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

CLOs come up smelling of roses
The coronavirus crisis could have cut back 10 years of CLO market progress, but investors’ foresight, trading chops and flexibility meant many saw their strategies blossom during 2020  

Moving fast pays off for hedge funds
2020 was an up and down year in credit, and credit hedge fund managers had to move quickly to capture opportunities from the dislocations that inevitably opened up

All’s well that ends well in 2020 OC tests
Swathes of CLOs failed over-collateralisation tests last year, but unlike the drawn-out recovery following the 2008 financial crisis, the return to compliance after the covid-19 crash was rapid 

It’s been a while — how’s tricks?

A different kind of crisis
Panellists on Creditflux’s US CLO webinar were positive about the robustness of CLO structures and the role of cure contributions. But they warned about zombie defaults and gaming tests

Tracking down the credit industry’s original winners
All winning managers at the first Creditflux awards survived the crisis, under their own names – like BlackRock – or under new owners. But what happened to the people who collected the trophies?
 

Consumer lending: questions pile up for debt collectors
Cabot’s failed IPO has hit bonds across the debt collection sector – and made investors much more cautious. By Euan Hagger

Engineering and construction: diversification leads to deepening debt
In trying to build a more global roster of clients, some construction companies may have dug a hole for themselves

CLO managers return to new issues
The frenetic pace of refis and resets slowed in the third quarter as CLO managers – new and old – turned their attention to building assets

Genesis of a CLO desk
On the 10-year anniversary of Genesis CDO I, Creditflux analyses the development of Deutsche Bank’s structured credit desk. By Hugh Minch

Talk of carbon dioxide reduction boosting credit returns is hot air
There are good reasons to adopt a carbon neutral investing philosophy – just don’t expect it to have a major effect on alpha generation

Boutique CLO managers boss secondary market
Creditflux analysis shows that, when their total assets are taken into account, small managers' CLOs are more liquid than those of large managers 

A year of credit insights

Container shipping: Struggling to stay afloat
Debt and overcapacity mean container shippers must consolidate fast to avoid further wrecks

Equipment rental: debt investors call for safety measures
Resistance is high to equipment renters that continue to splash out on capital spending

A clash of views on credit
Recent volatility has shattered any consensus that existed on corporate credit. Buy-side firms, in particular, have been putting forth sharply contrasting views of late

Road haulage: Clear road ahead for truckers
A tailwind of economic growth is helping trucking companies – and they are avoiding the temptation to overload on debt and capacity

A European at the heart of US CLOs
Deutsche Bank has carved out a distinctive role in the CLO business as a bridge between the US and Europe

Together, they’ve gone far
The stable Wells Fargo team that came together at Wachovia is now backed by one of the big four US banks. It's a combination that dominates in US mid-market CLOs

Finding inefficiencies in iTraxx
Credit derivative indices are big and liquid. But detailed analysis of their historical performance shows they are not always efficient. By Davide Avino and Ogonna Nneji

Giant takes sharp turn towards CLOs
It is one of the biggest banks, but BNP Paribas moved nimbly after the crisis to build on its position as a leader in credit derivatives by adding a CLO arranging business

Credit default swaps stop fire sales
Companies with credit default swaps have more liquid bonds and tighter spreads than those that don’t because investors can hold their bonds after a downgrade

JP Morgan takes CLO arranger crown
It has been a bumper quarter for top arranger JP Morgan, but overall CLO outstandings held steady and have yet to match their 2008 high

Gone but not forgotten
ACA Capital’s spectacular collapse heralded the demise of the monoline business and scattered its employees into jobs right across the credit space