Bloomberg Index Services

Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition

This document justifies a sole-source procurement for Bloomberg L.P. services. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) requires continued access to Bloomberg's investment benchmarks for evaluating the PBGC Investment Portfolio's performance against appropriate investment guidelines. The current contract expires in January 2026, and access to these benchmarks is essential.

• Access to Bloomberg investment benchmarks for fixed income mandates.

• These benchmarks are codified in investment guidelines and determined by the Corporate Investment Department (CID).

• Procurement Action Type: Follow-on Contract

• Contractor Name: Bloomberg L.P.

• Period of Performance: Twelve months

• Estimated Value: $57,180.48

This document is a justification for a sole-source award, not a solicitation for proposals. The contracting officer will determine the price to be fair and reasonable using procedures in FAR 13.106-3, including comparison to historical prices, current price lists/catalogs, and the Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE).

This is a sole-source justification based on market research indicating Bloomberg L.P. is the only capable provider of these specific benchmarks. The document notes that this is a commercial requirement under FAR 12 & 13, utilizing procedures specified in FAR 13.500.

• Bloomberg is identified as the sole creator and provider of its intellectual property (data and indices), and does not license third-party vendors for distribution.
• Changing benchmarks would be highly disruptive, require changes to investment guidelines, and incur significant costs.
• No other sources expressed interest in the acquisition.

Solicitation / RFP / RFQ

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation (RFQ) for commercial items, issued under FAR Part 13 in conjunction with FAR Part 12. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is seeking to purchase Bloomberg index Services. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation, and a written solicitation document will not be issued.

• Provide monthly investment return data for standard, blended, and custom Bloomberg indices.

• Deliverables include:

  • Standard index level data package.
  • Several custom indices calculated by the contractor.
  • Authorization to utilize blended indices.
  • A secure SFTP portal for delivering returns to PBGC.
  • Secure SFTP portals for delivering monthly data to PBGC's custodian and investment risk management system provider.

• The various indices are used in PBGC's monthly investment performance reports and within the IRMS.

• Contract type is anticipated to be Firm Fixed Price (FFP).

• The period of performance is not explicitly stated but the price schedule lists monthly quantities (MO).

• All interested companies must provide quotations based on the requirements and instructions included in the solicitation.

• Quotes must include a statement regarding acceptance of the terms and conditions without modification, or list exceptions.

• Late submissions will be treated in accordance with FAR 52.212-1(f).

• The government will evaluate offers in accordance with FAR part 25 policies and procedures.

• This requirement is not a small business set-aside.

• The associated NAICS code is 541611, with a small business size standard of $24.5 Million.

• The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2025-06.

• Questions or concerns should be emailed to the contract specialist, Matt Walton, at walton.matthew@pbgc.gov.

• Attachment 1 provides the Price Schedule with line items for various Bloomberg indices and services.