At Any Rate US Credit: J.P. Morgan Global Leveraged Finance Conference 2026: Key Takeaways
Mar 12, 2026
Nelson Janssen, Head of High Yield Bond and Leveraged Loan Strategy at J.P. Morgan, explains loan vs bond stress and software-related credit risks. Tarek Hamid, Head of North American Credit Research and Strategy at J.P. Morgan, breaks down financing for AI data centers and energy market reactions. They discuss capital flows into AI projects, sector-specific default outlooks, and where distress is appearing across credit markets.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
AI Funding Is The Conference Centerpiece
- The AI funding story dominated the conference with standing-room-only panels across funding, software, private credit and structured products.
- Tarek Hamid estimates roughly $5 trillion of data centers to build over five years and expects ~ $250 billion may hit leveraged finance markets, requiring broad-capital participation.
Credit Markets Poised To Finance AI Buildout
- Market sentiment shifted from remodization fears to focus on how much AI spending flows into credit markets rather than equity or private sources.
- Tarek highlights $12 trillion of capital in attendance across high yield, loans, private credit and structured products as the pool to finance AI builds.
Software Stress Transmits Mostly Through Loans
- Software shows up much larger in loans and private credit than in high yield, so stress transmits more via the loan market.
- Nelson Janssen: software ~15% of loans and >20% of private credit while <5% of high yield, and sub-80 loans have grown 50% YTD.