Ucits at a glance: Ucits start year on high note
A round-up of ucits fund performance

Mid market CLO league tables: Sumitomo enters the ring
Golub Capital became the first middle market CLO manager to price two deals in 2020 after partnering with first time lead arranger, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Nikko in February

EIF backs Italian private debt fund
Finint Investment anticipates €150 million final close for its third Italian private debt fund in June, after receiving the backing of the European Investment Fund

Fortress digests CraftWorks bankruptcy
CraftWorks Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy yesterday, with Fortress Investments holding all of the Tennessee restaurant operator's first lien debt - of which over half is in middle market CLOs. The New York-based firm has submitted a “stalking horse” bid to buy CraftWorks' assets

Weak loan collateral will dent private credit returns, says Finnish pension
Valtion Elakerahasto, the state pension fund of Finland, says non-existing or weaker loan collateral has raised concerns about the returns private credit funds will generate in the coming years  

Rhode Island to step up private and 'opportunistic' credit investments
Rhode Island State Investment Commission, which manages the Employees’ Retirement System of Rhode Island, plans to increase its allocation to private credit and what it terms opportunisitic credit, according to investment consultant Cliffwater

Minnesota pension slates $600 million to four credit funds
Minnesota State Board of Investments has earmarked $600 million to four credit funds

Ohio pension makes commitment to private credit
School Employees Retirement System of Ohio is set to introduce a 5% private credit allocation to its portfolio  

Kartesia hires former Santander official to lead UK senior debt origination
Kartesia has appointed former a Santander official to lead UK senior debt investments 

US pension looks to put $60 million in private debt as older funds wind down
Boston Retirement System considers committing an additional $60 million to its private debt programme in 2020, following a recommendation by its investment consultant NEPC,  

Calpers backs proposal exempting private debt disclosure
Calpers, the largest US pension fund, is looking to sponsor a proposal exempting California pension funds from disclosing private debt information under the California Public Records Act

Sacramento pension earmarks $150 million for private credit in 2020
The pension fund expects to commit to two direct lending funds and one credit fund it describes as 'opportunistic'

Alaska pension commits $207 million to credit
Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation (APFC) committed $207 million to credit funds and co-investments over the last quarter of 2019  

Mid-market lender Comvest sells minority stake to Affiliated Managers

Comvest Partners has sold a minority equity stake to Affiliated Managers Group. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed.  

EIB buys mezzanine tranche in Commerzbank SRT
Commerzbank has launched a €1.5 billion significant risk transfer with the European Investment Bank (EIB) announcing that it has invested in the mezzanine tranche of the securitisation

Hamilton Lane limits uncalled commitments with private market fund
Hamilton Lane has launched a private assets fund, in a strategy that will "seek to limit the exposure of uncalled commitments and shorten the duration of expected cash flows relative to a traditional portfolio”

Pantheon and Solutio join forces on €250 million private debt secondaries fund
Pantheon Ventures and Munich-based Solutio have held a final close on their inaugural joint private debt secondary fund above its €250 million hard-cap

Texas pension pumps $300 million into Pimco fund
Texas Municipal Retirement System has earmarked up to $300 million to a credit fund managed by Pimco, according to board documents seen by Creditflux, building on a relationship established through a predecessor fund

US pension earmarks $25 million for secondary direct lending investment
Maine Public Employees Retirement System (MainePERS) is set to invest $25 million to a private credit fund through a secondary market transaction  

Italian pension fund seeks greater exposure to private debt
BNL, the pension fund of the investment manager BNP Paribas Italia, has launched a request for proposals (RFP), looking to commit €20 million to private debt closed-end funds.  

New York pension fund puts emphasis on sustainability with $800m credit allocation
The New York State Common Retirement Fund (CRF) has put $800 million into credit with a strong sustainability focus, hiring Avenue, Calvert and Nuveen

AlbaCore closes €1.5 billion direct lending fund nearly 60% deployed
AlbaCore Capital has deployed around 60% of its second direct lending fund, with the London-based manager closing the fund at €1.5 billion

Hadrian Wall tumbles as board calls for wind down of direct lending fund
Hadrian’s Wall Secured Investments' board of directors has decided that a wind down of the fund with cash returned to shareholders would be in the best interest of shareholders, according to a company update

European unitranche deal flow increased 11% last year, finds GCA
European direct lending unitranche deals completed in 2019 increased by 11%, according to GCA Altum's Q4 2019 MidCap Monitor, marking a record year for the industry