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ZEBRA is an abbreviation for zero basis risk swap. A ZEBRA is a swap agreement between a municipality which issues an interest-paying bond and a financial intermediary. Another term for a ZEBRA swap is an actual rate swap or a perfect swap. In a ZEBRA swap, a municipality pays a fixed rate of interest to a financial intermediary. The ZEBRA swap requires that the municipality receive a floating rate in return. ZEBRA swaps differ from other types of fixed/floating rate swaps in that the floating rate the municipality receives must equal the floating rate requirement on the municipality's outstanding floating rate debt initially issued to the public. ZEBRA swaps allow municipalities to avoid problems with federal regulations which prohibit arbitrage transactions on municipal debt. |
