What do reset deals have in common?
Is it possible to predict which deals are likely to be reset next? With reset mania continuing to grip the US CLO market, we search for common factors among 2014-2021 deals that were reset

US borrowers try again with high-water mark provisions
In the US, high-water marking of EBITDA was rebuffed back in 2022. But the concept has been used regularly in Europe and US borrowers are once again slipping it into credit agreements

A strong year for CLO strategies
After the pain of 2022, credit fund managers must have been praying that 2023 turned out better. It did.

What CLO investors really need to know
From the drivers of CLO performance to cashflow modelling, these are the seven things every CLO equity investor needs to know. This article is an extract from Dealscribe and CLO Research’s guide What CLO Equity Investors Need To Know

Setting standards for emissions data
Macroeconomic trends may have pushed the topic of ESG reporting down the news agenda this year, but this is changing with a raft of new regulations in countries around the world

The wall is coming down
Refis and extensions have greatly reduced the height of the maturity wall looming over European CLOs in the near term — but, further out, WAL test cushions remain critical

CLO Census: It’s time to put the shop in order
After a lacklustre year for the CLO market, the 539 respondents to our comprehensive survey are increasingly calling for structural changes, from electronic trading to standardised documents

European CLOs win out against US deals
Last month, our analysis explored the performance of US CLOs that were previously reset. We found that they delivered higher distributions than deals which weren’t reset, with the exception of the 2017 and 2018 vintages (Creditflux September 2023 — Do resets help CLOs perform better?). This article expands that analysis to the European market, and compares the performance of US BSL and EU CLO equity tranches.

Primary market roars into life
The primary CLO market pickup that started in August continued strongly in September, both in Europe and the US. Although the overall direction was the same on both sides of the Atlantic, the type of activity was quite different.

Do resets help CLOs perform better?
As the market for CLO resets opens, we look at the performance of deals that were previously reset, and find they soon deliver higher distributions than those deals that were not reset

Fund performance
Good month for CLO funds sees six in top 10 as Axiom sets pace

Arcmont and Barings land direct lending doubles
Readers with long memories may recall that Creditflux used to award a handful of prizes for direct lending funds at the Manager Awards. But this year those gongs were spun out into their own glittering gala.

CLO funds make best of a bad situation
It can’t get any worse can it? Well, it did in 2022, when credit spreads kept moving wider. Still, CLO funds were able to withstand the pressure, and they outperformed other credit strategies

We made the most of a tricky situation
The contrast between 2021 and the following 12 months could not have been starker. But although some heavy hitters remained on the sidelines, 94 US CLO managers priced new deals in 2022

Not every CLO can be a winner
The CLO industry has undeniably performed well enough to justify the plaudits it receives. But there will always be some unloved CLO tranches that slip into triple C territory

Weren’t there more of us than this?
According to this year’s Creditflux CLO Census, the CLO industry is not feeling optimistic. Some investors have vanished and managers have not taken advantage of helpful market conditions

What matters is what you do with it
CLO managers yearn for flexibility so they can take advantage when credit sells off. But it isn’t enough on its own: triple C-flex CLOs saw portfolios erode this year, while CBOs outperformed

We can cope with downgrades again

You seem familiar
The overlap between European CLOs has risen to 51.6%, but the largest issuers are only slightly more aligned to their peers at 55.19% — so bonds are proving to be an important differentiator

We’re drifting apart
Everyone’s issuing US CLOs these days and it is tempting to believe the crowd of managers is blending into one. However, overall portfolio overlap has dropped to 37.7% across 2021 CLOs  

CLO managers show respect to their elders
Alongside lucrative new issues, managers also make time for refinancing and resetting old deals. Our data shows that, in 2021, mid-sized firms were the most effective at this balancing act

A fresh approach to loss distribution
Considering how cash balances change over time, loss distribution models can look very different to conventional thinking. So is your CLO’s pricing based on incorrect assumptions?  

Still plenty more fish in the triple C

2020 CLOs find redemption is sweet
The believers have been vindicated with 2020 CLOs among the best-performing of all time by IRR. Even those that have been reset have been a success with par flushes making for huge equity distributions.

Lighten up, these are due an upgrade
CLO triple C buckets were overflowing last year, but the average exposure is now 7.3%. That is still close to trigger levels, but CLO managers are relaxed, as further loan upgrades are on the horizon