Pathway closes second private credit fund at $1 billion
Pathway Capital Management has held a final close on its second private credit fund at $1 billion 

Credit traders’ kickstand: primary market flood gives basis for relative value
A deluge of investment grade bond supply in the first two weeks of the year has weighed on the spread basis between the cash market and CDS, leaving opportunities for traders who believe this dislocation should correct over the coming weeks

Partners nears $100 billion in AUM as CLOs drive private debt growth
Swiss manager Partners Group has reached $94.1 billion in assets under management, with CLOs boosting the firm’s growth, according to its 2019 annual results  

Apollo CLO and CSO specialists earn promotion to partner
Apollo Global Management has promoted two members of its global structured credit team, according to market sources

Louisiana pension to put $125 million into direct lending and fund financing
The Teachers’ Retirement System of Louisiana is set to invest $125 million for two credit funds, according to documents seen by Creditflux  

Golub BDC originates $271 million in bumper Q4
Golub Capital BDC disclosed last week that it had originated $271.1 million in middle-market investment for the quarter ending 31 December 2019

Stockholm-based firm targets CLOs, CSOs and SRTs for new fund after stellar 2019
A fund manager, established in 2018, is said to be launching its second corporate structured credit fund, sources say, after generating 20% returns last year via its debut strategy. The new fund will invest across CLOs, CSOs, SRTs and index tranches 

Citi unveils partnership to offer private credit to retail investors
Citi has unveiled a partnership with US peer-to-peer lender YieldStreet, in a move that will give YieldStreet's retail cleints access to the bank's private credit investments

Sound Point creates its first fund geared exclusively to direct lending
Sound Point, which has experience of investing in middle market loans through various funds, has launched its first dedicated speciality lending fund 

Private debt takes centre stage as Arizona looks to bolster credit allocation to 25%
Arizona State Retirement System remains bullish on credit with the $41.9 billion institution looking to bolster its entire credit allocations to almost a quarter of the fund - and private debt will take centre stage in the Arizona pension’s growth plans

Credit traders enter 2020 a world away from 2019's opening blues
CDS markets are showing what a difference a year makes, with indices beginning 2020 at post-crisis record or near record tights. And concerns such as Brexit or US-China (and lately UK-China) tensions are doing little to dampen the mood in today's buoyant trading session

Texas pension commits $250 million to large US direct lender
Texas County & District Retirement System closed out 2019 with a $250 million allocation to US direct lending

Insurance companies could ramp exposure to CLOs and private credit in 2020
US-based insurers have roughly $7 trillion in assets and a small increase in allocations could have huge implications for the leveraged loan market, CLOs and private credit managers—a dynamic that could unfold in 2020

Maine pension boosts alternative credit bucket with $100 million to US direct lending fund
Maine Public Employees Retirement System has earmarked $100 million to a US direct lending fund

CSO arrangers look to build on $65bn of issuance in 2019
The synthetic bespoke tranche market this year has fallen short of expectations in terms of overall issuance volume, but ends with transformative inroads being made.

Private debt secondaries expected to soar in 2020
Private debt secondaries grew massively in 2019 — and more is expected this year.

Falling correlation reignites passion for index tranche trades
Dispersion in the global corporate credit market is rekindling interest in correlation trading, with dealer sources reporting that a late surge lifted 2019 index tranche volumes to $250 billion.

Hong Kong manager bolsters team ahead of Asian private credit fund launch
Sammasan Capital has appointed former GE Capital colleague to its team as partner, as the Hong Kong-based firm prepares to launch its first Asian private credit opportunities fund

First Eagle buys US CLO manager THL Credit
Two years after establishing its credit business with the acquisition of NewStar Financial, First Eagle Investment Management is aiming big again after striking a deal to buy THL Credit Advisors

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

West coast pension looks to step up direct lending allocations
The City of Fresno Retirement System will commit $140-160 million to private credit for the next two years, according to board documentation seen by Creditflux. This comes amid a pause in direct lending commitments for the pension fund, which has not committed any capital to this market in 2019

US pension backs insurance credit fund
Montana Board of Investments has committed $40 million to an insurance credit fund opportunity fund managed by Vida Capital Management, according to a document seen by Creditflux.  

Creditors left with sour taste as two food companies file for bankruptcy
Credit investors have been left to digest two US food company bankruptcy filings this week, with dairy producer Dean Foods triggering the first credit event to hit on-the-run series 33 of the CDX HY index, while Houlihan's Restaurants has also sought protection

Dyal buys 20% stake in direct lender Owl Rock
Neuberger Berman’s Dyal Capital Partners has acquired a 20% stake in direct lender Owl Rock Capital, adding to the roster of private credit specialists Dyal has in its portfolio

Rising idiosyncratic risk leads to calls for high yield index tranche fix from traders
As sources of funding dry up for the weakest borrowers in the credit market, some correlation traders are calling for an overhaul of CDX NA HY index tranches to make trades on wide-end dispersion more effective.