Credit rally rolls on as indices approach one-month tights
CDS indices are approaching their mid-October tights as reality seeps in of a divided US government and, consequently, little chance of dramatic corporate tax increases. Yesterday, iTraxx Main led the way, tightening 5.3%, followed by CDX NA HY and CDX IG (both 4.5%) and iTraxx Crossover (2.8%)

US credit shakes off early jitters as CDX IG tightens 6.9%
Credit spreads have reversed course yet again to join the rally in equities today. The Dow Jones Industrial Average up 2.5% today and credit is following with investment grade indices leading the way

High yield outperformance to bring compression trade back into play: Citi
High yield underperformance versus investment grade is expected to reverse following the US presidential election, according to a strategy note from Citi. The bank’s strategists have been advocating compression trades since July and feel that there is more room for this to run citing election trends, exposure to coronavirus credits, expected default rates and credit ratings

Credit fundraising: Dubai manager gets in on the act as direct lending takes off
Shuaa launches credit fund in the Gulf as Ares, Contingency, HPS and Perceptive are among those to close billion-plus funds

Credit sell off picks up pace as lockdown shadows deepen
This week's blow out of credit spreads sharply accelerated today, with mounting coronavirus lockdown fears fuelling a surge wider across the board in tandem with plummeting stocks

IG names hit hardest as cocktail of woes routs market
Investor nervousness is evident at the start of the week with a big widening of spreads on Monday as lack of accord on a new US stimulus package added to concern about rising coronavirus case numbers and jitters in the oil market

Rally puts credit back on even footing but single name volatility persists
A sizeable rally today is putting credit indices back on a flattish footing with where they began the week, adding to the sense the market is finely poised with only six trading days to go before the US presidential election

Credit Rendezvous: sometimes you have to dive deep to find value
Some parts of the credit market are fraught with danger, but that does not mean portfolio managers are avoiding them entirely, according to the Credit Rendezvous, Creditflux's 10-page quarterly report eaturing comments from 15 credit experts

Lazard AM adds boutique's four-person long/short credit team
Lazard Asset Management has expanded its $4.5 billion ‘alternative investment’ platform by bringing on board the credit team from boutique Coherence Capital Partners

IG tranches look 'boring' after distressed names ejected at roll
September’s index rolls brought tranche traders some of the starkest portfolio changes in recent years, with fallen angels and defaults shifting correlation dynamics. This creates relative value openings, but investors will take longer to move into new series as they require extra analysis, say dealers.

The tranche market shines, whatever your view on credit
Index tranche volumes have reached record levels this year and CSOs have withstood the covid crisis. Panellists at the Credit Dimensions webinar outlined a range of trades in a thriving market

Dealers power up as tranche trading hits new heights
A big year for index tranche trading has taken volume within grasping distance of full-year 2019, a post-financial crisis record, with a deepening pool of dealers adding support

Past returns: Bravo! Citi takes applause with CSO portfolios
Five years ago in Creditflux we reported that Citi was planning a follow up to its Bravo portfolio — a CSO reference entity in which the bank made two-way markets

They said it: "Clearing houses have proposed they will clear index tranches next year"
More liquidity for the index tranche market

Credit spreads wind back to February to bring shorts into focus
The credit rally since April has opened up an opportunity to go short credit, say fund managers, with spreads back to where they were in late February

Gaining exposure to US IG credit through the index means giving up about 10% of potential value
A bespoke portfolio of IG credits can take advantage of the skew between indices and single names

Credit hedge funds (October 2020)
Monthly credit hedge fund tables

Ucits at a glance: Advent and Algebris edge towards double digit returns
Two managers stand out in the Ucits rankings as they close in on 10% YTD figures

Credit funds at a glance (October 2020)
A round-up of fundraising and people moves

Fund performance: A third of funds reach positive territory in 2020
August has been another successful month for the CLO category as seven of the top 10 funds invest primarily in CLOs

Credit fundraising: managers build homes for real estate credit funds
The “largest ever real estate credit fund” was one of the fundraising highlights last month as Blackstone’s Real Estate Debt Strategies IV fund reached $8 billion on its final close

Tranche market maker jumps to buy-side
BNP Paribas' New York based market maker for credt index tranches has left the bank after seven years 

Go long index mezz tranches to pick up spread: Citi
Citi research has outlined some of the opportunities that have arisen in the index tranche market as a result of elevated correlation

Fallen angels push off-the-run index 25bp wide of CDX IG
A  gap of over 25 basis points has formed between US investment grade CDX IG and its recently off-the-run predecessor series 34. At Credit Dimensions, Creditflux’s synthetic credit event, panellists highlighted a major shift in composition between index series that has opened up relative value plays between them

Europe/US high yield gap re-opens with roll, but raises fair value questions
The semi-annual roll of US high yield index CDX HY has once again put daylight between it and European counterpart iTraxx Europe. But the new series has come in tighter than some market participants had anticipated