Florida pension allocates $600 million to three credit managers
Florida State Board of Administration has awarded $600 million to three credit managers in the first quarter, according to a board update seen by Creditflux

Credit hits new wides as US and Europe ramp up coronavirus battle plans
An emergency weekend rate cut by the US Federal Reserve as well as population lockdowns in France and Spain underscore that measures of economic risk have moved to a more systemic level as world governments scramble to deal with the impact of the coronavirus outbreak

Ares buys majority stake in Asian credit manager SSG
Ares has bought a majority, controlling interest in SSG Capital Management, an Asian alternative asset manager focused on private credit and special situations 

Portfolio managers wary of US default rates, IACPM survey reveals
Portfolio managers are more pessimistic about North American corporate defaults in the next 12 months than other global regions, according to the latest survey by the International Association of Credit Portfolio Managers

SSG collects $2.7 billion for Asian special situations fund
SSG Capital Management has raised $2.7 billion for its fifth Asia Pacific-focused credit and special situations strategy, SSG Capital Partners V, surpassing the strategy's original $1.5 billion target size

Non-dealers overtake banks as biggest holders of diminishing CDS pie
The share of the CDS market held by non-dealer financial institutions has surpassed that of dealers for the first time, according to latest Bank for International Settlements data. But firms are scrapping over a smaller pie, as outstanding single name CDS continues to fall

CLO supply set for double-digit drop in 2020, says JP Morgan
US CLO supply in 2020 will be as much as 20% down on 2019, while European issuance will fall 13% year-on-year, predict JP Morgan strategists in a research note. Even so, new CLOs should still outpace existing deal paydowns, as well as high yield primary market net new issuance

Diverging views emerge over performance of ESG investing, RBC survey reveals
Investors which incorporate ESG principles are convinced it adds value, but those who do not are more uncertain, according to a survey by RBC Global Asset Management 

Reality bites after credit traders abandon Brexit hedges
Rediscovered faith in the ability of the UK and European Union to reach an agreement before the 31 October Brexit deadline has helped fuel a surge tighter of credit spreads, led by UK financial names. But that break with caution faces an immediate reality check today, following admissions a lot more work is needed

Australian pension fund hires head of ESG
The Australian Catholic Superannuation & Retirement Fund has appointed Louise Bradshaw to lead the pension fund’s initiatives in regard to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investments

EQT looks to raise €500 million via IPO
The initial public offering is anticipated to increase EQT's flexbility to “pursue growth opportunities” and expand its private market investing business

Emerging market CDS trading slumped in Q2, finds Emta
There was $364 billion of emerging markets CDS trading in second quarter, according to the Emerging Markets Traders Association

Carlyle switches to corp structure as credit portfolio grows 31%
Carlyle Group is set to become a full C corporation, moving away from its publicly traded partnership structure, amid global credit portfolio growing 31% year-on-year, according to the investment firm’s 2019 Q2 results  

Credit plays a big part as KKR increases AUM by $6.5 billion
KKR grew its assets under management by 8% over the second quarter, according to the firm’s earnings call, which took place on Thursday.

UK pension pool to launch maiden private credit offering
Border to Coast Pensions Partnership is launching its first private credit offering in early Q4, Creditflux has learned

Florida-based manager revives plan for rare emerging markets CBO
RVX Asset Management has launched an unusual securitisation backed by emerging markets debt, according to market sources

Japanese pension fund turns its attention to credit funds
Japan's Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) has launched a request for information (RFI) on private debt with the institution looking into new assets classes in a bid to generate higher returns  

Japan Post Bank's CLO investments grow another 17.13% in first quarter
Japan Post Bank added another 17.13% to its CLO investments in the first three months of 2019, taking its total holdings to JPY 1.18 trillion ($10.63 billion)

US pension backs Hong Kong-based credit fund manager
The San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System has approved a commitment of $200 million to Arkkan Opportunities Feeder Fund II

Jefferies subsidiary and Stonyrock plan mid-market alternative manager stake acquisitions
The new joint venture will invest in private equity, credit, hedge funds, real estate, venture, and infrastructure firms

Japanese regulator makes CLOs exempt from risk retention - if loans are appropriately originated
The Japan Financial Services Agency (FSA) has said that CLOs can sit outside the remits of its securitisation regulation, if investors in the country can provide ‘in-depth analysis’ showing the underlying assets were appropriately originated

Isda tables plans to rid CDS market of narrowly tailored credit events
After lengthy deliberation, a working group of major firms is today set to publish proposals aimed at ridding the market of ‘narrowly tailored credit events’, whereby borrowers are persuaded to default on debt payments in order to trigger pay-outs for CDS holders

CapitaLand gains $556 million for China real estate debt fund
The Singapore-based firm announced that the fund will target a $750 million final close 

Japan Post registers more than JPY 1 trillion in CLO holdings for first time
Japanese banks continue to devour a bigger slice of the CLO market, with Japan Post Bank’s latest financial statements for the end of 2018 showing holdings of over JPY 1 trillion ($9.17 billion) for the first time