in the response tables. All four documents are Federal Reserve Board publications and count as one source.^[1][2]

In three lines

1. In the September 2026 SCOOS, 17 participating dealer institutions answered questions about how credit terms, client leverage, funding demand and market functioning in securities financing and OTC derivatives changed over the past three months.
2. In September 2026, price and nonprice terms were basically unchanged, on net, for all counterparty types; demand for funding of equities was reported higher by 5 of 14 dealers (net 35.71).
3. Special questions compared current conditions with the past 10 years: 10 of 15 dealers with at least 10 years of hedge-fund client business rated current leverage above the midpoint of their past-decade range.^[1][2]

What the SCOOS is. "The SCOOS collects qualitative information on credit terms and conditions in securities financing and OTC derivatives markets, which are important conduits for leverage in the financial system." "The survey is directed to senior credit officers responsible for maintaining a consolidated perspective on the management of credit risks." "The survey panel for the SCOOS began by including 20 dealers and over time has been expanded."^[4]

Who answered. "The 17 institutions participating in the September survey account for nearly all dealer financing of dollar-denominated securities to nondealers and are the most active intermediaries in OTC derivatives markets." "The survey was conducted between August 11, 2026, and August 24, 2026."^[1]

Core findings. "Nearly one-fourth of dealers reported that the intensity of efforts by hedge funds (HFs) to negotiate more favorable price and nonprice terms increased somewhat." "Nearly one-half of dealers reported that changes in the practices of central counterparties, including margin requirements and haircuts, affected, to at least a small degree, the credit terms they offer to clients on bilateral transactions that are not cleared." "More than one-fifth of dealers reported widening of collateral spreads for equity financing." "More than one-third of dealers reported increased demand for funding of equities, as did nearly one-third of dealers for commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS)." "Liquidity and market functioning across all collateral types remained basically unchanged, on net, over the past three months."^[1]

Special questions. "More than three-fourths of dealers reported that their current capital shares committed to equity financing are above the midpoint of the past 10 years." "Regarding financing terms, nearly three-fourths of established dealers reported that their current collateral spreads on equities are above the midpoint of the past 10 years, as did nearly one-third of dealers for corporate bonds." "Established dealers, on net, reported that financing terms for U.S. Treasury securities are near the midpoint." "Two-thirds of these dealers reported that current financial leverage by HFs is above the midpoint of the past 10 years."^[1]

Change over three months vs level. The core questions (1 to 79) ask about changes; the instructions say: "If your institution's terms have tightened or eased over the past three months, please so report them regardless of how they stand relative to longer-term norms." The special questions (81 to 93) work differently: "Whereas core questions of this survey are framed in terms of quarterly changes, these special questions ask you to compare current conditions with their levels or ranges over the past decade." So hedge fund leverage can be unchanged over the quarter (question 8: 1 dealer reported an increase, 1 a decrease, 15 no change) while 10 of 15 dealers place it above the midpoint of the past 10 years (question 89).^[1]

Summary wording vs response counts. The summary describes liquidity and market functioning as basically unchanged, on net, across all collateral types, while 2 of 17 dealers reported deterioration in the high-grade corporate bond market (net -11.76) and 2 of 16 in the high-yield market. Similarly, client leverage is described as basically unchanged, on net, across all client types, while 2 of 14 dealers reported higher leverage by trading REITs (net 14.29). The Fed describes the overall responses as 'basically unchanged, on net,' despite these nonzero net readings; the counts are given here so readers can judge both.^[1][2]

Small and changing denominators. "Components may not add to totals due to rounding." Shares exclude dealers whose answer was not applicable, so the base differs by question: 17 for hedge fund terms, 14 for equities and trading REITs, 10 for CMBS. With 10 respondents, one dealer moves a CMBS share by 10 percentage points; the September CMBS demand reading of net 30 reflects 3 of 10 dealers (1 considerably, 2 somewhat).^[1]

Higher spreads vs tighter terms. For equities, 10 of 14 dealers (71.4%, this page's calculation) described price terms as tighter than the midpoint of the past 10 years (question 83), which the summary reports as collateral spreads above the midpoint. The summary's "nearly one-half" on central counterparties is 8 of 17 dealers (47.1%, this page's calculation) answering to some or a minimal extent (question 3).^[1]

Fractions vs counts. The summary says: "Similarly, more than one-fourth and one-third of dealers, respectively, reported this for U.S. Treasury securities and corporate bond financing." For corporate bonds, the table shows 4 of 12 established dealers near the highest level, which is 33.3% (this page's calculation). The index page says the panel began with 20 dealers and has been expanded, while the September survey reports 17 participating institutions; in this report, no explanation of the panel size is provided. The results are counts of answers from a small panel, and in this report, no measure of statistical error is provided.^[1][4]