Something old, something new A survey finds alternative asset firms embracing remote ways of working, but still seeing a future for office life. The “new normal” is increasingly of a remote nature, whether you like it or not. In a recent cover story in Private Debt Investor, we examined the new generation of dislocation funds…

Is distressed best for LPs? Fundraising targeting troubled companies is gathering pace, with surveys suggesting investors are keen to jump on board. “We estimate that about half a trillion dollars across credit segments are trading at distressed levels,” said Karim Cherif and Jay Lee of UBS Global Wealth Management in a report published in mid-June….

Deals on the agenda as Germany picks up German-speaking markets are emerging from lockdown with strong appetite for finance. Europe was one of the first parts of the world to be hit by the covid-19 outbreak. But while many countries – such as the UK, Italy, Spain and France – were hit hard, others came…

Pain across the board The covid-19 crisis has dished out equal treatment – hitting all types of sectors hard. The subject of the chart above is the CLO market, but it makes a point that is equally valid for the private debt universe. Not only have prospects for company default risen sharply in the wake…

Distressed debt takes centre stage A recent survey of investors by Oxane Partners found 42 percent said private credit attractiveness overall has decreased for the next 18-24 months while only 31 percent said it has increased, a net negative of 11 percent. But this loss could be distressed debt’s gain as investors show huge interest…

Strategic pioneers give fundraising a helping hand Outside of the mainstream, fund managers are seeking to take advantage of the dislocations produced by the global pandemic. In a way, all seems normal. Our latest data on private debt fundraising by strategy (see charts above) are not especially out of kilter with the norm. A slight…

Will coronavirus prompt a new wave of distress? One of the long-term impacts of the global financial crisis was a sharp uptick in non-performing loans as lax underwriting standards prior to the crisis and the global recession that followed created a perfect storm where over-levered borrowers were unable to repay their debts…. Login to Read

Crunch time for the BDC market Current trading is looking bleak for BDCs, but they’ve come through even worse in the past. BDCs are expected to see significant write-downs and defaults on portfolio company loans because revenues collapsed in much of the economy. A decline in the net asset value of BDCs may end up…

The passing opportunity for direct lenders Companies that may have gone to the syndicated finance market are looking closely at more private alternatives. In Europe, a leveraged finance market which had effectively been on hold since the covid-19 outbreak emerged in March has been slowly waking up. But, as it does so, banks are beginning…

The biggest are the biggest for a reason Nothing much is predictable these days, but don’t expect the fundraising pecking order to change anytime soon. “Do what you can, with what you’ve got, where you are.” The inspirational quote comes from an autobiography of Theodore Roosevelt and surely resonates with anyone forced into lockdown as…