Bank Loan Report articles from February 2003

Bank Loan Report archives from February 2003

Market Players, Here Come More Synthetic High Yield CLOs.
February 3, 2003... More synthetic high yield collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) appear to be around the corner, as a result of debt market realities and recent technical changes making the structure more attractive. New accounting guidelines, though, may...

Oil Drives Russian Loan Pricing Lower.
February 3, 2003... It's hard to believe that only a year ago, Russian oil companies seeking loans were hard-pressed to secure anything beyond one- or two-year facilities, and margins were close to 4%. Since then, sustained high oil prices and ongoing structural...

Will Donald Trump-et Gaming Success?
February 3, 2003... High dollar prices and low yields don't offer much upside to gaming bonds, yet the sector is still outperforming - so much so that billionaire Donald Trump himself is giving it another shot. This week, Trump plans to roadshow the $475...

After a Spate of Reverse Flexes, Loan Market Calms Down as War Becomes a Greater Reality.
February 3, 2003... After a very busy and hectic beginning to the year, the syndicated loan market quieted down somewhat last week, sources said. President George Bush's State of the Union address has made clear the possibility of a war with Iraq, a fund...

Loans Enable Duke Street To Bring Europe's 2nd Largest CDO.
February 10, 2003... When it comes to CDOs, the management team at Duke Street Capital Debt Management (DSCDM) appears to have found the winning formula. Having successfully launched Europe's largest-ever CDO, Duchess I, in 2001, the team is gearing up to launch...

NextWave Victory Positive for Wireless.(NextWave Personal Communications Inc. and FCC bankruptcy Code case)
February 10, 2003... In an 8-1 ruling in favor of NextWave Personal Communications Inc. the Supreme Court found that the Federal Communications Commission violated the US Bankruptcy Code when it revoked NextWave's licenses approximately two years ago and then...

CDS Interest Prompts New Products.(global credit derivatives market)
February 10, 2003... The global credit derivatives market has experienced a dramatic growth in the past couple of years, and by most accounts, is set to grow even further. Fueled by giant corporate bankruptcies such as Enron and Swissair, the global market for...

Institutional Interest Prevails While Other Bank Deals Flag.(review of week of February 3, 2003)
February 10, 2003... The gloom and anxiety pervading the national and international fronts last week prompted skittishness in the equity market, while enthusiasm for corporate loans was mixed. On the positive side, institutional investors continued to flaunt...

Unexpected Secondary Bid Emerges for Whole Loans.
February 10, 2003... By Kingsley Greenland, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Boston-based DebtX Weak economic conditions and a spate of high profile bankruptcies continue to depress the normally robust secondary market for syndicated debt, but to the...

TRW Peels Out in US and Europe.(TRW Automotives' $1.55 billion milti-tranch loan)
February 10, 2003... TRW Automotive Revs it Up! TRW Automotive's whopper $1.55 billion multi-tranche offering easily priced all tranches at the tight end of talk. The B1/B+ rated $925 million tranche of 10-year, non-call five senior notes priced at 9.375%. The...

Tough Barriers Restrict Entry Into Credit Rating Business.
February 17, 2003... As the Securities and Exchange Commission prepares to tackle allegations of a rating agency oligopoly, Moody's Investors Service has come out swinging: Competition, it argues, could be bad for investors. In a statement to the SEC, Moody's...

Subordination Evolves in European HY.
February 17, 2003... European high yield investors had a choice last week on what was supposed to be a defining moment: They could choose principles, or an attractively priced deal. Guess which won? Little more than a month ago, European investors were up in...

CreditSights Merges Its Research.
February 17, 2003... The events that destabilized the corporate landscape over the past year have shown that the entire range of securities comprising the corporate capital structure - equity, debt and loans - are all subject to trauma when a company falls. More...

Borrowers Forced to Pay Up Before Valentine's Day.
February 17, 2003... Deals didn't always get done with their bows and ribbons intact last week, but they still got done. That says a lot for the resiliency of the US credit markets amidst a week of code orange terror alerts and ever-brewing threats from...

As US Litigation Risk Rises, Tobacco Finds Safe Haven in Europe.
February 17, 2003... Few smokers are expected to stop puffing just because the economy is sputtering, or war is near. Quite the contrary. Historically that's made investing in the tobacco industry a safe bet during tough times. But investors might soon discover...

Crown Cork & Seal Tanks Post Launch.
February 17, 2003... US The US primary market was still going strong last week, with seven deals expected to price and three pricing by press time. Crown Cork & Seal easily priced its three-tranche deal via Salomon Smith Barney and Deutsche Bank. The...

Wachovia Uses Derivative Technology to Enhance CDO.
February 24, 2003... The allegation that collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) have tended to favor equity investors over debt investors was one of the recurrent complaints against these structured products last year. But some players like Wachovia Securities have...

Junk Market Poised to Pull Out of Slump.
February 24, 2003... Even though the number of high yield deals trading at distressed levels increased last month for the first time since October 2002, the junk market should on the whole continue to pull out of its years-long descent and could at last rid the...

EETCs: All They're Drummed Up to Be?(Enhanced Equipment Trust Certificates)
February 24, 2003... While it's true that the overall record of Enhanced Equipment Trust Certificates (EETCs) in airline bankruptcies and restructurings has been fairly good thus far - EETCs have, on average, fared better than other types of aircraft-backed debt,...

Bifurcated Loan Market Awaits Consensus on Iraq Issue.
February 24, 2003... The syndicated loan market, as one source put it last week, appears to be bifurcated. Some deals are flexing up, while others are flexing down, he said, as though the loan market were reflecting the geopolitical tensions and the uncertain state...

Racino Deal Catches the Eye.(Old Evangeline Down's offering of senior secured notes)
February 24, 2003... US Evangeline's "Racino" Model Launches New Trend The only deal pricing by press time last week was Old Evangeline Down's Caa1/B- rated $123.2 million offering of seven-year, non-call four 13% senior secured notes. The issue priced at...