Perspectives
Notes on credit, capital and the cycle.
What our desks are seeing in pricing, covenants and funding markets — written by the people underwriting the facilities, not by a marketing department.
Latest note
Venture debt is being repriced. Founders should read the small print.
Spreads on growth-stage facilities have widened by 150 to 250 basis points since the start of the year. The headline rate is not where the cost is hidden.
Adrian Halloway · Partner, Structured Credit
Read the noteHong Kong as the hinge between European credit and Asian capital
Our Asia-Pacific desk now places more than a third of the group's note programmes. The reason is structural, not cyclical.
Read the noteThe covenant you cannot see: revenue triggers in growth facilities
Most growth-stage facilities are now tested on revenue rather than EBITDA. That is progress, but only if both sides agree what revenue means.
Read the noteTerming out is not free: what slower placement markets cost lenders
When note programmes take two quarters longer to place, the cost lands on the balance sheet first and on borrowers second.
Read the noteInsurance is not a substitute for underwriting
Cover protects the lender from an event. It does not tell you whether the company can repay. Confusing the two is how portfolios get hurt.
Read the noteGreater China's mid-market: the quiet expansion
The companies we finance onshore are not the ones in the headlines. They are manufacturers and software firms growing at fifteen per cent with paid-up order books.
Read the noteEnquiries