Tranche traders smell the coffee as Crossover default percolates
Selecta Group looks set to become the third European credit event in as many months to hit series 33 of the iTraxx Crossover index and tranches based on series 32

Ensco CDS leap wider on credit event trigger
CDS contracts referencing Ensco International, a Houston based subsidiary of offshore driller Valaris, have shot wider after the Americas Determinations Committee ruled the company has triggered a bankruptcy credit event

Valaris and Ensco posed to DC as bankruptcy credit events
Valaris and its subsidiary Ensco International Incorporated have been proposed to the Americas Determinations Committee as bankruptcy credit events after the group filed for chapter 11 protection in August

Europcar hits bumps on the road less travelled
A rough road for Europcar this week has taken its bond and CDS spreads back towards the outer reaches, setting the French car rental firm apart from a general improvement in fortunes for names at the wider end of the market

Banks and high yield corps lead charge as results prompt European rally
High yield corporate credit is today's outperforming part of the market as European credit rallies back from its recent wides, as the latest round of earnings proves stronger than many had expected

Chesapeake deliverables point to big pay-out on CDS
An initial list of deliverable obligations to settle CDS referencing Chesapeake Energy Corporation at auction points to a pay-out of over 97 cents to protection buyers - higher than where five-year contracts are priced

Covid-19 second wave fears drive divergence as spread widening accelerates
This week's credit market sell-off has picked up pace, along with a fall in stocks, after the US Federal Reserve painted a pessimistic picture for economic recovery and concerns mount about a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic

Fund performance: CLO tranches move up
April returns managed a partial bounce back after a tumultuous March. 82% of funds listed in the Creditflux database made positive returns, showing at least small signs of recovery after 90% of all funds listed posted negative returns in March

Private credit wins investor as Maryland pension introduces 5% allocation
Howard County Retirement has introduced a new bucket to the private credit asset class, reducing its core bond and hedge fund exposure to facilitate this measure, according to board documents seen by Creditflux

CLOs on lookout as Neiman recovery signals slump and DC confirms credit event
Five-year CDS referencing Neiman Marcus widened by four points to 95.25 points up front, according to IHS Markit, as the Americas Determinations Committee confirmed the US retailer has triggered a bankruptcy credit event

US pension approves four-year private credit plan as direct lenders report performance
Santa Barbara County Employees has approved a private credit pacing plan from investment consultant RVK to maintain a commitment schedule of $40 million per year to the asset class until 2024 to achieve its target allocation and diversification

Frontier bankruptcy dials up pressure for 90 CLOs
Nine CLO managers hold $217 million of Frontier Communications’ debt across 90 CLOs, as the telecommunications company filed for Chapter 11 protection in the US Bankruptcy Court Southern District of New York

Owl Rock becomes last investment grade BDC to win increased leverage approval
Owl Rock Capital Corporation has become the last investment grade business development company to cut its asset coverage requirement from 200% to 150%, after receiving unaminous approval from its board of directors on Tuesday

US pension to cut long-term private markets pacing plan by 10%
The Educational Employees' Supplemental Retirement System of Fairfax County is considering reducing its 10-year private markets pacing plan commitments by around 10%, according to board documentation seen by Creditflux

Fortress digests CraftWorks bankruptcy
CraftWorks Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy yesterday, with Fortress Investments holding all of the Tennessee restaurant operator's first lien debt - of which over half is in middle market CLOs. The New York-based firm has submitted a “stalking horse” bid to buy CraftWorks' assets

VIP Cinema makes uncomfortable viewing for CLOs as it's reeled into Chapter 11
CLOs hold $52.9 million of debt in seatmaker VIP Cinema Holdings, which has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the District of Delaware

US loan trading: McDermott downgrade leads to CLO outflows as managers board rail road firm
US freight railroads operator Genesee & Wyoming allocated its $2.55 billion term loan in November, making it the most popular issuer in the month. And CLO managers were sceptical of the outlook for McDermott Technology - signalled by $185.9 net outflows - after Moody's downgraded its corporate family rating from B3 to Caa2 

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

Purdue Pharma bankruptcy highlights value of ESG analysis
Purdue Pharma's bankruptcy this week, and the sector wide concern over the US opioid epidemic, has highlighted the utility of environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards in credit analyses

Prepayments pose reinvestment dilemma for CLO managers
CLO managers globally could be left sitting on piles of cash amid an uptick in loan prepayments. Standard & Poor’s reported that institutional US loan prepayments had hit $26 billion in July, and more recently some widely-held CLO names are set to return principal to lenders, with financial data provider Refinitiv US Holdings and Italian telecom operator Wind Tre taking this route.

Credit traders' kickstand: European financials outperform as Trump-Xi meeting looms
Credit markets are finely poised going into the weekend, when US president Donald Trump’s crunch G20 meeting with Chinese president Xi Jinping likely could set the direction of trade from Monday

Staples CDS comes unfastened as refinancing talks begin
CDX HY index constituent Staples is one of the biggest movers in CDS this week, following reports private equity owner Sycamore Partners plans on taking a $1 billion dividend recap from the US headquartered office supplier

Weatherford CDS routed as quarterly loss adds to ratings woes
Five-year credit default swaps referencing CDX HY constituent Weatherford International have weathered a battering over recent days

Investors place $312 million in Locus Point's inaugural private credit fund
Locust Point Private Credit Fund will provide financing to owner and operators in the senior housing and care sector throughout the US

BlackRock adds new ETF to $1.8 trillion iShares platform
BlackRock has unveiled a new addition to its suite of target maturity fixed income ETFs, with the iShares iBonds Dec 2024 Term Muni Bond ETF (IBMM) rolling out this week