Ares buys majority stake in Asian credit manager SSG
Ares has bought a majority, controlling interest in SSG Capital Management, an Asian alternative asset manager focused on private credit and special situations 

Alvarez & Marsal establishes European practice with senior hire
Alvarez & Marsal has established a Europe debt advisory practice and appointed ex-Marlborough Partners official Tim Metzgen to spearhead the unit in London

BC Partners seeks $1 billion close for special opportunities fund
BC Partners Advisors is targeting a $1 billion close for its recently launched special opportunities fund, according to documents seen by Creditflux.  

Calpers eyes exposure to private debt
California Public Employees Retirement System is looking to introduce private debt to its portfolio, according to documents seen by Creditflux  

Portfolio Advisors hits first close as it targets $1.5 billion for secondaries fund
Private markets specialist Portfolio Advisors has completed a first close on its latest secondaries fund at the end of December 2019, having raised between $600m to $700m, a source told Creditflux  

Sound Point creates its first fund geared exclusively to direct lending
Sound Point, which has experience of investing in middle market loans through various funds, has launched its first dedicated speciality lending fund 

We need to talk about high triple C/bond-heavy CLOs
It’s tranched, has exposure to corporate credit and looks and behaves a lot like a CLO – only it’s slightly different. There is so much variety in the CLO market that the industry is faced with a dicey problem: how do we differentiate between the different flavours of CLOs?

Private debt takes centre stage as Arizona looks to bolster credit allocation to 25%
Arizona State Retirement System remains bullish on credit with the $41.9 billion institution looking to bolster its entire credit allocations to almost a quarter of the fund - and private debt will take centre stage in the Arizona pension’s growth plans

US pension backs two private debt managers, but retreats from syndicated loans
San Antonio Fire & Police Pension Fund ended 2019 bullish on private debt but shying away from syndicated loans

Värde launches $2.5 billion global credit fund
Värde Partners has raised $2.47 billion for a new global credit fund, according to an announcement today

Highland Capital Management LP working to remove founder Dondero
Highland Capital Management LP is working with the unsecured creditors committee on a new management team while the US trustee demands an independent trustee to oversee the bankruptcy

New York pension commits $225 million to distressed credit
New York State Common Retirement Fund has earmarked $225 million to invest in a fund and a co-investment vehicle managed by Blantyre Capital  

MidOcean Credit co-founder leaves to head PE firm's credit expansion
Multi-strategy private equity firm Siguler Guff has poached a co-founder of MidOcean Credit Partners to lead the expansion of its credit platform

SSG collects $2.7 billion for Asian special situations fund
SSG Capital Management has raised $2.7 billion for its fifth Asia Pacific-focused credit and special situations strategy, SSG Capital Partners V, surpassing the strategy's original $1.5 billion target size

Attack is the best form of defence
Yes, idiosyncratic risks are creeping into corporate credit. But speakers at Creditflux’s CLO Summit were convinced that the most creative firms will be able to thrive without taking on additional risk

Deluxe decline leaves CLOs feeling deflated
Deluxe looked decent: trading in the 90s for much of this year, with 60% of its term loan sitting in CLO portfolios. But its rapid descent underlines the dangers posed by idiosyncratic events.

JP Morgan AM moves CFO to head up private credit
The chief financial officer of JP Morgan Asset Management has switched to a newly created role as head of private credit

Managers acquiesce on fees as small UK pensions seek private credit nest egg
Private credit fund managers are rejigging their fee structures in order to attract small UK pension schemes.

Complacency rules after rally in run-up to UK election
UK credits rallying was a familiar sight for much of November, mainly due to investors cutting their previous short positions ahead of the country’s 12 December election, but dealers reported little appetite to replace long, short or hedging trades going into the final stretch.

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.

Fund performance: Long-short funds rule in October as CLO funds struggle
A round-up of fund performance

Ucits at a glance: Ucits continue to chart a steady course

CLOs at a glance: innovations arrive as year draws to close

Deans Foods auction delivers big lunch for CDS protection buyers
Dean Foods CDS has been settled in a credit event auction at a final price of just 9.25 cents – half the 18 cents indicated by the Dallas-headquartered company’s bonds at the time the auction was called

Ucits at a glance: ucits continue to chart a steady course