Ares grows credit 34% with direct lending boost, but high yield takes rough ride in Q4
Ares Management Corporation reported strong returns for its European direct lending strategies in the fourth quarter of 2018. But the firm's overall revenues slumped and its US loan funds and high yield strategies were hit by the volatile credit market 

Italian journo pension scheme presses ahead with plan to invest in private debt
The National Institute for Italian Journalists' Social Security (INPGI) has launched a tender notice seeking closed-ended private debt funds to invest in, or unlisted debt instruments including infrastructure debt, private corporate debt and real estate debt  

Tikehau garners €2.1 billion for European direct lending strategy
Tikehau Investment Management has collected €2.1 billion for its fourth private debt strategy - three times larger than its predecessor fund 

BlueBay closes fourth direct lending fund at €6 billion
BlueBay Asset Management has held a final close for its fourth private debt fund with over €6 billion of investable capital

HPS targets $8 billion for flagship mezzanine strategy
HPS Mezzanine Partners 2019, the firm's fourth fund in its mezzanine strategy, has won $100 million from a Louisiana pension fund 

Euro CLO round-up: five deals hit pipeline after BlueMountain keeps up momentum
BlueMountain Fuji CLO Management ended its seven-month absence from the new issue European CLO market and also broke the market’s silence this week. The firm partnered with Deutsche Bank to price its fourth deal in Europe - BlueMountain Fuji Euro CLO IV.

Spire teams with BAML for the first time on a CLO as it markets €407 million deal
Price talk has emerged for a new European CLO being marketed by Spire Partners, according to market sources

Market welcomes Esma loosening of securitisation regs but questions remain
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA)'s revision of the reporting templates that must be completed under the securitisation regulations addresses many of the concerns raised by market participants but leaves some points of difficulty, according to industry lawyers

Global CLO league tables: new year, new issues
Momentum in the CLO market at the start of 2019 is less forceful than it was at the beginning of 2018 and 2017, on the basis of opening volumes

Isda seeks fallback spread vendor for derivatives
The International Swaps & Derivatives Association is seeking an independent service provider to calculate and publish adjustments to fallbacks it will use in interest rate benchmarks for its Isda definitions

GSO prices Europe's largest new issue CLO in over six months
 Europe’s CLO primary market is taking off, with GSO Capital Partners today becoming the third manager to price a new issue deal on the continent

Esma requests derivatives clearing reprieve for smaller counterparties as deadline looms
With time running out for market participants to comply with a 21 June deadline to start centrally clearing over-the-counter credit and interest rate derivatives, the European Securities and Markets Authority (Esma) has pleaded with national regulators to overlook the failure of smaller counterparties who may subsequently be absolved from the requirement in any case since thresholds are not yet finalised

AnaCap buys €4 billion Italian SME loan portfolio
AnaCap Financial Partners has made its first transaction of its fourth credit opportunities fund 

European CLO round-up: single B basis between US and Europe narrows
The European CLO market finally came out of its issuance shutdown on Friday when Credit Suisse Asset Management partnered with Barclays to price Cadogan Square CLO XIII.

CSAM sheds light on CLO pricing as it reopens European market
Credit Suisse Asset Management has priced Europe’s first CLO in two months, according to market sources

Cairn Capital hires portfolio manager for CLO investments
Cairn Capital has hired a portfolio manager with sell-side and ratings agency experience to be responsible for CLO tranche investments

Talde launches €100 million debt fund
Talde Private Equity, a Spanish general partner company, has launched Talde Deuda Alternativa, a debt fund with a €100 million target aimed at financing European small and medium sized enterprises

Dealers gear up to settle Sears CDS and rule on Ziggo successor
The long wait to settle the final price of Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp credit default swaps will end today with a credit event auction, while investors could also learn whether there is successor to contracts referencing deregistered Ziggo Bond Finance

Credit spread improvement is calm before the storm, warn strategists
European and US credit markets have begun 2019 with a more buoyant tone than they ended 2018, but strategists warn that bearish factors still outweigh and suggest the overall direction of spreads this year is likely to be wider

Oaktree makes push into CLO investing with new European fund
Oaktree Capital Management is putting together a new European fund to invest in CLOs

CLO equity a "top trade" for 2019, but beware ratings risk, says JP Morgan
CLO equity is one of the top trades of 2019, according to research analysts at JP Morgan in a research paper published on Friday, noting that the asset class offers ‘sticky capital in a volatile cycle'

BlueBay targets €5 billion for European direct lending strategy
BlueBay Asset Management is targeting €5 billion for its latest European direct lending strategy, according to documents seen by Creditflux, and has won $125 million in commitments from two US pension funds

Global 2018 CLO league tables at a glance
A snapshot of the overall league tables as of 31 December 2018

Robeco looks to align macro fixed income with credit as it makes senior hire
Robeco has hired Jamie Stuttard as co-head of the global fixed income macro team and fixed income strategist