Debtwired!

Engin Okaya, an executive managing director at PGIM Private Capital, shares her expertise on private credit trends and strategies. She discusses the value of a structured framework for evaluating lending while emphasizing middle-market companies for stable investment. Engin highlights the growing collaboration between private credit firms and banks, enhancing deal opportunities. She also delves into the transformative role of artificial intelligence in investment decisions, viewing it as a tool to support human judgment rather than replace it.

Kirstie Hutchinson and Adam Caines, private capital partners at Macfarlanes, dive into the evolving landscape of mid-market loan documentation in Europe. They discuss how relaxed documentation practices are shifting the balance in favor of borrowers, and highlight new clauses that may raise concerns among lenders. The conversation also touches on the impact of external events like COVID-19 on loan structures, emphasizing the importance of strong relationships between borrowers and lenders in navigating this complex terrain.

Jennifer Daly, the Head of Private Credit and Special Situations at Paul Hastings, offers deep insights into the evolving private credit market. She discusses trends and optimism surrounding mergers and acquisitions in sectors like healthcare and technology. The conversation highlights the implications of tariffs, the balance between rising costs and lower interest rates, and the shift towards more flexible deal structures. Daly also navigates the differences between Chapter 11 bankruptcy and out-of-court restructuring, emphasizing the new protections for borrowers.

On the latest episode of the Debtwired! podcast, Laleh Bashirrad, managing director at BNP Paribas' leveraged syndicate team, speaks to Melina Chalkia, primary markets reporter of Debtwire North America, about the latest trends in the broadly syndicated market and the 2025 outlook.Bashirrad has over two decades of credit experience advising sponsors as well as large and midcap clients on capital structure and pricing considerations for buyouts, acquisitions, recapitalizations and refinancings. In this podcast, Bashirrad gives an overview of the current supply and demand dynamics in the BSL market and outlines her optimistic view on demand for high yield products. While she expects the trend of refinancings to continue to dominate in the early months of 2025, she notes the building M&A pipeline could bring forth robust activity for the rest of the year. Bashirrad also highlights partnership opportunities between BSL and private credit, which are often seen as competing market players.

Nael Khatoun, an MD and portfolio manager at Oaktree, dives into the exciting new partnership with Lloyds Bank. He shares how this collaboration redefines private credit solutions in the UK, offering faster financing amid rising interest rates. The discussion highlights tailored strategies for navigating market risks and the increasing influence of retail investors in private credit. Khatoun also sheds light on promising sectors like life sciences and NAV finance, revealing how they are positioning themselves in a competitive environment.

Debtwire's Amelia Weitzman is joined by Ambarish Dash and Will Nevin, partners within Herbert Smith Freehill’s banking and finance division. Will is a London-based partner with over 20 years of experience in acquisition and leveraged finance, and Ambarish is also partner in the London office specializing in domestic and cross-border leveraged finance, particularly advising private equity sponsors and financial institutions on acquisition financings.We’ll hear their views on recent trends in the financial institutions market, or ‘FIG’ as it’s referred to, with a focus on private credit terms.#privatecredit #FIG #HerbertSmithFreehills

On this episode of the Debtwired! Podcast, Ben Thompson, Head of EMEA Leveraged Finance Capital Markets at JP Morgan, discusses the outlook for primary issuance in the European leveraged loan and high-yield bond markets with Jelena Cvejic, Debtwire Europe’s Head of Leveraged Loans.As we are currently closing in on the second-busiest year ever in terms of gross volume in the European leveraged finance market, Thompson shares an overview of the pace and type of issuance expected in the fourth quarter.During the conversation, we discuss the evolving demand and supply dynamics, including the flow of money across floating and fixed rate asset classes, CLO creations, yield compression, refinancing and new money activity, as well as M&A and LBO deal making.We also touch upon the co-existence of the leveraged loan and high-yield bond markets with private credit.#leveragedfinance #leveragedloans #highyieldbonds #CLOs #M&A #LBO

Georgina Peters, a South Square Barrister with a focus on restructuring plans, joins Sarah Paterson, a Professor of Law at LSE, to unpack the complexities of judicial discretion in corporate restructuring. They dive into the significance of cram-down jurisdiction and its effects on debt management. The discussion highlights the necessity for fair benefit distribution and the challenges dissenting creditors face in restructuring processes, alongside critical insights on bargaining dynamics and legal scrutiny that accompany approval decisions.

On the latest episode of the Debtwired! podcast, Mohamed Damak, Managing Director, Global Head of Islamic Finance at S&P Global Ratings, joins Debtwire CEEMEA's Mariam Meskin to delve into one of the latest developments in the sukuk market. AAOIFI, the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions, last year published its draft of Shariah Standard No. 62, which — if adopted as proposed — would alter the credit profile of sukuk from an asset-based structure to an asset-backed one.The standard could be adopted and formalised by as soon as next year. Its implementation could "disrupt" the global sukuk market, as Mohamed outlines in this podcast. In his capacity as Global Head of Islamic Finance at S&P Global Ratings, Mohamed leads their cross-practice analytical thought leadership initiatives and credit rating activities in the Islamic Finance sector globally.

In this episode, Hossein Dabiri, Head of Court Reporting at Debtwire EMEA and Dawn Grocock, Senior Legal Analyst at Debtwire Europe, recap some of the key legal and court developments from the first half of the year.