It was a muted start to the year for the acquisition and leveraged finance market due to a challenging macroeconomic climate. Interest rate hikes at one of the fastest paces on record, surging inflation (particularly in...more
A strong finish to 2023 helped to boost global leveraged loan issuance at the end of an otherwise rocky year for all key markets. The last 12 months were incredibly challenging for banks, investors and borrowers, as elevated...more
High interest rates weighed down on deals, precipitating a drop in leveraged loan issuance in 2023. However, there are reasons to be optimistic that deal activity will pick up in 2024 - As our latest leveraged finance...more
US borrowers have turned to convertible bonds in recent months as mainstream debt and equity markets have stumbled in the face of inflationary and interest rate headwinds. Combined leveraged loan and high yield bond deal...more
Welcome to Debt Download, Goodwin’s monthly newsletter covering what you need to know in the leveraged finance market. We hope you are enjoying some early summer weather and (if you live in the Northeast) are breathing...more
High yield bond activity in key global markets showed signs of life in Q1 2023, with quarter-on-quarter issuance improving despite ongoing macroeconomic challenges. In the US, high yield bond issuance in Q1 2023 came in at...more
As market participants debate whether the recent bank shutdowns and the government-sponsored sale of Credit Suisse may be a precursor for another “Lehman Moment,” we are reminded of yet unresolved issues that followed the...more
Private debt managers seized the opportunity to win market share in 2022 as leveraged loan and high yield bond activity slowed—moving into 2023, private debt players remain open for business, but mainly on their terms - ...more
Economic headwinds proved challenging for leveraged finance markets in Asia-Pacific in 2022, but rising issuance beyond the core Chinese market cushioned the impact of global macro dislocation - Debt issuance across the...more
Stalled issuance, growing concerns around rising costs, supply chain bottlenecks and the conflict in Ukraine—it's been a whirlwind of a year, with many remaining challenges for the year ahead - Typically, the pattern of...more
European leveraged finance markets have been completely reconfigured in the past 12 months. Inflation, rising interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty have squeezed liquidity and seen high yield bond and leveraged loan...more
The U.S. capital markets have experienced significant volatility since the arrival of COVID-19. After lockdowns resulted in a short recession in early 2020, the markets reopened in booming fashion, with M&A, equity and debt...more
Leveraged finance activity slowed on both sides of the Atlantic in the first half of the year, as a tougher macroeconomic environment and events in Ukraine affected debt issuance in both Europe and the US....more
During 2021, after months of regulatory pressure to end reliance on the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), concerns were mounting that the US leveraged loan market was being too slow to adopt the Secured Overnight...more
Lenders and borrowers in US leveraged finance markets have had to recalibrate pricing and issuance volume expectations in 2022 in the face of rising inflation and interest rates....more
Most of 2021 was characterized by free-flowing capital, as government aid propped up economies in response to COVID-19. Low interest rates and other central bank stimulus measures contributed to an environment that helped see...more
A rebound in European corporate transactions has driven a double-digit acceleration in leveraged finance earmarked for M&A (excl. buyouts), with a robust pipeline setting the stage for an active 2022. In the summer of...more
HEADLINES - ▪️ In the US, leveraged loan issuance for 2021 reached US$1.4 trillion, a 63% increase year-on-year ▪️ The high yield bond market in the US was relatively flat, rising from US$428.3 billion in 2020 to...more
A flurry of activity saw year-on-year leveraged finance issuance in Europe hit new heights in 2021. Can this pace be maintained in the months ahead? Based on pipeline activity and investor appetite for growth, the answer...more
- In the US, leveraged loan issuance for 2021 reached US$1.4 trillion, a 63% increase year-on-year - The high yield bond market in the US was relatively flat, rising from US$428.3 billion in 2020 to US$429.7 billion in...more
European leveraged finance markets roared back to life in 2021, sparked by a combination of attractive pricing in the first half of the year and buoyant M&A activity in the second half. The result? High volumes of refinancing...more
Investors eager to maintain high levels of capital deployment have kept terms and pricing highly flexible for bond and loan issuers, but that does not mean easy access for borrowers—lenders are still pushing back against...more
European Leveraged Finance Client Alert Series: September 2021 - White & Case explores the use of escrows in the leveraged finance market, offering issuers and investors practical guidance on the mechanics, protections and...more
In this article, the authors explore certain key issues creditors and debtors face when restructuring listed debt (referred herein as "bonds"). There are administrative problems that can arise when dealing with a large number...more