The Credit Edge by Bloomberg Intelligence

Ian Jackson, Head of Strategic Opportunities at Permira Credit with 25+ years in private credit, discusses buying beaten-up software loans. He explains why the market may have overreacted to AI, how Permira underwrites disruption risk, and why Europe offers attractive relative value. Topics include CLO dynamics, opportunistic secondary buys, and using AI internally to spot complex credit opportunities.

Michael Gross, co-founder of SLR Capital Partners and co-CEO of SLR Investment Corp., is a veteran in asset-based lending and BDCs. He discusses banks pulling back from private credit and the resulting cost of capital squeeze. He covers software concentration risk, fraud prevention and double-pledging, and why certain BDC strategies remain attractive for retail investors.

Shalini Sriram, Head of structured credit at Third Point with deep mortgage‑backed securities experience, discusses opportunistic credit investing amid market dislocations. She highlights private‑label residential, stressed consumer finance, and CLO dislocations. Short windows and liquidity-driven selling create buying openings. Third Point balances origination, secondary trades, and hedging as risks and opportunities shift.

Spencer Cutter, an energy credit analyst who tracks oil and gas producer dynamics. Jody Lurie, a credit analyst focused on leisure, travel and casinos. They discuss how a prolonged Iran conflict could lift oil and split outcomes across energy bonds. They also explore which travel and leisure companies are most exposed to higher fuel costs and when consumer pullbacks could force downgrades.

Shannon Ward, a Capital Group fixed income portfolio manager with decades of experience, talks high-yield and leveraged-credit strategies. She explores a software sell-off creating bargain opportunities. She explains why loans may take the hit, how to pick resilient software names, and where selective dip-buying and sector positioning could pay off.

Angelo Rufino, head of special situations at Bain Capital and veteran private credit investor, outlines rising software loan stress. He discusses how AI could pressure SaaS valuations and trigger refinancing strains. He also covers private investment-grade credit, data center and asset-backed finance trends, plus the growing appeal of music-royalty and aviation-linked deals.

Scott Richardson, Director of Systematic Credit at Acadian and author of Systematic Fixed Income, explains data-driven credit investing. He discusses applying systematic approaches to leveraged loans, CLOs and emerging markets. Short takes cover alternative data, trading costs, portfolio construction, private credit myths and uses for LLMs in investment workflows.

Oliver Chambers, head of fixed income at Clark Capital with 25+ years in mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities. He explains why mortgage-backed securities still look compelling after government buying tightened spreads. He compares MBS to AAA corporates, discusses Fed balance-sheet risks and potential rate moves. He also covers tech debt and how AI-driven issuance and prepayments might reshape opportunities.

Anurag Rana, BI equity analyst focused on AI adoption and capex, and Robert Schiffman, BI tech credit analyst expert in corporate borrowing and long-dated debt, discuss the AI build-out and massive CapEx needs. They cover pace of industry adoption, training versus inference revenues, why firms sell ultra-long bonds, chip and token-cost risks, geopolitical supply threats, and who may face fallout if demand cools.

Jackson Craig, co-head of H.I.G. Bayside, a distressed-debt specialist. He discusses rising loan distress from low-rate vintages. Topics include private-credit defaults, sector pain in chemicals, forced CLO selling and liability-management pressures. He also covers how H.I.G. sources, structures and prices private-market turnarounds.