Monarch raises USD 4.7bn for 6th credit opportunity fund
Monarch Capital Partners VI follows a “distress for control” strategy with a focus on corporate credit in North America and Europe

Defaults hit 5% YTD for US private debt-backed companies according to Fitch
The monthly default rate for North American private credit-backed companies hit 5% in August, driven by PIKs and interest deferrals

CLO managers deploy big guns in battle to get on ad hoc committees
As lender-on-lender violence increases, CLO managers are being forced to dedicate staff time to protecting their interests when a loan looks to be troubled

Direct lenders debate new protections to avoid being Pluralsight-ed
Direct lenders are starting to ask for “Pluralsight Protection” when negotiating new deals to head off a repeat of the standoff this summer

Vector launches special situations private credit fund
A San Francisco-based private equity firm has launched a new private credit special situations fund, and is aiming to raise USD 300m

iHeart secured group advisors in confidential talks with company
iHeartMedia, still an important name in the US CLO market, is back in the news, potentially impacting 482 different CLOs

Franchise Group piles on the pain for CLO managers
Retail conglomerate Franchise Group is the latest name to cause a headache for CLO managers, with a downgrade to triple C and loans trading in the 50s 

Private credit default rate rises sharply, according to new report
The second quarter of 2024 saw a further increase in the default rate for US middle market companies, according to legal firm Proskauer's latest report

Connecticut pension allocates USD 300m to Oaktree’s distressed credit fundraising
Connecticut pension system commits to Oaktree latest flagship distressed credit fund

Credit hedge funds
Credit hedge fund performance

Relative to Airbus, Boeing was long accountants but short engineers
A qualitative approach can help investors spot boards that are too focused on short-term returns

Paul Hastings hires Shearman & Sterling lawyer as partner in London
Paul Hastings has hired a new partner and restructuring and special situations attorney, the latest in a string of European restructuring hires for the firm  

Houlihan Lokey adds new credit MD
Investment bank Houlihan Lokey released news yesterday of a new managing director hired to the firm’s Financial Sponsors Group 

Altice isn’t just a European CLO problem
The latest BofA research estimates that US CLO OC test breaches could jump to as high as 17% if all Altice entiites are downgraded

Akin Gump hires Paul Hastings partner for private credit practice
The New York-based partner will join the growing special situations and private credit practice.

Credit hedge funds
Credit hedge funds

Credit funds at a glance
Credit funds at a glance

Värde Partners promotes two to partner
Värde Partners has made two senior-level promotions, including a new global head of business development and investor relations and a new chief operating officer

Dallas retirement system allocates USD 60m to credit funds
The Dallas Employees' Retirement Fund has allocated USD 60m to three separate credit funds as the Texas-based system grows its allocations to private credit and distressed debt

Proskauer poaches pair of credit partners from Milbank
Proskauer Rose continues to build out its team with the addition of Eric Reimer and Gayle Berne as partners in the global finance practice

CLO portfolios may need check-up as healthcare sector continues to deteriorate
Reimbursement challenges and high labour costs are expected to continue to drive restructuring activity among healthcare companies this year following a busy 2023.

Electronic controls company Robertshaw is latest CLO name to default
Robertshaw, held by 134 CLOs with a total exposure of USD 151m, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Blackstone sets sights on USD 10bn for opportunistic private credit fund
Blackstone will soon introduce the latest version of its opportunistic private credit fund, aiming to raise USD 10bn, Michael Chae, the firm's chief financial officer, told analysts 

2023: a bumper year for CLO funds
It looks like 2023 will finish as a solid year for most credit funds, and an outstanding one for CLO funds. But funds pursuing corporate distressed strategies continued to struggle

Oaktree raises roughly USD 3bn for third special situations fund
Oaktree upsizes third fund that primarily invests in stressed or distressed US middle-market companies