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

Cash-CDS basis set for comeback after "falling knife" mishap, predicts BNP Paribas
The beginning of 2019 should revive interest among credit investors to trade the basis between cash bonds and credit default swaps, according to BNP Paribas strategists – following what they term “falling knife” dynamics in this year’s fourth quarter

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

Plymouth County pension fund seeks high yield managers
Plymouth County Retirement Association has launched a request for proposal and is searching for managers to oversee a $35 million high yield fixed income portfolio.

FS hires ex-JP Morgan AM official to lead business development
FS Investments has appointed an experienced official to drive the firm’s growth

Loomis Sayles plans alternatives interval fund
Loomis Sayles is looking to launch an interval fund focused on alternative asset-based opportunities, according to 4 December US regulatory filings

Creditex obtains CFTC swap execution facility exemption
Creditex, the electronic brokerage for corporate bonds and credit default swaps, has been granted an exemption from a requirement to register with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission as a swap execution facility

Sears CDS external review panel named to solve Determinations Committee impasse
The North America Determinations Committee has selected an external review panel to decide whether two Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp debt obligations can be delivered into an auction to settle the US retailer’s credit default swaps, having failed to achieve a strong enough quorum among its own 15 members

US pension fund seeks HY and IG managers - but not CLOs
Woburn Retirement System, a $153 million US defined benefit plan, has launched requests for proposals seeking investment managers for its US investment grade and high yield investments.  

Crossover converges on CDX HY as Fed, earnings and heavy technicals take hold
Big moves of single name credits continue to hold sway over the iTraxx Europe Crossover credit default swap index, whose underperformance of US counterpart CDX HY has extended during the past week amid a big technical repositioning of flows

Blackstone builds on multi-asset approach with fifth fund
The new vehicle will invest directly into Blackstone deals across its alternatives platform

DWS hires muni bond portfolio manager
DWS, the $803 billion asset management arm of Deutsche Bank, has appointed a managing director and portfolio manager to its US municipal high yield bond team.  

Credit sell-off has room to run and pricing is out of whack, says BNP Paribas
The credit market sell-off could have further to go despite recent widening and is “in the process of a late-stage business cycle unwind”, according to a strategist note seen by Creditflux

Till debt us do part: CLOs have and hold David's Bridal loans as they plummet 10.87%
CLOs hold $26.63 million exposure to David’s Bridal, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday

European CDS index tightens inside US even as bonds languish
Credit derivatives markets have hit a key point of trend reversal this week, with the iTraxx Europe five-year CDS index trading inside its US counterpart CDX IG for the first time since May

Investcorp adds ex-Anteil officials to run manager buy-out business
The new strategy will focus on acquiring up to 25% stakes in mid-sized alternative asset managers

US pension backs Summit credit fund
Ann Arbor City Employees' Retirement System, the $517.5 million US pension fund, has approved a $9 million investment with Summit Partners Credit Fund III, according to board documents seen by Creditflux.  

California pension fund seeks opportunistic credit manager
Merced County Employees’ Retirement Association is on the search for an opportunistic credit manager, according to board minutes seen by Creditflux

Los Angeles pension fund plans $3.7 billion allocation to credit
Los Angeles City Employees' Retirement System, the $17 billion pension fund, is allocating to credit in 2019 - it's looking to put $2.44 billion to work in core-fixed income, $800 million into emerging markets debt, $235 million into high yield and a similar amount into a bond/loan hybrid fund

September: Ucits at a glance
Ucits funds continue to post mixed returns

September: fund performance

Machines connect as credit managers’ new best friends
The clamour for credit funds that adhere to environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria means the managers behind these funds are handling ever-larger and deeper data sets. This has led a growing number of fund managers to divert resources into incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning into their investment processes

Managers digest blockbuster deals
Third quarter loan and bond volumes tend to be small — but this year corporate credit fund managers have swallowed huge deals from AkzoNobel, Altice and Refinitiv

Massachusetts Housing looks to add to high yield exposure
Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency Retirement System, the $147 million pension fund, is seeking fund of fund managers with high yield bond expsoure

Sears CDS auction deliverables rejected due to lack of docs and identifiers, says DC
An auction to settle credit default swaps referencing Sears Roebuck Acceptance Corp did not include several obligations on its initial list of deliverables due to lack of documentation or isin/cusip identifiers, the Americas Credit Derivatives Determinations Committee has said