The French revolution
The correlation trading business is becoming more concentrated, with some dealers stepping back while others become more active. French banks are emerging as the new leaders of the CSO business

Trying hard to stay small
FSI Capital has suddenly been transformed from a specialist in mid-tier financial credits into one of the biggest managers of ABS CDOs. That was not how it planned to grow

Picking winners and timing
Mark Okada is chief investment officer of Highland Capital Management, the credit asset management firm he co-founded with James Dondero

The age of restructuring
Bespoke volumes continue to fall, with much new CSO activity said to be driven by restructuring of existing trades. But the index tranche business remains in rude health

Making it short and sweet
Point Clear has delivered stellar returns by staying short and liquid. And it doesn’t plan to change course just because the US authorities have been willing to rescue Bear Stearns

Taming the beast
Just as the credit derivatives industry was getting operations under control, a volume spike has brought back the backlog monster

Liquidity isn’t everything
Peter Gleysteen is chairman and chief executive of Commercial Industrial Finance Corporation. Before setting up the company in 2005, he had a 25-year career at JP Morgan where he served in a number of roles including head of syndicated loans and chief credit officer

So, where’s the firesale?
Strategies for keeping the SIV wind-down orderly

Tested by the storm
Cairn Capital’s experience in adverse conditions and its broad base of strategies could help it sail through the choppy waters ahead

Seeking alpha high and low
Swiss manager Alpstar is looking to capitaliseon sharp falls in valuations as distress deepens,particularly in leveraged credit. But it sees plenty of undervalued assets too.