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.

Credit Suisse adds special situations trading head among raft of hires
Credit Suisse has continued to build momentum in its credit business with the hire of a managing director to head special situations and loan trading with its Europe, Middle East and Africa credit products business, following on from nine others across its London and New York credit business

IFM grows debt European debt team
IFM Investors, the AUD 117.1bn institutional investor, has expanded its debt EMEA team with the appointments of Lucie Mixeras and Rachel Fleming.  

BNP Paribas AM hires Robeco investment specialist for quant strategies
BNP Paribas Asset Management has appointed Grégory Taïeb for the newly-created role of investment specialist within the firm’s multi-asset, quantitative and solutions investment group, which includes investments in credit.  

SC Lowy hires Nomura trading head to drive European loan business
SC Lowy, the Hong Kong headquartered fixed income boutique, has hired Nomura's head loan trader in Europe

Pimco appoints former JP Morgan AM official as head of Switzerland
The new hire will be responsible for client management and developing strategic growth opportunities

The Last Tranche: awards season is upon us [podcast]
A look at 2018 award offerings and finalist, plus some insight on direct lending and b-wics

Oak Hill reshuffles leadership in Europe
Oak Hill Advisors has appointed three long-serving members of its investment and business development teams to lead the European office

Jefferies subsidiary and Stonyrock plan mid-market alternative manager stake acquisitions
The new joint venture will invest in private equity, credit, hedge funds, real estate, venture, and infrastructure firms

Cerberus garners $5.1 billion for debut dedicated NPL strategy
Cerberus has created its first dedicated fund for non-performing loans, having previously invested in the strategy through multi-strategy funds and separately managed accounts

UBS unveils combined leveraged debt capital markets group structure
The new business will be led by Brendan Connolly, according to an internal memo 

Three "critical safeguards" required for competitive loan syndication, European Commission says
The European Commission has published its final report on European loan syndication and the impact of competition in credit markets, in which it outlines three "critical safeguards"

BlackRock names global alternatives head amid senior leadership shake-up
BlackRock has reshuffled its leadership and made several senior changes across various parts of its business, according to an internal memo seen by Creditflux

Leveraged loans pose credit risk but not systemic risk, conference told
Regulators and the press need to understand the difference between credit risk and systemic risk, claimed panelists at the IMN European CLOs and Leveraged Loans conference

New manager Resco lands ex-credit head to found advisory board
Resco Asset Management, a London based asset manager set up last year, has appointed the first of an anticipated three advisory board members

Belgian pension fund appoints JP Morgan to run allocations to alternative investments
Hydralis, the statutory pension manager of Belgium water utility Vivaqua, has appointed JP Morgan to manage the fund’s allocation to unlisted assets for an eight years period, Creditflux has learned.  

Muzinich launches multi-strategy credit fund with Italian wealth manager
Available for retail investors, the fund will invest in syndicated loans, private debt and high yield. It will be structured as a European Long-Term Investment Fund

Dechert adds funds partner in London office
Law firm Dechert has expanded its fund practice with the appointment of a partner from Akin Gump 

Brookfield strikes deal to buy 62% stake in Oaktree
Brookfield Asset Management has agreed to buy a 62% stake in Oaktree Capital Management in a move which will lead to the creation of one of the largest asset managers in the business.

Regulation stifles SRTs, but banks and investors revel in quarter-four outperformance
Over the course of 2018 there was roughly €6.5 billion of issuance in the market for significant risk transfer (SRT) deals, sources say, with the last three months understood to be the busiest quarter on record

Italian pension fund seeks loan exposure through direct lending and large cap loan funds
Intesa Sanpaolo’s defined contribution pension scheme has issued a tender notice seeking senior secured loans and direct lending funds to invest in.  

Demonised triple Bs could outshine angelic neighbours
There has been a stampede to denounce triple B corporate credit, but investors ditching this rating band may not only miss solid returns but find bigger problems up the spectrum, investors and analysts tell Creditflux.

Canadian pension fund poaches CPPIB official for dual credit/private equity role
The Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO) has hired a senior managing director in credit and public equities  

Swedish pension AMF replaces head of asset management
AMF has appointed a new head of asset management, effective from April