Arb work pays off
With day-one arbitrage alone delivering projected CLO cash-on-cash returns of 20-25%, 2021 may have been the best year ever for equity investors — at least until CLO spreads began to widen  

"Faltering oil supply is lamentable at a time of strategic and moral shortfall"
We need to accept the pain and cut dependence on Russian oil today

"The loan market is the septic tank for sub-single B LBO financing"
Portfolios of single name IG CDS are less complex and more liquid than CLOs

CBAM: star power, friends in insurance, and doing things 'my way'
"And now the end is here, and so I face that final curtain... I've lived a life that's full, I traveled each and every highway, And more, much more
I did it, I did it my way". Sinatra could easily have been thinking of CBAM when he penned these lyrics. We look back at how a group of experienced CLO officials came together to launch a mega player in the CLO business in no time at all 

US managers eye growth potential in European CLOs
The legion of European CLO managers is set to grow this year, with US issuers harbouring ambitions to become global players in the CLO business.

Global CLO trading lab: Payments season prompts equity to surge but short-dated bonds trade low
Over the last two weeks, $2.8 billion of US CLOs and €640 million of European CLO paper have appeared on b-wics, with equity making up 33% and 40% of the respective markets

CLO pipeline: US manager base poised to hit 119 and Europe 57
The CLO market is open to newcomers as both the US and European are set to welcome first time CLO issuers – BlueBay Asset Management in the US and Acer Tree Investment Management in Europe

I’ll see your 2020 and raise you 2021
Discounted loans, Libor floors and bond flexibility helped make 2021 an even better year for CLO returns than 2020, as US CLOs distributed 15.54% and European CLOs paid 13.93% annualised

BlueBay adds CLO specialist and structured credit PM
BlueBay Asset Management has made two senior hires to its structured credit team in New York

WhiteStar to absorb MacKay Shields' European CLO platform
WhiteStar Asset Management has swooped for MacKay Shields’ European CLO business, ending weeks of speculation over the latter’s CLO ambitions and confirming WhiteStar's status as a rising star 

It's All Relative: CQS, Capital Four and Tikehau look for CLO breakthrough as debutant premiums drop
The number of US CLO issuers in 2021 could be about to reach 106 with Capital Four, CQS and Tikehau looking to price debut deals, with price talk set at ambitious levels

CLO issuance set for big slump as managers relax on Sofr: JP Morgan
CLO new issue supply will likely decline sharply from this month to next, with the rush to complete deals ahead of the transition to Sofr base rates having added to November's historical heavy weighting over December, say JP Morgan structured credit strategists

These CLO docs could be better
It seems there’s not much to worry about if you’re in the CLO market. In Creditflux’s CLO Census, voters said docs should follow a template as Jefferies, AGL and Hayfin emerge as rising stars

Axa IM launches multi-strat fund for pensions
Axa Investment Managers’ ‘alternatives’ business has launched an open-ended strategy for pension funds

Global CLO trading lab: bank sells $834 million triple As in quarterly reallocation as hedge fund trades CLO equity
Thursday’s secondary CLO market was the busiest of 2021, with over $1 billion of US CLOs on offer. This featured an enormous b-wic worth $834.3 million, where sources have told Creditflux of the bank behind the aucton. While a large credit hedge fund is said to have sold out of control CLO equity 

Global CLO trading lab: Seasoned equity prices lag as debt spreads level out
The CLO secondary market took a back seat to the surging primary market in August and September with secondary US CLO volume accounting for just 3.7% and 4.2% of the total US CLO market (primary and secondary volumes). But opportunities are there in CLO equity tranches

CIFC European CLO head leaves on eve of deal pricing
CIFC Asset Management's European chief investment officer has left the firm resulting in two senior US officials plugging the gap on a short-term basis 

CBAM promotes eight to investment committee on fifth anniversary
CBAM Partners has promoted eight people to its investment committee as it marks the five year anniversary of its founding

CLO pipeline: Birch Grove and Fort Washington dish out first 2021 deals as Carlyle goes for sevenths
CLO investors can feast on a range of deals in the new issue market over the next month. 

Global CLO trading lab: Equity supply spikes as investors go long
CLO equity returned to the secondary market in a big way last week, after a month of very little visibility, with $118.3 million of US CLO and €44.9 million of European CLO subordinated notes on sale

CLO pipeline: four US and two European managers prepare first 2021 CLOs
The CLO market is set to carry on roaring with the pipeline as full as ever despite the summer slowdown just around the corner  

Fund performance: Déjà vu as April leaders dominate
CLO funds stayed in the top flight for another month as they took over the top 10 credit hedge fund return table in May, when 87% of all funds listed made positive returns

CLO pipeline: Man GLG resurfaces from six-year absence as deals exiting call-lock fill pipeline
CLO spreads have leaked out in recent weeks but deal economics are still favourable, encouraging managers to come back to the primary market for the first time this year

CLO pipeline: GoldenTree makes good home for single Bs in swarm of activity
Wider CLO spreads are not deterring US CLO managers or equity investors, as 14 new issues, 10 resets and seven refinancings enter the pipeline