We can cope with downgrades again

Ares plans four credit fund launches amid strong deployment
Ares Management benefitted from strong private credit deployment in the quarted and unveiled plans to raise its sixth European direct lending fund, second flagship closed-end alternative credit fund and third US junior capital direct lending fund

Russia and retail put stop to credit rally with big spread reversal
Russia’s move to cut gas supplies once again to Europe, as well as a Walmart profit warning in the US, are weighing heavily on markets Tuesday and sending credit spreads sharply wider

IG payers provide best tail-risk hedges: Barclays
Investors seeking the cheapest tail risk hedge should look to CDX IG payers, while iTraxx Europe payers are the best hedge against further European underperformance, finds Barclays

Mixed signals abound but European weakness persists
European financial markets are losing further ground against the US in a cautious start to the week, as the euro approaches parity with the dollar for the first time and latest data supports the Federal Reserve maintaining a hawkish approach to policy

Global CLO league tables - June 2022 YTD
Global CLO league tables - June YTD

Quarterly rankings: Carlyle climbs to top of pack with CBAM boost
Carlyle Group has cemented itself as the largest manager globally, following its acquisition of fellow CLO manager CBAM

Beneath the triple C: ebbs and flows leave triple C levels at a temporary stasis
Following a rising tide of downgrades in May the loan market stabilised somewhat in June, with seven issuers held by CLOs downgraded to triple C and a counter-swell of five names upgraded to single B.

Fund performance: Rocky May piles on the misery for credit hedge funds
Negative fund performance soared in May

Credit tacks sharply as hiking talk brings choppy start to week
European financial markets opened the week on a cautious footing, after a weak Asian session, with credit indices oscillating between wider and tighter prints over the course of Monday morning

CLO official takes top role as Onex announces new credit leadership
Onex Credit Partners has announced a new leadership structure with two co-heads of credit replacing the CEO that left late last year. One of the promotions is an experienced CLO official 

CLO managers added to their pool of analysts last year: Fitch
CLO asset managers staffed up last year as primary issuance volume soared, with Fitch Ratings finding the average analyst team size increased from 16 to 17

Russian credit event auction plans put on hold after US sanctions update
Settlement of Russian Federation sovereign CDS has hit a delay, with the US having published updated advice on sanctions that could jeopardise the ability to conduct a credit event auction

Global CLO league tables - May 2022 YTD
Global CLO league tables - May YTD

DC explains Russian credit event ruling - but not sole member opposition
Factors backing Russian Federation’s credit event trigger have been outlined by the Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee, but without giving any explanation for Citi’s decision to vote against the decision

Beneath the triple C: CLOs take first knock since covid scrapes
CLO managers have been hit by a number of loan downgrades to triple C for the first time since the wave of pandemic-related cuts trickled to a halt in early 2021. Companies indirectly linked to the health sector suffered most in May 

Russia triggers failure-to-pay credit event
The Russian Federation has triggered a failure-to-pay credit event on sovereign bonds, the Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee has ruled – marking an historic moment that caps off a long run of deliberations on the country’s international debt since it invaded Ukraine on 24 February

We’ll get through this awkward patch
Wide liabilities have made pricing CLOs trickier in the past few months. But speakers at Creditflux’s CLO Symposium were optimistic that the arbitrage is OK — so long as you can place those triple As

Fund performance: Credit hits another bump in the road after March revival
There was more upheaval for credit funds in April, reversing the mini-recovery in March as 40% of funds made positive returns, a decrease on the 47% in March

Retailers, travel cos and Italian banks lead charge as market rally accelerates
Retail companies have been resurgent on Thursday as the credit market’s relief rally gathered pace, with Europe seeking to catch up with the US following its strong surge

Bespoke bond baskets on the rise as investors seek targeted portfolio trades
High yield index replication and accessing illiquid exposure are two factors building momentum for a new investment approach that bundles bonds into a single risk piece

Credit and equity retreat from extremes but oil slumps further
Financial markets are mounting a tentative recovery on Tuesday, having been hammered to new bearish extremes at the start of the week

LP round up: Apollo and Silver Rock win over $1 billion as pensions plough into private debt
Institutional investors allocated at least $2 billion to credit funds in April, according to Creditflux data, with Apollo and Silver Rock emerging as big winners

Global CLO league tables - April 2022 YTD
Global CLO league tables - April YTD