Banks set to offer client clearing of credit index options
Bank members of LCH, the London Stock Exchange's clearing arm, will soon start offering client clearing of CDS index options, as the industry prepares for its next ramp up of margining requirements

CSOs and index tranches reach sticking point as correlation gets rich
Credit correlation trading looks to have reached a point of inflexion, as the previous bull run at the lower end of index capital stacks has given way to caution over how much further spread compression can go. At the same time, bespoke tranche business is gaining interest but equity remains stickier to sell at the market's ultra-low spread and volatility levels

Spread tightening picks up with single names making good ground
The credit market rally picked up its pace on Thursday, after several days of more incremental movement. A notable feature is that single names are picking up the shift and in numerous cases outperforming rather than lagging indices

Saipem moves sharply on Mozambique moans
Saipem, the Italian energy engineering group, was a big underperformer in a flattish credit market on Wednesday, as uncertainty over a project in Mozambique weighed on first quarter results and its outlook for the year

Picard and Cleveland-Cliffs underscore high yield single name sensitivity
Picard entered a relief rally on Friday after postponing a triple-tranche bond deal backing a refinancing and shareholder dividend

Swiss bank credit and equity diverges as it taps investors for $2 billion
Credit Suisse put credit and equity investors on different paths Thursday as it looked to raise nearly $2 billion to improve its finances

Carlyle senior credit investor joins fintech firm as CFO
An experienced credit investment professional at the Carlyle Group has moved to become chief financial officer at fintech company NoviCap

Huarong resumes sharp rally as China weighs asset support
China Huarong Asset Manager rallied sharply in the credit market on Wednesday amid media reports China’s central bank could assume some of the state-owned bad debt manager’s assets

Tobacco splutters in broad market sell off
Credit and equity are under pressure on Tuesday as markets pull back from their improved levels amid concerns about the worsening global covid-19 picture. But tobacco companies have their own problems to contend with, with the US considering a proposal to require lower nicotine levels in cigarettes and other countries also looking to curb sales

Lord Abbett prepares special situations interval fund
Lord Abbett is preparing to launch a new special situations fund in the form of an interval fund

Credit Rendezvous: ready and waiting
In Creditflux's quarterly review of credit, portfolio managers tell us that Inflation is likely to nudge higher but they are optimistic because dispersion will pick up and windows of volatility will emerge, rather than elongated phases of stress 

French foodco CDS jumps on bond offering
Picard, the French frozen foods company, is a big underperformer in credit markets on Monday, as it limbered up to bring a triple-tranche bond deal

China contagion fears linger as Huarong rebounds
China Huarong Asset Manager, the state-owned bad debt manager, is back on a path to improvement after shocking markets by delaying its annual report. But questions remain over the extent of government support and the ripple effects to the wider credit market

Ex-JP Morgan portfolio manager joins boutique as head of structured credit
A portfolio manager who worked in JP Morgan's chief investment office (2008-2014) and with experience across macro credit trading, relative value, index tranches, options and CSOs has resurfaced on the buy side

"IG investors might want to rethink the instrument, but they need not fear rising rates just yet"
In his latest column for Creditflux, Cheyne's Duncan Sankey writes that the sharp rise in 10-year US treasuries could be positive for investment grade investors, but value is in CDS rather than bonds 

Travel company CDS soars wider as bond issue converts to concern
TUI, the Anglo-German travel operator, is under pressure in credit and equity markets just it has launched an offering of convertible bonds

Hermes seeks ESG alpha in companies making changes
Buy-side demand to tick boxes for ESG standards has fuelled a boom in green and social impact bonds that is extending into high yield issuance. But as investment opportunities mount, so does soul-searching about the next phase

Fund managers brace for EU’s new sustainability regulations
European fund managers were faced with new environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) regulations in March, which enhance disclosure requirements around sustainability

Technicals support IG while investors hunt for rising stars
Investment grade credit spreads have been stubbornly tight for the past six-months, but investors see positive technical factors that make lower-rated bonds appealing

Dutch telco CDS leaps on private equity rumours
An iTraxx Europe constituent has surged wider in five-year CDS amid reports of a buy-out approach

Sandalwood funds of credit funds outperform in February
Credit funds of funds came out on top in February, a month characterised by the sell off in US treasuries

Options investors look to medium-term market normalisation
Credit index options trading has been heating up, with investors looking to take views on future market volatility well beyond the customary three-month horizon as Europe and the US grapple to keep a lid on rates.

Corporates show resilience despite sovereign struggles
Turkey’s sovereign credit spread blow-out in the second half of March came as a shock for emerging market credit investors, adding to jitters Brazil had caused a month earlier. But it also highlighted a new trend of corporate borrowers shaking off sovereign weakness

Credit Suisse bears brunt of left-field hit to financials
Financials trading in March served as a reminder that mishaps can hit an investment portfolio from the unlikeliest of directions — and in the calmest of markets

Single names make big gains as indices dither
Single name CDS in the US and Europe have strongly outperformed from the start of the week, rallying sharply and across most of the credit universe despite direcctionless trading for indices