PE firms tap abundant liquidity,
yet LBO loan deal flow struggles to meet demand
Source: Debtwire Par
Financial sponsors have been very busy this year, taking advantage of borrower-friendly market conditions to tap the debt markets at a rapid pace. Sponsor-backed syndicated leveraged loan issuance has already hit a quarterly record of USD 181bn, as of 22 March.
Rampant debt issuances in 1Q21 have not translated into a wave of new money deals for leveraged loan lenders, however, as much of the activity has been to reprice (USD 70.7bn) or refinance (USD 50.4bn) existing debt in portfolio companies.