Tech firm eyes data-driven approach to CLO management
As New York-based tech firm Exos prepares to launch what it calls “the first truly tech-enabled CLO”, the specialist leading its efforts says technology could soon play a central role in CLO portfolio optimisation

CLO market and congress plead with SEC to extend rule comment period to 90 days
SEC rule proposals are no page-turners: members of the US congress are looking to extend comment periods from 30 days to 90 days. Recent SEC rule proposals require commentors to read and analyse roughly 3,570 pages and respond to 2,260 individually identified questions   

Managers debate ethics of investments in arms makers

Attack-minded CLO managers capitalise on bearish outlook
Some of the most aggressive CLO managers have benefited from loan market volatility in March after having tweaked their portfolios in the months beforehand

US loans recover but CLOs lag and issuance stutters
The US leveraged loan market spent the latter half of March recovering losses from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with prices now above where they were when the war started

CLOs look attractive after corporate rally - but not all tranches: Barclays
Rallying corporate cash credit spreads over the past two weeks have widened the basis with CLOs and made these products look attractive again, according to Barclays strategists

Hidden loan tail risks and mounting single B exposure could pose problem for CLOs: Barclays
A solid rally for leveraged loans this week - against returning weakness in bonds - has put focus back on the market, which seemingly has little tail risk priced in. But short term support factors and a dwindling triple C bucket mask the quality skew, warn Barclays strategists in a note today - which could spell downgrades for single-B minus rated loans

Former US CLO portfolio manager lands at BTIG
A former Pretium and Crescent CLO portfolio manager has landed at BTIG as managing director within the firm’s fixed income credit division

Lakemore names CLO veteran Tiffen as independent board member
US control CLO equity investor Lakemore Partners has appointed a CLO and loans veteran to its board of directors

Market participants split over biggest risk to CLOs: Creditflux US CLO Summit
There are potential threats to the CLO market from all angles, but during a lively opening panel at Creditflux’s US CLO Summit on Tuesday – the first CLO conference to be held in New York since the pandemic – speakers responded to a poll showing 67% of audience members felt inflation/rising interest rates was the biggest hazard

Biden signs Libor transition measures into law
The Libor legislations, which recieved bipartisan support, are aimed at giving clarity to tough-to-amend Libor contracts that lack adequate fallback language, and supporting a smooth transition away from Libor

Senate introduces bipartisan bill for “tough" legacy Libor contract transitions
Four senators introduced a bill on Wednesday to provide a replacement framework for “tough legacy” financial contracts that reference Libor but cannot be easily changed

The Last Tranche with CVC's Bergstresser: CLO market will continue to function amid Ukraine crisis
In this episode of the Last Tranche, CVC Credit Partners partner and global head of performing credit Gretchen Bergstresser discusses the impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on the global loan and CLO markets

CLO equity could get hurt by mismatch in credit spread adjustments: Barclays
The possibility that borrowers and sponsors start to use their clout to scrap credit spread adjustments from leveraged loans poses a risk for new CLO equity, while legacy deals also face transition challenges

CSA does not make sense for new loans and CLOs, say market participants
Credit market participants have not been too hung up on what the credit spread adjustment should be on new CLOs and loans aligning to term Sofr – and that’s a positive, according to speakers on a webinar hosted by DealCatalyst

CLOs should realise gains from reorg equity positions: Pearl Diver
Reorg equity sitting within CLOs has risen in value over the last year and Pearl Diver Capital says it may be a good time to exit these positions “and realise value for CLOs”

Sofr spike boosts CLO debt as Europe and US go out of sync
The sharp rise in three-month term Sofr has caused CLO relative value to shift decisively towards primary US CLO debt tranches in January as the floating rate benchmark shot up from 9.11bp to 17.06bp (from 1-20 January)

Migration into floating rate kicks off with record loan inflows
The leveraged loan market received record-breaking inflows from retail funds in January as investors pivoted into floating rate products in advance of interest rate rises

Marathon sees value in Sofr CLO tranche over fixed-rate option
Marathon Asset Management stole a march on other CLO issuers by including a Sofr tranche as part of a new issue transaction on 10 November via Bank of America. Officials at the company say the Sofr tranche makes a compelling alternative to a fixed-rate tranche

CLOs prove resistant to omicron in boost for new issue market
The CLO market has withstood the impact of the omicron coronavirus variant with barely a dent on CLO liability pricing

Market ponders Sofr spread adjustment amid investor lag
The CLO market is waving goodbye to Libor as a benchmark rate and transitioning to alternatives for the first time in the history of the asset class. But there is no consensus as to what the Sofr spread adjustment should be, and some of the largest buyers are said to be slow to consider the impact of a benchmark transition

CLO lower cap stack will outperform with $175bn new issuance in 2022: JP Morgan
Equity and lower rated tranche investors will do best as $175 billion of global new CLO issuance arrives in 2022, predict JP Morgan strategists in their annual outlook, taking market size to $1.2 trillion

CLO resets drive equity returns to highest in five years: JP Morgan
Equity investors in US CLOs are earning, on average, the biggest returns of the past five years, finds JP Morgan – with deals reset this year having done most to raise the numbers

Amherst Pierpont takes total return approach as it builds CLO analytics platform
Amherst Pierpont is making CLO analysis the focal point of a push into the asset class, with the brokerage creating a platform that looks at the alpha and beta generated by a CLO manager, as well as their pricing on CLO liabilities.

Sofr transition timing puts CLO debt and equity at odds, says BNP Paribas
CLO investors look to have tough conversations ahead on the structure implications of the transition from Libor to Sofr, with BNP Paribas strategists noting CLO debt will benefit from an early move while equity tranches would do better to wait