Thomas Cook credit event question travels beyond index roll, as Steinhoff deliverables finalised
An auction next week to settle Steinhoff Europe CDS will have two deliverable obligations, the Determinations Committee has confirmed. But resolution of a bankruptcy credit event question on iTraxx Crossover name Thomas Cook spills over beyond today’s roll into a new series, after the DC was unable to reach a decision this week

Thomas Cook looks set to fly solo as default in outgoing Crossover series 31
The Determinations Committee has accepted a request to rule on whether Thomas Cook Group has triggered a bankruptcy credit event, after the UK-based travel company filed for chapter 15 protection in New York

Go long CLO triple-A and pick cash bonds over CDS, says JP Morgan
Going long European CLO triple A paper remains one of JP Morgan strategists’ favourite trades following the European Central Bank stimulus announcement last week, despite these tranches having rallied 14bp on average since the bank first backed them. They also predict cash credit to outperform CDS

Date set for long-delayed Steinhoff auction, with two deliverables
An auction to settle CDS referencing Steinhoff Europe will take place on Wednesday next week – six months after the Determinations Committee ruled that the retailer had triggered a failure-to-pay credit event

China ambitions checked in final roll lists for iTraxx and CDX indices
The index roll lists for iTraxx Europe, iTraxx ex-Japan and CDX EM, have all undergone a rethink since IHS Markit published provisional lists earlier this week, with final lists showing name changes

Draghi sends European credit to 2019 tights, as Trump demands Fed response
European investment grade credit – and particularly the financial sector – surged tighter today as European Central Bank president Mario Draghi, in the penultimate meeting of his reign, unveiled a ‘whatever it takes’ stimulus

US spreads reconverge on Europe as traders hold breath for ECB
Credit markets are finely poised ahead of today’s meeting of the European Central Bank in Frankfurt today, with some positivity around US-China tariff talks allowing US spreads to gain ground as European expectation remains tempered by German recession fears

iTraxx and CDX roll provisional lists reveal effects of index overhauls
Eagerly awaited provisional lists are out for this month’s index CDS rolls, with big changes signalled across iTraxx and CDX products

CDS data snapshot: central bank positioning and index rolls drive flows
Welcome to the inaugural run of what will become a weekly insight into credit derivatives trading. Each week, Creditflux will highlight trends and dynamics from most recently available market data. We welcome feedback on measures of the market readers would like to see here in future

US credit managers make ESG breakthrough after taking a first step via UNPRI
Incorporating a framework for investing in companies based on environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors is a challenge that US credit managers are accepting in growing numbers

DC makes inverted engagement with Top Gun CDS auction amid settlement challenges
The EMEA Determinations Committee has reconsidered its decision not to hold an auction for CDS referencing Top Gun Realisations 61, after market participants complained of challenges in settling transactions on the defaulted entity

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

Nordea AM portfolio manager joins Capital Four
Capital Four Management has appointed Nordea Asset Management portfolio manager Stine Milling Pilegaard as a director in its Copenhagen office

Credit traders' kickstand: Financials lead compression as pre-ECB and index roll bulldozers flatten spreads
Caution does not appear to be an operative word in financial markets ahead of next week’s key European Central Bank meeting, with financial names leading the way as credit spreads return to this year’s tightest levels and stocks ascend towards post-crisis peaks

Guidelines fail to assuage fears over loose reporting standards
The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Institute’s new hedge fund reporting guidelines come into play next year, but some say they fall short of a much-needed overhaul.

Four sectors most favoured by bullish resumption of QE, say BAML strategists
Autos, healthcare, media and real estate bonds are likely to be the biggest initial beneficiaries if the European Central Bank reinvigorates its corporate sector purchase programme (CSPP) next week, say Bank of America Merrill Lynch credit strategists

Creditflux to host first ESG-focused event in London
Creditflux is pleased to announce its first conference dedicated to environmental, social and governance-focused investing. The half-day event takes place at The Waldorf Hilton in London on 17 October as part of Debtwire Week.

Top Gun triggers credit event, but there's no debt in the barrel
Top Gun Realisations 61, a New Look retail group private limited company that was previously named New Look Bondco I, has triggered a bankruptcy credit event, the EMEA Determinations Committee has ruled. But no CDS auction will follow since the reference entity has no debt outstanding

ICG brings in managing director for client-facing role spanning Austria and Germany
ICG has appointed Julia Beinker as managing director to expand the firm’s client base in Austria and Germany

Esma publishes final guidelines for alternative and Ucits fund liquidity stress-test
Fund managers have just over a year to comply with liquidity stress test final guidelines published yesterday by the European Securities and Markets Authority (Esma) for alternative investment funds (AIFs) and undertakings for the collective investment in transferable securities (Ucits)

LCH's French unit adds first Japanese clearing member
Mizuho has signed up as the first Japanese clearing member of LCH SA, the French clearing unit of London Stock Exchange-owned LCH Group

Credit traders' kickstand: Europe ascendant as high yield pipeline returns
The high yield bond primary market grinds back into gear this week just as European credit reaches an extreme point of outperformance over the US, and comes on the back of Europe’s busiest week of investment grade issuance in 18 months

Determinations Committee to rule on maverick bankruptcy credit event
Top Gun Realisations 61, a New Look retail group private limited company that was previously named New Look Bondco I, is under consideration for a bankruptcy credit event trigger, after the Determinations Committee accepted a request to rule on the matter

Last of GSO's co-founders departs
It's the end of an era as GSO Capital Partners co-founder Bennett Goodman (the 'G' in GSO) will step down from the firm at the end of the year 

Steinhoff credit event auction finally in sight after restructuring concludes
A long-awaited auction to settle CDS referencing retailer Steinhoff Europe has moved a step closer, with the EMEA Determinations Committee noting the restructuring effective date has happened and the company voluntary arrangement (CVA) has been fully implemented