"If omicron paradoxically lowers the temperature of the market, that may be no bad thing"
The global economy is well protected against omicron — and a mild infection may be beneficial

"Some observers believe Europe’s opportunity in private debt lies at the lower end of the middle market"
European private debt has lagged its counterpart in the US. But a growth spurt may not be far off

"We again have to flag up information in CLO marketing pitches that can mislead investors"
Cash-on-cash returns, default records and leverage statistics don’t always give CLO investors the full picture  

They said it: "The tone may have been too positive"
CLO market participants have been guilty of being overly bullish

"In 2022, being slow will not be such a bad thing"
St David losing its place as the UK’s smallest city would be a travesty. Replacing Libor might be worse

"Growth in credit products lets investors express sector-specific views as dispersion ticks higher"
Investors can use ETFs, volatility dispersion swaps or even bond baskets to trade dispersion

They said it: "Remove call option from CLO assets and liabilities"
A CLO investor, commenting in Creditflux’s CLO Census, comes up with a drastic way of making CLO cashflows a whole lot easier to model

Points up front: Definitely not an ex-parrot
One of the biggest credit fund launches last month was Arini, led by star credit trader Hamza Lemssouguer  

"If ESG funds only talk the talk, it is because investors, legislators and regulators don’t walk the walk"
Whatever an ESG fund means to you, it probably means something different to the next investor

Everyone’s ramping

Points up front: CLO award-winners love bowing out at the top
Reaching the summit of their profession gives CLO officials the compulsion to move on to pastures new, as evidenced by the Creditflux Manager Awards

Points up front: Risk retention gets less than 5% of airtime
In a sign of how buoyant the CLO market is, risk retention was hardly mentioned at Creditflux’s CLO Symposium. Milbank partner John Goldfinch gave a self-deprecating assessment... 

"Never have the choices for issuers been more varied, nor the market dynamics more complex"
Direct lending deal terms are becoming more attractive in Europe

"Purchasing IG CLO debt was a key driver of success for 1.0 CLOs"
Longer reinvestment periods, the ability to buy IG tranches and improved loan settlements would improve CLOs

"I’m passionate about broader representation within investment teams"
CIP's Leila Donnachy takes our credit quiz 

"There are concerns about volatile sectors in high yield, but IG may be vulnerable to macro changes"
High yield has heavier exposure to energy and travel credits, but IG has more rate duration

Points up front: Tasty vaccine giveaway
Asset manager Vanguard is welcoming employees back to the office by offering a $1,000 bonus to staff who are fully vaccinated by October

"It’s not unusual for investors to toggle between the US and Europe depending on pricing and terms"
The accents may be different, but US and European direct lending markets have a lot in common

"In some ways, CLOs resemble a quirky, cottage industry more than a trillion-dollar market"
CLO volumes outstanding have passed $1 trillion, but index omission and private placements are holding us back

Past returns: Doing DIY CLOs
Five years ago we reported that CLO managers were considering self-arranged CLOs

"Low inflation was in part responsible for fostering a transfer of returns from creditors to shareholders"
We are conditioned to fear inflation risk. But it brings plenty of positives

They said it: "A lot of value was lost due to CLO window dressing"
"A lot of value was lost due to CLO window dressing"