Banks predict record-breaking year ahead
Consensus figures generated from outlook reports by five banks suggest 2025 will be another strong year for CLO issuance. But last year, their estimates were well below the actual numbers

How many CLOs will be reset?
Tightening liability spreads aren’t just driving record new CLO issuance this year — they’re also triggering a wave of resets and refinancings in the US, especially for broadly syndicated CLOs

Banks predict steady year ahead
It’s the season for predictions and the CLO market is no exception, with all the banks having their say. We’ve rounded up their forecasts for new issuance and resets in the US and Europe

European CLOs win out against US deals
Last month, our analysis explored the performance of US CLOs that were previously reset. We found that they delivered higher distributions than deals which weren’t reset, with the exception of the 2017 and 2018 vintages (Creditflux September 2023 — Do resets help CLOs perform better?). This article expands that analysis to the European market, and compares the performance of US BSL and EU CLO equity tranches.

Waiting for afters
Day one arb remains important, but last year there were opportunities aplenty in the secondary market, which put the onus on printing CLOs and waiting for the day after non-call periods expired

All’s well that ends well in 2020 OC tests
Swathes of CLOs failed over-collateralisation tests last year, but unlike the drawn-out recovery following the 2008 financial crisis, the return to compliance after the covid-19 crash was rapid 

Evolving strategy takes Norinchukin close to top spot in CLO investment
Over the years, Nochu has tweaked its cov-lite stipulations, and added mid market and European CLO exposure to its CLO investments. It’s now nearly the market’s biggest investor  

Aircraft lessors: gathering clouds lead to talk of turbulence
Aircraft leasing companies have been cruising over the past two years as passenger numbers grew, but rising interest rates and trade tariff concerns are making some bondholders nervous

Tracking down the credit industry’s original winners
All winning managers at the first Creditflux awards survived the crisis, under their own names – like BlackRock – or under new owners. But what happened to the people who collected the trophies?
 

Dedication pays off in risk sharing
Fund managers are pitching dedicated CRT funds to institutional investors as market hits €75 billion in 2017 and US banks start to take notice. By Sayed Kadiri

Drug makers: desperately seeking pain relief
With Teva’s profitable Copaxone being undermined by cheaper alternatives, the company is in need of a pick-me-up. By Euan Hagger

Synthetic CDOs seek to follow CLOs
Growing issuance, interest in longer maturities and the emergence of a secondary market are encouraging dealers to believe that bespokes are on the road to acceptance. By Sayed Kadiri

Managers predict skill will win out
We asked managers to predict the year ahead across a range of credit strategies. Overall, they had a positive outlook. By Grace Jennings-Edquist

US power generators: Falling prices spark bankruptcies
As renewables and gas undercut traditional power generators, bond holders are preparing for price shocks. By Euan Hagger

Engineering and construction: diversification leads to deepening debt
In trying to build a more global roster of clients, some construction companies may have dug a hole for themselves

Direct lending leverage takes off
HPS, NXT and Crescent target mid market with leverage in Q4. By Grace Jennings-Edquist

Investors prefer direct lending to CLOs
For the first time in the history of Creditflux’s credit allocator survey, investors have voted direct lending the best investment in credit. CLOs came joint second. By Michelle D’souza

Transport and logistics: heavy debt leaves transporters in jam
With logistic specialists getting a rough ride, debt restructuring could be the next stop for asset-light companies

Spotlight: Local exchange carriers - calling for rescue on the M&A hotline
Growth-starved US phone companies are seeing consolidation as the best way to improve performance

Leading fund: Lupus Alpha CLO Opportunity Notes I
Single-B CLO trades boost Lupus Alpha asset Management

Think outside the box
While the US market credit is the most liquid and the UK is considered the home of European direct lending, there are opportunities further a?eld

Spotlight: Data centres - clear skies ahead for cloud providers
Demand for data centres is strong and there is no sign so far that the market is overheating

Things aren’t always what they seem
Buy CLO triple As but don’t be fooled by diversity scores; take a look at credit index futures if you need liquidity; and watch out for quasi-mid market loans appearing in CLOs

Investing ethically is worth it
Managers could see less volatile returns as a result of their increasing adoption of ESG-friendly portfolios; meanwhile direct lending is spreading across Europe

Who cares about risk retention?
Managers watching CLO spreads reach their tightest levels since the crisis had little time to fret about US risk retention