When Bear Stearns collapsed in March, a little-known and crucial source of financing for banks, the tri-party repurchase market, was thrust into the spotlight.

Policymakers were quick to express alarm at how financial institutions rely heavily on funding via repurchase, or repo, trades that are conducted between banks and investors under the auspices of third-parties such as JPMorgan and The Bank of New York Mellon, as clearing entities.