CLOs on lookout as Neiman recovery signals slump and DC confirms credit event
Five-year CDS referencing Neiman Marcus widened by four points to 95.25 points up front, according to IHS Markit, as the Americas Determinations Committee confirmed the US retailer has triggered a bankruptcy credit event

US retailer bankruptcy spells hit for CLOs and CDX HY tranches
US retailer Neiman Marcus's filing for chapter 11 protection opens the prospect of a fourth credit event in the CDX HY index and a sixth for on-the-run HY tranches, as well as a hit for CLOs

Whiting CDS heads to auction, with Morgan Stanley joining bidders
The credit event auction to determine Whiting Petroleum CDS takes place today, with Morgan Stanley added to participating bidders and the pay-out to protection buyers expected to be as much as 90 cents in the dollar 

Ecuador CDS gaps tighter as it heads to credit event auction
CDS referencing Ecuador sovereign bonds are rallying sharply, just as the Americas Determinations Committee set a date for them to be settled at a credit event auction

HY tranche traders face another cut as Diamond hits the rough
US high yield index CDX HY has suffered its third constituent credit event in a month, after Diamond Offshore Drilling filed for chapter 11 protection in the Southern District of Texas. This is also the fifth default to hit on-the-run CDX HY tranches

Ecuador has triggered CDS contracts, says Determinations Committee
Ecuador has triggered a restructuring credit event, the Americas Determinations Committee has ruled

222 CLOs hold bankrupt telecom firm as its signal fades
CLOs hold $334.5 million debt of Australian telecommunications company SpeedCast International, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the District of Texas on Friday

Longview Power turns to coal for handful of CLOs
CLOs hold $43.9 million of the debt of US power company LongView Power, which filed for Chapter 11 in the District of Delaware yesterday

Frontier bankruptcy dials up pressure for 90 CLOs
Nine CLO managers hold $217 million of Frontier Communications’ debt across 90 CLOs, as the telecommunications company filed for Chapter 11 protection in the US Bankruptcy Court Southern District of New York

Fortress digests CraftWorks bankruptcy
CraftWorks Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy yesterday, with Fortress Investments holding all of the Tennessee restaurant operator's first lien debt - of which over half is in middle market CLOs. The New York-based firm has submitted a “stalking horse” bid to buy CraftWorks' assets

Correlation rise stokes mezz rally but adds to CSO woes
Below the calm surface of the credit market, correlation has been churning and creating dislocations rich with reward for index tranche traders but complicating bespoke issuance, say sources.

Rising idiosyncratic risk leads to calls for high yield index tranche fix from traders
As sources of funding dry up for the weakest borrowers in the credit market, some correlation traders are calling for an overhaul of CDX NA HY index tranches to make trades on wide-end dispersion more effective.

Thomas Cook CDS auction sets initial midpoint at nine cents
An auction to settle CDS referencing Thomas Cook Group has derived an initial market midpoint of 9.125 cents, implying protection buyers will receive a pay-out on contracts in the region of 89 cents

Thomas Cook is a lesson for CLOs on unsecured bonds, says TwentyFour AM
The liquidation of UK travel operator Thomas Cook this week has underscored that “unsecured debt has no place in CLOs,” according to a note by Aza Teeuwen, portfolio manager at TwentyFour Asset Management

Galapagos failure-to-pay credit event posed to DC as bond grace period lapses
The Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee has accepted a request to rule on whether Galapagos Holding, a former iTraxx Crossover index constituent, has triggered a failure-to-pay credit event

Steinhoff CDS auction in limbo due to lock-up and CVA
A date to settle CDS referencing Steinhoff Europe had still to be agreed as Creditflux went to press — more than a month on from when the EMEA Determinations Committee (DC) ruled that the company had triggered a failure-to-pay credit event.

Direct lenders split over best way to manage loan restructuring
Direct lenders are divided on how best to set up internally when dealing with loans that require restructuring. Some managers argue that a deal should be restructured via the original deal team

Direct lender suspends withdrawals amid large loan default, reports Bloomberg
A borrower comprising 25% of a direct lender's portfolio has defaulted on a loan - leading to the fund suspending withdrawals and redemptions to investors

Parker Drilling CDS auction deliverables trade in low 50s
There will be two deliverable obligations into an auction to settle credit default swaps referencing Parker Drilling, the Americas Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee has decided

Seven deliverables valid for Sears CDS auction, as seven others split DC panel
There will be seven obligations deliverable into an auction on 14 November to settle credit default swaps referencing Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp, the Americas Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee has decided. But members of the 15-strong DC were split over whether to include another seven potential deliverables that did not make the cut

Strengthen CDS definitions to stop engineered defaults, say lawyers
The likelihood of stamping out manipulation in the credit default swaps market – namely the practice of staging credit events – is remote, say market sources

CDS holders voice suspicions over bankruptcy timing as Oi talks resume
Isda's credit determinations committee meets for third time to determine timing of Oi's default timing

Southcross bankruptcy puts further pressure on CLO coverage ratios
Some CLOs are expected to take a sizeable hit after Southcross Holdings became the latest energy-related name to file for bankruptcy yesterday