Beyond Tax-Free Income: The New Opportunities Emerging in Municipal Bonds

Host Ryan Nauman interviews Brad Kreidle, founder and president of MainLine West, about navigating the large, fragmented municipal bond market and why MainLine West was created to improve transparency and efficiency by operating at a wholesale level with its own broker-dealer. Kreidle explains how higher interest rates after the ZIRP era have made municipals attractive on a taxable-equivalent basis, and how a steep municipal yield curve creates opportunities, including his firm’s “80/50” positioning concept. They discuss ways to pursue higher tax-exempt income, including leveraging high-grade municipals rather than simply moving down in credit quality, plus sectors like housing finance (multifamily and single-family programs) and the growth of gas prepayment bonds, which can offer additional yield with good liquidity. They also cover muni ETFs’ growth, including using large ETFs to hedge muni rate exposure, and why MainLine West uses an SMA wrapper for flexibility and leverage constraints in 40 Act funds. Connect with Ryan Nauman: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryannauman1/ X: https://twitter.com/LkTahoeBadger www.NaumanStrategicPartners.com Learn more about MainLine West: https://www.mainlinewest.net/ 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:16 Brad and Mainline West 02:20 Why Mainline West Started 06:05 Today’s Muni Rate Backdrop 08:10 Curve Strategy and 80 50 10:35 High Yield via Leverage 12:50 Housing Bonds and Policy 14:52 Gas Prepay and Space Munis 18:17 Gas Prepay Benefits and Liquidity 23:38 Fragmented Market and Active Edge 26:57 AI and Human Judgment 27:45 Muni ETFs and Hedging 31:06 Why Use an SMA Wrapper 32:18 Where to Learn More Closing