Europe outshines US despite caution on inflows and second wave
A week characterised by lower volatility and awash with returning European high yield issuance is ending on a cautious tone, with the US market on holiday and 'second wave' covid concerns bringing a pause to the credit rally

Andera collects €500 million for sponsorless mezzanine debt fund
Andera Partners, has held a final close on its sponsorless mezzanine fund, ActoMezz IV, exceeding its hard cap at €500 million

Angelo Gordon sets Euro triple A benchmark with new CLO
The deal, a post-covid 19 tight for triple A pricing, also features a single B tranche, which have typically been absent from CLO capital structures post-covid 

Oaktree markets first 2020 Euro CLO via Barclays
The €300 million deal, named Arbour VIII, is expected to price in the week beginning 13 June

MeDirect confirms corp credit step-back, as CLO team seeks spin-off
MeDirect has confirmed it will reduce corporate lending to focus on retail clients, following a question by Creditflux on the firm's plans to spin off its CLO-managing specialist credit team

Revolutionary ESG-linked loan wins CLO support
European loan investors welcomed a novel concept in June when Carlyle Group-backed Logoplaste issued the first term loan with pricing linked to environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors

Governance has greatest impact on short-term changes in company valuation out of ESG factors, finds MSCI
Governance has more impact than environmental and social factors on company financial fundamentals and stock price in the short term, but ‘E’ and ‘S’ play their part over the long term, according to analysis from MSCI

Fund performance: CLO funds keep up the momentum for second month running
May returns have been led by continued momentum from CLO funds. In the last month, funds that invest in CLO notes in some capacity have made up 90% of our top 10, while 97% of funds listed generated positive returns - an improvement of 15% on last month's figures.

Credit funds at a glance (July 2020)
A round-up of fundraising and people moves

Ucits at a glance: Ucits recover lost ground
The foot has come off the gas for many funds - 57% of funds did not break the 2% return barrier.

High yield borrowers face pressure over social data
Two major themes of the credit market in 2020 are on a collision course: high yield issuers playing catch-up after a dearth of issuance and the Black Lives Matter movement putting the focus on the S of ESG investing

Curves and skews come back into play as CDS volumes swell
The rapid growth of the CDS market during the coronavirus pandemic has been consolidated in the second quarter, with investors putting on trades not seen in such volume since the 2008 financial crisis.

Index tranche volumes go into overdrive as CSOs stall
CDS index tranche trading has gathered pace during the coronavirus pandemic, putting the asset class on course for a post-2008 crisis record.

European ESG index kicks off 10bp tighter than parent index
A new version of the iTraxx Europe index screened for environmental, social and governance standards began trading three months after its intended roll-out was delayed by coronavirus volatility

Managers prepare for new habits in post-lockdown world
A new world beckons as lockdown measures gradually loosen; one in which consumer behaviour has changed and credit investing will have to adjust. But it won’t be as easy as compartmentalising investments into ‘covid sectors’ and ‘non-covid sectors’.

They said it: Can I be a bond investor and invest in Netflix?
The response of a loan portfolio manager after we asked where should loan investors park their cash?

Points up front: Channelling Twain, Agent Smith and Mike Tyson
Lockdown can adversely affect one’s grasp of reality, and for credit portfolio managers this has manifested itself in a penchant for quoting famous (sometimes fictional) figures

CLOs at a glance: global market hits post-outbreak high
Primary issuance is on the rise as global CLO volumes in June stand at $7.22 billion as Creditflux goes to press, exceeding the $7.12 billion in May

It takes just a few CLO collateral managers selling into the distressed community to start cracks forming
It is becoming increasingly clear that CLO collateral managers need to improve their collaboration efforts in distressed situations

If you’re not finding black talent, you’re not trying hard enough
In the past few weeks, it has been easy to put up our billboards and tweet our condemnation of the treatment of black people. Now we need to change the way companies work

Direct lender Apera bolsters Munich office with UniCredit hire
Direct lender Apera Asset Management has appointed a principal in the firm’s Munich office focused on Dach (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) investments

CLO pipeline: Managers prepare to build on momentum in July
The demand for new issue CLO paper is strengthening with eight US CLOs, one mid market CLO and three European CLOs preparing to print in the coming days

Wide-end credits sharply diverge in firming market
In an overall flattish market, Selecta Group and Novafives are today's standout big movers in European high yield credit, but are on very different trajectories

Wirecard triggers first European CDS credit event of 2020
Wirecard has triggered a bankruptcy credit event, the Determinations Committee has ruled, making it the first European CDS name of 2020 to require settlement at auction