Negative cash deal becomes first European CLO to fail OC test since sell off
260 US CLOs have failed an over-collateralisation test in the last two months and the first European CLO has breached a junior over-collateralistion since the credit sell off in March

CLOs look at flipping frequency switch as corporates hold cash
European CLOs could be set to flick their ‘frequency switch mechanisms’ as a growing number of corporations go from paying quarterly to semi-annual coupons

CLOs face trading restrictions as bankruptcies mount
CLO managers could be handcuffed in impending bankruptcies if tranche downgrades continue and restricted trading periods kick in

Libor fall weighs heavily on loan and CLO portfolios
Libor floors are set to return to prominence after three-month rates tumbled to 0.38% by 18 May, returning the loan market’s base rate to its lowest level since the oil and gas crisis of 2014-16

Cure contributions come into play in CLOs amid pandemic
Some CLO investors are triggering a mechanism in their deals that lets them inject additional equity into structures to prevent them from failing over-collateralisation or interest coverage tests

Early March European CLO makes it through the sell off with 5.4% risk retention
One of the last European CLOs to price before the primary market shut down in March has disclosed the fair value of its notes post-closing, which shows that it has a reasonable 38 basis point cushion against risk retention deficiency

European CLO cushions fall with junior OC breaches expected soon, Fitch says
European CLOs have fared better against downgrades versus their US counterparts. But Fitch Ratings writes in a report that over-collateralisation (OC) cushions have been sharply declining with junior OC tests expected to be breached soon

Banks report billions in unrealised CLO losses
Some of the world's largest bank buyers of CLO tranches reported billions of dollars of gross unrealised losses in their their latest quarterly reports

Fitch takes action on 29 European CLO tranches
Fitch Ratings took action on 29 European CLO tranches yesterday, placing the majority of these on rating watch negative

Fair Oaks spends on junior European CLO debt after raising funds
Fair Oaks Capital has invested $92 million in junior CLO debt tranches since the start of April after putting to work fresh commitments to CLO investment fund Fair Oaks Limited

CLOs seek ways to work around warf restrictions
Corporate downgrades leading to par haircuts in CLOs have been a primary focus for CLO investors since the start of the coronavirus-induced crisis. But one of the side effects of rating actions has been a rise in weighted average rating factor test failures

Apollo and Barings defer equity payments on long-dated CLOs
Apollo Global Management and Barings have joined PGIM in deferring their scheduled April payment dates for a handful of European CLOs, according to the latest payment reports on CLO-i. Apollo also deferred payments on several of its US CLOs.

PGIM defers April European CLO equity payments
PGIM has deferred scheduled April payments to equity investors of its European CLOs, the first European CLO manager to defer a payment date during the coronavirus pandemic

Beneath the triple C: April showers send buckets overboard
Downgrade waves rocked the CLO market in April as Moody's and Standard & Poor's downgraded 135 corporate borrowers to triple C or below, from ratings above that level. The downgrades put CLOs in rough waters as $41.6 billion of such loans are prevalent in US CLOs while €5.64 are moored in European CLO portfolios – affecting 5.92% of the US market and 4.37% of the European market

Waiting game pays off for European pension fund
Finnish pension fund Ilmarinen has been investing more in European CLO tranches after valuations dipped to their lowest levels in a decade, thanks to a distressed CLO fund strategy it put in place two years ago.

Creditflux announces finalists for online CLO awards
Creditflux is pleased to announce the finalists for a new-look manager awards event, which will be hosted online for the first time.

Covid-19 'perfect storm' for European CLOs, but they're 'showing strength', says S&P
S&P Ratings has described European CLOs as 'showing strength' amid the covid-19 pandemic

Invesco suffers Moody's downgrade after struggling to delever balance sheet
Moody's has downgraded Invesco Ltd from A2 to A3 citing the "challenges Invesco has faced delevering its balance sheet following the acquisition of Oppenheimer Funds", the rating agency said in a notice

'Nochu covenant' leaves big CLO managers in a trading bind
Stipulations pushed into CLOs by the world’s largest CLO investor Norinchukin to limit its exposure to covenant-lite loans are causing headaches for managers on its approved list hoping to use the dislocation to build par  

Credit pickers need luck to avoid OC trap

CLO market braces for another wave of loan downgrades
A wave of negative rating actions swept the leveraged loan and CLO market in April. “Companies will look to secure incremental capital which will lead to further rating pressure,” says Philip Raciti, portfolio manager and head of US performing credit at Bardin Hill Investment Partners

Seven points basis opens up in CLO triple Bs - but Investcorp trades well to defy trend
Triple B rated tranches once again swamped the secondary CLO market yesterday and trading levels suggest the basis between bonds on negative watch/outlook versus those not subject to a downgrade is about seven points

Moody's joins Fitch and S&P in CLO negative watch camp as it acts on 976 tranches globally
Moody’s has put tranches from 358 US CLOs and 39 European CLOs on review for downgrade, in an announcement that places 976 tranches (859 in the US 117 in Europe) at risk of losing their original rating

OC health check: another two CLOs fail senior OC tests
Two senior overcollateralisation test failures number among 26 deals joining the list this week of CLOs breaching their OC tests in April, according to the latest trustee reports on CLO-i.