1 CITY OF RICHMOND
REQUEST FOR QUALIFACTIONS FOR
BROKER/DEALER SERVICES
Date of issuance: April 4, 2023
Bid Deadline: May 1, 2023
City of Richmond
Finance Department
Project Manager: Mubeen Qader
450 Civic Center Plaza
Richmond, CA 94804
Phone: (510) 620-6740
2 REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ) FOR BROKER/DEALER SERVICES
I. Introduction
1. General Information
The City of Richmond (City) is issuing a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) from qualified firms for broker/dealer services for investing on an as -needed basis for the City’s portfolio. Based on an evaluation of the responses and qualifications of the firms responding to this solicitation, the City will select firms for inclusio n in the broker/dealer pool. The initial term of the broker/dealer pool program shall be four years. At the conclusion of the four year period the City will issue a new RFQ.
Broker/Dealers will be selected from the broker/dealer pool for specific transactions based on the City’s sole determination of which firm, or combination of firms, will best meet the criteria and investing requirements.
There is, however, no guarantee that any firm will be included in any issue during the term of the pool. Further, the Director of Finance reserves the right to competitively bid any investing without notice to the firms in the pool.
There is no expressed or implied obligation for the City of Richmond to reimburse responding firms for any expenses incurred in preparing proposals in response to this request.
The specific firm requirements, instructions to responders, and evaluation methodology are described in detail in the RFQ. Responders should read this RFQ carefully and follow all instructions to ensure complian ce with City requirements and requests for information. Based on a review and evaluation of the information submitted in the responses, City staff will recommend firms for the pool.
2. City of Richmond, California
The City of Richmond was chartered as a city in 1909, and is located 16 miles northeast of San Francisco, directly across San Francisco Bay. Richmond is on a peninsula separating San Francisco Bay (to the south) and San Pablo Bay (to the north), spanning 32 total miles of shoreli ne. The City’s total area is 52.51 square miles, 30.06 of which is land area and 22. 45 water area. Richmond is situated near major metropolitan cities and major new growth areas.
Richmond’s population is 115,639.
3 The City of Richmond provides a full range of municip al services, including police and fire protection, construction and maintenance of highways, streets and infrastructure, library services, storm water and municipal sewer systems, wastewater treatment facility and the administration of recreational activit ies and cultural events. The City also operates the Richmond Memorial Convention Center and the Port of Richmond.
The City Council is the governing body of the City and has six members elected by district to alternating 4 -year terms. The Mayor is elected at large and is a seventh member of the city Council. The City of Richmond is a Council - Manager form of government. The City Manager, appointed by the Mayor and Council, has administrative authority to manage administrative and fiscal operations of the city. In addition to the City Manager, the City Attorney, City Clerk and Investigative Appeals Officer are appointed by the Mayor and Council.
3. City’s Investment Portfolio
Portfolio book balance as of March 31, 2023:
City/Agency Funds
Local Agency Investment Fund $68,091,458.24
CalTrust $176,557,560.46
Total Portfolio $244,649,018.70
Copies of the City’s budgets, audits and policies can be obtained on the City’s website at the following address:
https://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/65/Finance
4. Minimum Qualifications
All firms must meet the minimum qualifications to be considered for evaluation.
Provide proof of Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) certification for a minimum of five years.
Proof of State of California registration.
Must be a primary or regional dealer that qualifies under the Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 15C3-1 (Uniform net Capital Rule). State in writing their acceptance and understanding of the City’s written Investment Policy (Attachment 1).
Provide the City with audited financial statements.
Have been in operation for more than five years.
4 Must have a working knowledge of the State of California Government Code §53601 and §53630 that governs investments of public funds.
Have the ability to conduct transactions on a delivery vs. payment (DVP) basis.
Have adequate financial strength and capital to support the level of trading that is approved.
Must be in good standing with the appropriate regulatory agencies.
II. Nature of Services Required
1. General Requirements
A. Broker/Dealer Personnel
Broker/Dealers are required to provide a lead person with signature authority to commit the firm’s capital and to engage the firm in the City’s financings. The lead person shall have full authority to act for the Broker/Dealer in all matters relating to the operation and management of the firm’s participation in the solicitation of bids and offers.
B. Confidentiality
The Broker/Dealer must ensure that the information obtained during the provision of Broker/Dealer services, except for those items that are or later become part of the public record, shall at all times remain confidential.
2. Broker/Dealer Responsibilities
Broker/Dealer responsibilities may include but are not limited to the following:
● Develop and recommend investing structures and strategies ● Assess market conditions prior to and at pricing
● Maintain a secondary market for the securities
● Send up-to-date market issues for fixed income securities ● Send up-to-date market condition reports
● Assist the Investment Analyst with yield curves, and yield analysis reports.
3. Removal From Pool
Any broker/dealer may be removed or suspended from the pool for reasons which include, but are not limited to, the following:
● Unacceptable performance in any investment instrument ● Failure to comply with the City’s policy that broker/dealers never contact City Council Members regarding investing business
5 ● Failure to maintain Federal, State and NASD registration, licenses or memberships necessary for offering and selling securities in California ● Subject to disciplinary action by the SEC, NASD, or the California Department of Corporations
● Failure to continue to meet the minimum requirements listed in Section I.4 ● Filing for protection under Federal or State bankruptcy laws
III. Instructions for All Responders
1. Tentative Schedule for Selection Process
April 4, 2023 Request for qualifications issued
May 1, 2023 Submittal Deadline
May 12, 2023 Interview notifications sent out
May 22, 2023 Broker/Dealers selected, and pool formed
2. Process for Submitting Proposals
A. Questions Concerning Request for Proposals
All questions must be submitted via the electronic BidsOnline system on the Q&A tab by 5:00pm PST, on April 19, 2023. If the City finds it necessary to issue an addendum, prospective Offerors will receive e-mail notification of addendum. Otherwise, answers to questions received will be provided on the Q&A tab and notification will be sent by April 24, 2023. It is the proposer’s responsibility to periodically check the BidsOnline website www.ci.richmond.ca.us/bids for any possible Addenda to the RFQ that may have been posted.
Any party submitting a proposal shall not contact or lobby any City Council member, City official, employee (except those specified for contact) or agent regarding the RFQ. Any party attempting to influence or circumvent the RFQ, bid submittal, and review process may have their proposal rejected for violating this provision of the RFQ.
Interested parties may download copies of the above mentioned proposal by visiting the City's web site, www.ci.richmond.ca.us/bids. To download RFQ, new vendors will be required to register. Once the vendor downloads any documents relative to a solicitation, that vendor's name will appear on the Prospective Bidders list for that project and will receive any addenda or notifications relating to the RFQ.
6 B. Submission of Proposals
The proposal and any required certifications shall be signed by an individual or individuals authorized to execute legal documents on behalf of the proposer.
Electronic Proposals shall be submitted via the City’s secure online bidding system. All required sections of the proposal must be submitted via the website. The Broker/Dealer is solely responsible for “on time” submission of their electronic proposal. The Bid Management System will not accept late proposals and no exceptions shall be made. Broker/Dealers will receive an e-bid confirmation number with a time stamp from the Bid Management System indicating that their bid was submitted successfully.
The City will only receive those proposals that were transmitted successfully.
The proposal must be received no later than 5:00 p.m., on May 1, 2023.
The City of Richmond reserves the right to waive inconsequential irregularities.
C. The City Reserves the Right to:
1. Reject any or all proposals.
2. Issue subsequent Requests for Proposal.
3. Postpone opening for its own convenience.
4. Remedy technical errors in the Request for Proposal process.
5. Negotiate with any, all, or none of the Respondents.
6. Solicit best and final offers from all or some of the Respondents.
7. Select one or more Respondents.
8. Accept other than the lowest proposed fees.
9. Waive informalities and irregularities in proposals.
D. Public Records
All proposals submitted in response to this RFQ become the property of the City of Richmond and public records and, as such, may be subject to public review. Documents protected by law from public disclosure will not be disclosed by the City of Richmond if clearly marked with the word "confidential" on each applicable page. Trade secrets may be marked as confidential only to the extent they meet the requirements of California Government Code section 6254.7. Only information claimed to be a trade secret at the time of submittal to the City of Richmond and marked as "confidential" will be treated as a trade secret.
7 3. Response Content and Sequence
A. Cover Letter
Include a brief letter (no more than two pages) transmitting the response and indicating the name, address, and telephone number of the person(s) authorized to sign for and make representations on behalf of the firm.
Express company’s willingness to enter into an agreement under the terms and conditions prescribed by this RFQ, insurance requirements (Attachment 3) and in the sample Service Agreement (Attachment 4).
Indicate the address and telephone number of the vendor’s office located nearest to Richmond, California and the office from which the project will be managed.
B. Table of Contents
Include a Table of Contents of the material presented in your response showing the applicable page numbers.
C. Response Content
Responses are to be submitted based solely on the contents of this RFQ.
The City assumes no responsibility for any understanding or representations concerning information provided or conditions given by any employees, prior to the selection of the pool, unless the same are explicitly expressed or included in the RFQ or any subsequent addendum to the RFQ.
D. Required Documents
A completed “Broker/Dealer Questionnaire and Certification (Attachment 2).”
A resume on each firm employee with whom the City would be trading.
A copy of the firm’s most recent Annual Reports, Form 10-Ks, and audited financial statements.
Confirmation of registration with the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC).
Confirmation that that the account representative(s) and the firm are members of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). Copy of the last two years of SEC rule 15C3-1(Net capital requirement for broker dealers).
Samples of fixed-income research reports or market information that the firm regularly provides to public sector clients.
E. Format
In order to simplify the evaluation process, responses must be submitted in the format described above. Each point of each question must be answered.
8 Failure to comply with these provisions, in the City’s sole discretion, may result in disqualification of the response or deductions in the scoring.
IV. Evaluation Procedures
1. Review of Proposals
The City reserves the sole right to judge the contents of all responses. Firms who submit responses that, in the City’s sole discretion, are incomplete and/or do not follow content and format guidelines may be disqualified without further consideration. Responses meeting the minimum requirements stated in Section I.4 will be evaluated on the criteria set forth in Section IV.2 below.
The proposal should be concise, well organized, and demonstrate the proposer’s qualifications and experience applicable to the Project. The proposal shall be limited to 20 double-sided pages (8.5inches x 11 inches), inclusive of graphics, forms, pictures, photographs, dividers, etcetera.
2. Evaluation Criteria
70% weight will be given to the following factors (Firm and Staff Qualifications). Please complete the following (attachment 5):
Firm Information & Sales Coverage (Section A)
Diversity, Social Responsibility and Environmental, Social and Governance (Section B)
Trading Products Capacity Information (Section C)
Research/Strategy Capabilities (Section D)
Compliance/Due Diligence (Section E)
20% weight will be given to the following factors (Firm and Staff Qualifications).
Underwriting capacity of the firm.
Recent demonstrated experience and ability of the firm and assigned staff to manage or contribute to diverse and complex investing structures of municipalities.
Comparable City Local Agency clients in our geographical area Suitability of firm’s qualifications.
Firm’s financial stability and ability to maintain as an ongoing concern during the proposed term of the broker/dealer pool. Magnitude of any pending litigation/sanctions.
Magnitude of any exceptions taken to the RFQ and the suitability and appropriateness of any alternatives.
9 10% weight will be given to the following factors (Quality and Relevance of Response)
Over-all level of detail in the response to the RFQ.
Appropriateness and thoroughness of the firm’s understanding of the scope and complexity of the City’s requirements as demonstrated in their response.
Analysis of the firm’s demonstrated ability to provide the requested services to meet or exceed the requirements in this RFQ.
A firm must score a minimum of 70% in order to be selected for the pool.
The City reserves the right to:
Require additional information from, any firm prior to its selection; and
May consider information about any firm from other sources, including information submitted by the firm.
3. Interview/Presentations
Upon request of the City of Richmond, vendors may be requested to give an oral presentation/demonstration on vendor’s proposal, which would include a detailed analysis of how each of the RFQ requirements would be addressed should Offeror receive the award. An in-person presentation is preferred but City staff will work with the vendor to determine what is feasible. The visit shall be conducted at no cost to the City.
Firms are not guaranteed an opportunity to interview. Firms may be eliminated from consideration based solely on inability to meet minimal requirements and/or review of written proposals.
4. Reference Checks
Reference checks may be used to confirm the applicability of respondent experience to the services the City is requesting and the quality of services and staffing provided to prior clients, as well as the respondents problem- solving, project management and communication abilities, as well as performance on deliverables and outcomes.