US LBO activity remains healthy, with volume totaling US$19.5bn so far this quarter

LBO activity has remained steady despite persistent headwinds in the financial markets this year. Refinitiv LPC has tracked roughly US$19.5bn in completed syndicated and clubbed US LBO volume so far this quarter, after 1Q22 saw US$52.8bn in volume.
 
1Q22’s level made it the fourth consecutive quarter reaching the US$50bn plateau, the first time that feat had ever been accomplished. Still, 2022’s levels are well behind the over US$191bn in LBO volume hit upon in 2H21. While a more recent wave of volatility has impacted the markets and slowed leveraged loan activity, leveraged buyout opportunities should continue as private equity firms remain flush with dry powder.
 
There is roughly US$8.6bn in clubbed and US$39bn in syndicated LBO volume that has been announced and is bucketed as pending. That includes a few jumbo deals for the likes of Twitter, Citrix, Nielsen Holdings and Information Resources, which should help keep LBO loan volume numbers at healthy levels for the foreseeable future.

(Past performance is no guarantee of future results.)