Global CLO b-wic round-up: junior mezz rebounds with busiest week since June
Secondary market CLO trading has made a busy start to 2020 with $478.6 million of US deals and €103.3 million of European CLOs up for sale last week

Issuers fashion new outfits for junior mezz

Deep dive trade is on, but single name risks still abound
High yield CDS is reversing its previous underperformance versus investment grade, reflecting an investor shift down the quality spectrum in cash bonds.

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

Global CLO b-wic round-up: Junior mezz covers return while triple A supply drives big week
Narrowing of the bid-ask gap that has plagued junior mezzanine tranches could bring a change of fortunes in the US CLO secondary market 

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.

Past returns: Bond king’s exit ends CLO refis
Five years ago in Creditflux, we reported on a market absorbing the consequences of ‘bond king’ Bill Gross leaving Pimco, the firm he co-founded.

Corporate credit performance expected to catch up with financial borrowers as European quantitative easing begins
The return of European Central Bank quantitative easing on 30 October portends a catch up this month of corporate credit performance with other parts of the market, such as financial borrowers, say strategists.

Over 1,200 sign up to CDS protocol
Plans to improve CDS market integrity have received a boost, with the International Swaps & Derivatives Association drawing a stronger than expected response to its protocol aimed at stamping out narrowly tailored credit events (NTCEs).

Distressed loans get IHS Markit workover as tech service aims to cut settlement times
IHS Markit is unveiling an electronic solution through its ClearPar platform aimed at simplifying trade settlement for distressed leveraged loans, an area that has greatly lagged efficiency in the par loans market    

Global CLO b-wic round-up: volumes jump as investors get their triple A fix
The US CLO secondary market brought over $1.2 billion in total listings last week with the main driver behind last week’s supply being an increase in US CLO triple A bonds and an anchor equity position.

Global CLO b-wic round-up: control stake trades as junior notes come to the fore
The European and US CLO secondary markets produced high volumes of junior and subordinated notes last week. Over 30% of listings were rated as equity, single B or double B.

Any takers for illiquid European CLO equity?
The investor base for European CLO equity is far smaller than for US CLO equity. But for those with the mandate, and willing to stomach the illiquidity, valuations have been strong this year.

LCH and Ice prepare to battle it out over options clearing
A fully cleared market for CDS options is getting closer, with the two largest central clearing counterparties (CCPs) set to expand their services.

Narrowly tailored event protocol set to go live in weeks
Investors have until 14 October to sign up to an Isda protocol aimed at stamping out narrowly tailored credit events (NTCEs) from the CDS market.

Roll week leaves CDS in strange places
CDS traders navigate a much-changed landscape in October, after one of the most impactful index rolls in recent times. 

Global CLO b-wic round-up: US and European double B trading patterns diverge
48% of the CLO secondary market was made up of triple A bonds; $255.6 million of US CLOs and €108.55 million of European CLOs. But there were differences in how CLO double Bs are trading in those markets.

Global CLO b-wic round-up: secondary market awakens with control equity bonanza
Four anchor positions made available on secondary market as equity accounts for over a third of all volumes.

One day, two investors, three CLO controlling stakes in secondary
Two investors are inviting bids for anchor positions they hold in three CLOs.

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

Investors seek oasis as new issues dry up

Flat curves and decompression make waves below the surface
Hopes of using the summer slowdown to get to the beach may be tempered for credit relative value traders, where opportunities abound behind the uninspiring benchmark numbers of the slow market grind.

Net short language could force lenders to sell at a loss
Signs are growing that ‘net short’ provisions in bonds and loans are getting closer to hitting CDS investors, with two instances in recent weeks of the language expanding both in geographical and functional remit.

Back to basis (and skew) as relative value plays catch-up
Basis trades between bonds and CDS failed to gain traction during July as synthetic markets held ground or improved their position versus cash, but this is beginning to change, say market participants.