Highbridge refocuses on credit as it liquidates listed multi-strategy fund
Highbridge Capital Management has announced to investors in a multi-strategy fund that it is winding down the vehicle and refocusing its business exclusively towards credit

Investors plant GoldenTree distressed debt fund with $1.7 billion
GoldenTree Asset Management has closed its third distressed fund with $1.7 billion of capital

Maryland pension carves out private debt bucket
The Baltimore pension fund has also mandated a total of $25 million to one direct lending fund and one distressed debt fund 

Texas pension fund looks to top up credit portfolio
Texas County & District Retirement System (TCDRS) has decided to increase by 3% its target allocation to strategic credit  

Dealers line up to settle Windstream CDS today
Dealers will today hold a credit event auction to settle CDS referencing Windstream Services, with Morgan Stanley added to the list of participating bidders

Californian pension reveals 2019 private credit plan
Ventura County Employees’ Retirement Association is considering committing up to $80 million to private credit funds, following a recommendation of its investment consultant NEPC  

Challenge rejected on cheapest-to-deliver bonds for Windstream CDS auction
The Americas Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee has unanimously rejected a challenge by a market participant against allowing some of the cheapest Windstream bonds to be delivered into an auction to settle CDS referencing the company

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.

Windstream CDS auction delayed by two weeks
An auction to settle CDS referencing Windstream Holdings has been postponed by two weeks, after dealers on the Americas Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee agreed the process needed more time

Dealers set Windstream credit event auction date
An auction to settle CDS referencing Windstream Holdings will take place on Monday, 18 March

Isda tables plans to rid CDS market of narrowly tailored credit events
After lengthy deliberation, a working group of major firms is today set to publish proposals aimed at ridding the market of ‘narrowly tailored credit events’, whereby borrowers are persuaded to default on debt payments in order to trigger pay-outs for CDS holders

Windstream set for high CDS pay-out as DC picks initial deliverable obligations
Windstream Holdings CDS protection holders look set for a high pay-out, as the cheapest deliverable obligations into the defaulted company’s credit event auction are quoted in the mid-20s

San Francisco pension deploys $125 million into private credit
San Francisco City and County Employees' Retirement System has bolstered its private debt bucket, making a $125 million commitment to a senior debt fund and opportunistic credit fund that builds on other private debt investments since last year

Oaktree reports distressed gains over year despite Q4 losses
Oaktree was not immune from challenging fourth quarter globally. Its distressed debt strategy, for instance, returned a gross loss of 1.5%

Florida pension fund backs Atalaya distressed strategy
Florida State Board of Administration (SBA) has committed $100m to Atalaya Special Opportunities Fund VII, as part of the Florida Retirement System’s portfolio.  

Boost for Parker Drilling protection buyers as CDS settles lower than expected
Parker Drilling credit default swaps have settled at a lower value than expected, after physical settlement sell requests drove down the price at auction and increased the windfall for protection buyers

Parker Drilling recovery implied at 45 cents as dealers get set for CDS auction
An auction to settle credit default swaps referencing Parker Drilling will take place today, with bond trading levels of the defaulted company implying a payout to protection buyers of around 45-46 cents on the dollar

Sears CDS settles well above bonds on physical settlement squeeze
Predictions that credit default swaps referencing Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp would recover at a high level have been borne out, with an auction to settle the contracts having returned a value of almost 80 cents on the dollar – nearly 30 points higher than where bonds of the bankrupt US retailer have been quoted

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

Disagreement between Sound Point and former portfolio manager comes to an end
The long-running dispute between portfolio manager Jeff Teach and his former employer Sound Point Capital Management has been brought to an end following a final arbitration award

Sears CDS battle heats up as DC challenged to change auction rules
A high profile battle over Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp credit default swaps has taken a new turn, with one market participant challenging the Americas Determinations Committee to change its rules to avert price manipulation by another market participant in the bankrupt retailer's credit event auction

Sears CDS battle lines set out in market-defining legal fight
Legal sides have set out their arguments in the high-stakes Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp credit event external review, in what an industry group of asset managers claims is a “unique opportunity to provide clarity on one of the most important definitions for the credit default swap product”

GSO co-founder plans new credit business
GSO Capital Partners co-founder Tripp Smith is launching his own credit management firm, according to a report by Bloomberg

Sear-iously? Isda slams ex-CFTC commissioner over CDS "hyperbole"
The International Swaps and Derivatives Association has waded into a gathering furore over Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp credit default swaps

Sears CDS settlement extends to 2019 as external review teams line up
Holders of Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp credit default swaps will have to wait until at least 7 January to resolve the contracts, with an external review decision on deliverables into the defaulted borrower’s credit event auction slated for 21 December