Complete news archive

  • OTC utility underscored

    ISDA has published two new research papers that highlight the value of the OTC derivatives market.

    The first paper - entitled 'The Value of OTC Derivatives: Case Study Analyses of Hedges by Publicly Traded Non-Financial Firms' - is authored by Ivilina Popova, associate professor at Texas State University, and Betty Simkins, professor of finance at Oklahoma State University. Building on .......

    News Round-up 9 April 2014

  • SLR standards finalised

    The OCC, the US Fed and the FDIC have adopted a final rule that strengthens the supplementary leverage ratio (SLR) standards for US bank holding companies (BHC) with more than US$700bn in total consolidated assets or more than US$10trn in assets under custody and any insured depository institution (IDI) subsidiary of these BHCs. Under the final rule, an IDI that .......

    News Round-up 9 April 2014

  • US clearing leader appointed

    LCH.Clearnet Group has appointed Jill Considine to its board of directors, bringing with her significant experience in risk management and clearing. She will also serve as chair of US-based LCH.Clearnet LLC, while Jacques Aigrain will remain as chairman of LCH.Clearnet Group.

    Considine was previously one of three trustees of the AIG Credit Facility Trust, has served as chairman and ceo .......

    Job Swaps 9 April 2014

  • CMBS market awaits A1A list

    US CMBS BWIC volume reached US$287m yesterday, with activity skewed towards AM and AJ bonds. Supply is set to jump today, as a US$677m list of 2006- and 2007-vintage multifamily-directed A1A tranches is scheduled to hit the market.

    Among the AM tranches that were out for the bid yesterday, SCI's PriceABS data picked up the CWCI 2006-C1 AM .......

    Market Reports 9 April 2014

  • Student loan debt discussed

    Outstanding US student loan debt grew by US$22bn to US$1.08trn, as of 4Q13, according to the New York Fed. Fitch expects increased volume of student loans and graduate-level borrowing to have a muted impact on US student loan ABS pools, however.

    This trend should continue if enrolments and tuition rise further and household income growth remains steady. Overall college enrolment .......

    News Round-up 8 April 2014

  • Reclassifications unlikely to impact ratings

    In its role as trustee, US Bank recently reclassified approximately US$500m in forbearance modifications as principal losses, causing a spike in cumulative losses for certain US RMBS in the March remittance period. S&P says it does not anticipate these reclassified losses to materially impact the ratings on the affected bonds, however.

    Cumulative losses on the affected deals slightly more than .......

    News Round-up 8 April 2014

  • End-user demand remains strong

    ISDA has published the results of a survey of end-users on issues and trends in the OTC derivatives markets. The survey illustrates that the demand for OTC derivatives by end-users remains very strong.

    Of the survey respondents, 86% believe that OTC derivatives are very important or important to their risk management strategy. More than three-quarters expect to increase or maintain .......

    News Round-up 8 April 2014

  • Euro 2.0 protections examined

    European broadly syndicated loan (BSL) CLOs saw a revival of issuance activity in 2013, driven by favourable asset pricing coupled with tightening liabilities, which provided attractive arbitrage opportunities. New structural credit protections also mitigate credit risk, Moody's notes in a new study.

    "New European BSL CLOs structures are strong, having cleaner portfolios and stringent investment guidelines. In addition, subordination levels .......

    News Round-up 8 April 2014

  • Volcker extensions disappoint

    The US Fed says it intends to give banking entities two additional one-year extensions to 21 July 2017 to conform their ownership interests in and sponsorship of CLOs covered by the Volcker Rule. The move is disappointing for the industry, which had called for comprehensive relief for CLOs under the rule.

    Only CLOs in place as of 31 December 2013 .......

    News 8 April 2014

  • Citi agrees to settle RMBS claims

    A group of 18 institutional investors has reached an agreement with Citigroup under which it will make a binding offer to the trustees of 68 RMBS trusts issued by Citi to settle mortgage repurchase claims. The investors support the agreement and have asked the trustees to accept it.

    The offer includes a payment of US$1.125bn in cash to the trusts, .......

    Job Swaps 8 April 2014

  • Rating agency moves into ABS

    Morningstar has appointed Violet Diamant as md for ABS ratings and research. She will be based in New York and will lead the agency's expansion into ABS ratings services.

    Diamant will take responsibility for analytical strategy, establishing an analyst team and developing ABS rating criteria, reporting to Morningstar president Vickie Tillman. Diamant was most recently director of credit risk management .......

    Job Swaps 8 April 2014

  • Scrutinising servicing

    Mortgage servicers in the cross hairs

    Investors and regulators have both started to fix mortgage servicers in their sights. A fresh wave of litigation could follow, while the effects are already being felt in the secondary market.

    Investors have previously taken R&W-related legal action against banks and now they are scrutinising the actions of servicers. Certain practices and loan modifications by those servicers may have affected .......

    News Analysis 8 April 2014

  • Listing business acquired

    Matheson is set to acquire Investec's Irish investment funds and debt securities listing business, following approval from the Irish Stock Exchange. Investec's listing unit assists applicants seeking to list investment fund shares or structured debt securities on the Irish Stock Exchange.

    The acquisition is expected to enhance Matheson's offering by enabling the firm to provide the full range of Irish .......

    Job Swaps 7 April 2014

  • Value-added offerings 'key' in APAC

    The provision of value-added service offerings is essential for buy-side firms seeking OTC derivatives clearing brokerage services in Asia-Pacific, according to a new report from GreySpark Partners. The results of a quantitative survey of buy-side firms, sell-side banks and technology vendors suggest that value-added services - such as real-time limit dashboards and 'what-if?' scenario modelling tools - which slowly became .......

    News Round-up 7 April 2014

  • Servicer advance approach revisited

    S&P has published an advance notice of proposed criteria change concerning US RMBS transactions secured by servicer advance receivables. The agency is proposing to revise its methodology for rating such transactions to clarify the cashflow scenario assumptions and promote transparency in advance rate calculations.

    Separately, S&P has placed 96 ratings from 20 US RMBS servicer advance transactions on credit watch .......

    News Round-up 7 April 2014

  • Appraised values examined

    The average appraised value for US CMBS specially serviced loans has declined by 1% year-over-year, according to Fitch. This finding is based on its analysis of 738 loans, with a total original loan balance of US$12.6bn.

    Approximately 48%, or 356, of these loans experienced a decline in appraised value from the previous appraisal; for those loans experiencing a decline, values .......

    News Round-up 7 April 2014

  • SCI Start the Week - 7 April

    A look at the major activity in structured finance over the past seven days

    Pipeline
    There were 11 new additions to the pipeline last week that had not priced by Friday. They consisted of six ABS, one ILS, two RMBS and two CLOs.

    The ABS entrants were: US$299m Credit Acceptance Auto Loan Trust 2014-1; €952.5m Driver Twelve; US$266.09m Flagship Credit Auto Trust 2014-1; US$650m Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Trust 2014-1; €37m IGEA; and US$507.38m OneMain .......

    News 7 April 2014

  • Partnership targets distressed debt

    Investcorp's US-based hedge fund business and London-based Eyck Capital Management have formed a strategic partnership. The relationship will provide Eyck with acceleration capital and offer Investcorp and its investors access to a specialised event-driven and distressed credit strategy in Europe.

    Eyck looks to take advantage of opportunities in the capital structure of highly levered companies by investing in special situations, .......

    Job Swaps 7 April 2014

  • Asset manager registers in Ireland

    ECM Asset Management's range of credit funds have been registered in Ireland. Only last month the firm registered its funds in Sweden and Finland (SCI 18 March).

    ECM's funds are now registered in eight markets in Western Europe. The sub-funds registered include the ECM Absolute Return Credit Fund and ECM Dynamic Credit Fund.

    .......

    Job Swaps 4 April 2014

  • Troubled mall sold

    The Southlake mall outside Atlanta, Georgia, has been bought by Vintage Real Estate. The mall backs a US$100m loan in REO, of which US$70m was securitised in BSCMS 2007-PW18.

    The company has pledged to commit capital to replacing an adjacent anchor pad with new fashion stores and restaurants. The loan was originally modified as part of the GGP bankruptcy in .......

    News Round-up 4 April 2014

  • US RMBS supply rises

    US non-agency RMBS secondary market activity continued to build yesterday. BWIC volume reached around US$850m and SCI's PriceABS data shows raised supply across fixed-rates, hybrids and subprime.

    The oldest-vintage tranche captured in yesterday's session was WFMBS 2003-J 2A1. The tranche traded yesterday but had only previously appeared in the PriceABS archive in November 2012, when it .......

    Market Reports 4 April 2014
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