Willis Towers Watson promotes manager research specialist to global credit head
Willis Towers Watson has named a global head of credit for manager research

French co rattles investors on micro level as Russia overclouds macro
After a cautious opening, investors in the European credit market have resumed hedging as western leaders continue to talk up the prospect of Russia invading Ukraine and the Kremlin has dismissed hopes of a Biden-Putin summit as premature

Investors rush to hedge Russia as barrage of threats tee up nervous weekend
The prospect of a flare-up between Russia and Ukraine has left credit spreads back at their recent wide levels going into the weekend, with European investment grade credit particularly feeling the heat following 'false flag' headlines on Friday

Credit fund rout extends as storm winds buffet from all sides
Another choppy week for financial markets has extended the run of fund outflows, with investors fleeing from all parts of credit and even equity suffering a drop, with government bonds gaining traction

Scramble to cover shorts extends rally, but analysts stub out tobacco
European outperformance of US credit is picking up despite the UK posting record inflation numbers, as optimism on Ukraine combines with the wrong-footing of investors that had positioned extremely bearishly

Europe drives relief rally after Russia signals troop withdrawal
European financial market volatility has brought another reversal of relative value dynamics versus the US, with Russia/Ukraine developments extending their sway

European panic over Ukraine pushes market to new wides
European underperformance of US credit has resumed at the start of the week, with the market waking up on Monday morning to another sharp sell off. But the lengthening downturn has some believing spreads have overshot, while others insist worse is to follow

Credit and equity fund flows diverge ahead of Fed emergency meeting
Outflows from credit have extended into another week, even as stocks returned to inflows, as speculation mounted the US Federal Reserve could opt for a 50bp hike in March or even an earlier than anticipated hike at an emergency meeting next week

Ukrainian volatility speaks loud and clear after Russia talks fail
Ukrainian and Russian credit are ending the week with renewed volatility, as failed attempts at diplomatic talks appeared to exacerbate rather than simmer down tensions between the countries

Saipem extends recovery as credit market stabilises
Saipem is the credit market's main mover on Thursday in a flatter day for spreads following recent volatility

Europe outpaces US as investors scramble to cover their shorts
Lifting of short positions has helped take European credit into a second successive day of outperformance against the US, with financial companies and some of the more recently volatile high yield names leading the way

Relief rally for riskiest credits brings reversal on dispersion and first loss trades
Some of the European high yield credit market's riskiest corporate credits are enjoying a strong relief rally, among signals of reprieve from the woes that have beset them in recent weeks

Europe leads relief rally with energy and peripheral bank credits outperforming
Credit spreads are making a broad move tighter on Tuesday, with European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde having tried to rein back rate hike expectations and oil company BP posting strong profits

BlueBay opens Madrid office with sales director relocating to lead team
BlueBay's new office will be located within parent company Royal Bank of Canada’s Madrid office

European underperformance extends against US with another big sell off
The underperformance of European credit versus the US has extended at the start of the week, with investors still struggling to digest the impact of last week's European Central Bank meeting statements

Europe/US relative value comes into play amid growing credit outflows
Big successive moves wider are taking credit spreads to new extremes and bringing compression between Europe and the US amid the highest daily market volatility since 2020

Investment grade hit hardest as tech earnings and rate hike undo market rally
Financial markets have reversed course following two days of improvement, with credit spreads hit by poor tech company earnings and a Bank of England rate hike

Saipem near-term default risk spikes following Moody's downgrade
Saipem's CDS curve has inverted precariously to reflect the company having become the most likely near-term default in the iTraxx Crossover index

Credit hedge funds (February 2022)
Credit hedge fund returns

Credit funds at a glance (February 2022)
A round up of fundraising and people moves in credit

Ironshield prepares for ‘choppier’ kind of dislocation
Distressed debt investors are casting an eye over Europe as a cocktail of inflationary pressures, supply chain shortages and geopolitical risks weigh on corporate credit

They said it: "The third term is Jinping’s legacy..."
... He does not care about near-term growth."

Points up front: A true rock star lawyer
When corporations proclaim they are looking to recruit ‘rock stars’ (as is common these days), this usually means they are seeking highly proficient candidates for a desk job

"Boardrooms are being hustled by activist shareholders using ESG data to drive economic value"
Pledges have been made and the Race to Zero has begun. Firms need to put their plans in place

Fund performance: Wasserstein's early 2021 performance drives it to the top
The final top 10 of 2021 featured a variety of funds as five different strategies were ranked among the best. US high yield was the most highly represented with two BlackRock funds and an Angel Oak in the top 10