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.

Beneath the triple C: $31.6 billion of CLO credits feel downgrade pain
March madness took a toll on CLOs as Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s downgraded 4.25% of the portfolios in the US and 1.84% in Europe to triple C or below in just one month (some of these were already triple C rated, only to fall further).

SME CLO features PDL mechanism
Details of the groundbreaking Alhambra SME Funding 2019-1 — the first 2.0 CLO backed by loans to small and midsized enterprises — were revealed at the Direct Lending Forum jointly hosted by Creditflux and Debtwire last month.

Fitch puts European and US CLO notes on negative watch after coronavirus stress test
Fitch Ratings has placed six notes from one European CLO, one US static CLO and one US middle market CLO on negative watch, following coronavirus-related stress tests placed last week 

Listed credit fund sheds CLO triple As
Chenavari's listed credit fund, Chenavari Toro Income Fund Limited, has sold European CLO triple A paper to raise cash to answer margin calls related to CLO warehouse and CLO triple A repo exposures

Beneath the triple C: mighty CLO buckets from Akorns grow
Rating agencies went on a downgrading spree in February, with Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s cutting 20 corporate names to triple C or below – affecting $2.78 billion of paper in US CLOs and €316.6 million in European CLOs. 

Dutch VAT ruling to reduce impacted CLO equity returns by 1 to 2%, says BofA
The Dutch tax authority’s decision to charge a 21% VAT on CLO collateral management fees will have a ‘substantial’ impact on equity, with returns likely to be 1 to 1.2% lower going forward, according to a research paper published by Bank of America

US CLO exposure to oil and gas is 2.6%, finds Barclays
Oil and gas exposure in CLOs is fairly limited, according to Barclays research, as crude oil prices drop to $33 per barrel, down from $41 on Friday

European mid market CLO suffers blip as borrower misses interest payment
Alhambra SME Funding 2019-1 – the first middle market European CLO since the financial crisis – has suffered a setback with one of its portfolio companies missing an interest payment last month

No hedges, but no problem for optimistic CLO investors
CLOs are prone to idiosyncratic risks, but investors have told Creditflux that they are confident about performance in 2020, despite the lack of hedging options. The general consensus is that some deals will suffer, but the vast majority will deliver after a disappointing end to 2019 for junior debt.

Making arb work of it
In 2019, some CLO managers hoped that good timing would enable them to lock in favourable arbitrage levels, but others opted for aggressive or conservative tactics when building portfolios. 

CLOs at a glance: Lightning strikes twice with static shocks

Euro loan trading: CLOs hang up on top speed-dial contact
Telco Altice, the most prevalent holding for European CLOs, became the most sold issuer of the month, but ION Corporates was the most popular 

Established firms say managers new to European CLOs will struggle to attract assets
New managers making their way in the European CLO market may have a fight on their hands, with sources noting the difficulty these firms face in getting sizeable allocations.

Kroll fires back at ‘factual errors’ in WSJ CLO rating report
Kroll Bond Rating Agency has hit back at the Wall Street Journal article that suggested the firm gives higher ratings to CLOs than its competitors

One day, two investors, three CLO controlling stakes in secondary
Two investors are inviting bids for anchor positions they hold in three CLOs.

CLO investor looks to offload US and European anchor equity positions
There are two controlling CLO equity stakes up for sale today with a 2017 European deal and a reissued US transaction going under the hammer

Another 2008 would leave IG CLOs without losses but default rates will climb, says BofE
CLOs will see greater losses in a downturn than they did in the last financial crisis, according to the Bank of England’s Financial Stability Report

Investors undervalue CLOs by ignoring Euribor floor, Fair Oaks says
Some investors are undervaluing European CLOs by ignoring the value of the Euribor floor, according to a note published by Fair Oaks Capital

Doing CLOs is hard work as recovery lags
There’s scrutiny on staffing, structures and, of course, ‘the challenging arb’. But Q4 volatility created opportunity, which led speakers at the Creditflux CLO Symposium to ask for more

Spire scales heights as Creditflux’s Manager of the Year 2019
Spire Partners celebrated bringing home three Creditflux awards, including the coveted Manager of the Year trophy, on a night of high spirits on 8 May at London’s Landmark Hotel.

Spire wins Creditflux Manager of the Year award
Spire Partners was the big winner at Creditflux's Manager Awards last night as the London-based manager scooped the award for the manager of the year. On top of this, the firm picked up awards for Best European CLO Manager and Best European CLO for Aurium CLO II

CVC, Octagon and Spire vie for multiple Creditflux awards
Creditflux is pleased to unveil the finalists for the most prestigious awards dinner in the credit