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We are back to France — the current epicentre of European credit stress — for our second episode of Distressed Diaries.Over the last few months, French lab company Cerba's debt has taken a beating as fears mount over its unsustainable €3.8bn capital. Most recently, 9fin reported that creditors have started to organise and appointed legal advisors in the lead up to possible debt negotiations.There's no lack of drama in this episode. First, the company's liquidity has been hit by the French government's decision to cut tariffs on lab tests in September last year. Then CEO Emmanuel Ligner unexpectedly stepped down in March with his replacement Julien Samson only joining in early June.The weak performance has meant climbing net leverage (to 9.3x in Q1 25 from 8.4x in FY 24), followed by recent S&P's downgrade to CCC+ and listing of its debt from CLOs.In this episode, our host, senior distressed reporter Bianca Boorer, sits down with 9fin's senior distressed credit analyst Denitsa Stoyanova and senior legal consultant Rebecca Davies to talk about Cerba's financial situation, creditors' reactions, how the company plans to address this, what is possible under the debt docs, and more.9fin's analysis of Cerba's capital structure is here and a deep dive over LME and liquidity options is here.

President Donald Trump's much anticipated ‘Liberation Day' sent global markets into a tizzy in April, but how did private credit firms react?During what we have termed the ‘Deliberation Days' of Q1, private credit investors were scrambling to mitigate potential tariff risks as best they could but they were also on the offensive.Elijah Jackson's latest quarterly report on the state of the market, ‘Good Deal Hunting', is aptly titled as direct lenders did not shy away from stealing BSL marketshare during the period. And PC firms were also able to pick up an extra 25bps of spread on average — how d'ya like them apples?David Brooke, 9fin's private credit editor, sat down with Elijah on this week's episode of Cloud 9fin to unpack some of the wicked smart moves that lenders made.Have any feedback on the podcast? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com — thanks for listening!

In this week's episode of Syndication Nation, a podcast dedicated to all things leveraged finance-related, 9fin deputy editor Sasha Padbidri and head of legal James Wallick have put together a terrible headline and a great conversation on the emergence of President Donald Trump's tariff language in new issue debt documents.For more details (and terrible headlines), check out our reporting on Spanish waste management company Urbaser, which is among the first leveraged credits to include tariff language in its new issue bond OM.Have any feedback about this episode? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening!

In this episode of Jane's LME Addiction, our head of LME coverage Jane Komsky brings in Rachel Murray, a managing director at Moelis, to discuss how today's restructuring environment compares to the Covid era and how that experience can guide clients. They discuss what makes an LME effective, in addition to current trends and techniques that are shaping the space.Check out all of our LME coverage at 9fin.com.Have any feedback on the podcast? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com — thanks for listening!

In this episode of Cloud 9fin, Tanvi Gupta, global head of CLOs at 9fin, talks with Yang Xu, CEO at City Hall Capital, to discuss the growth of family offices allocating to CLOs.They talk about how CLO equity and mezz ticks all the boxes for family offices, the need for more double-B CLO funds, captive equity vs third party equity funds, and how CLO managers need to do more to educate family offices, which other asset classes do better.

In the inaugural episode of Syndication Nation, 9fin's podcast on all things syndicated debt, deputy editor William Hoffman joined US managing editor Bill Weisbrod to talk about his recent coverage of Warner Bros. Discovery and its $37bn of debt to high yield by S&P. They discussed what led to the downgrade, the prospects for the company reaching full-blown fallen angel status, and broader implications for the high yield market if and when that happens.Have any feedback on the podcast? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com — thanks for listening!

In today's market, speed of information and up-to-the-minute accuracy are essential in portfolio management. With that in mind, Chase Collum, head of podcasts at 9fin, sat down with Scott Alintoff at FIS to discuss how lenders can ensure they're staying ahead in these turbulent times.In this third of a series of discussions, Scott shares a high level view of the state of the market, current challenges, and how technology is helping people in the middle office manage the mountains of data that underly the broadly syndicated and private debt markets.Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

Altice France's restructuring negotiations has been one of the hottest talks of the distress town since last year. With the company now preparing to enter into accelerated safeguard proceedings, we went through what happened so far in our inaugural episode of Distressed Diaries — a brand new 9fin podcast series focused on distressed debt in Europe.Senior distressed reporter Bianca Boorer, host of the series, travelled to Paris to meet with key advisors involved in the negotiations. She sits down with Saam Golshani, partner at White & Case who acted for Altice France and its shareholders, Jean-Pierre Farges, restructuring partner and head of Gibson Dunn's restructuring practice in Europe who represented the ad hoc group of secured creditors, and restructuring partners Lionel Spizzichino and Batiste Saint-Guily from Wilkie who represented a group of predominantly unsecured creditors.In the podcast, we take a look at Altice France's journey from March 2024 with the earnings call in March 2024 where management caused panic in the market announcing its intention to do discounted transactions to bring leverage down, to creditors forming the first co-op of this size in Europe and finally coming to an agreement in February this year.We also discuss what the deal means for the restructuring market — will LMEs continue to crop up in Europe or will directors duties put people off risking putting the company at risk? Tune in to find out.Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

US tariff policy has unleashed economic uncertainty both domestically and elsewhere. Even after a de-escalation of the worst trade tensions with China, things are still unclear.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, distressed debt reporter Max Reyes sits down with Canyon Partners opportunistic credit co-heads Chaney Sheffield and Jonathan Barzideh to better understand what unique investments can be made in the current economy and how they're making sense of the chaos.Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

Here at 9fin, we pride ourselves on being private credit enthusiasts. And that means covering all parts of the market, big or small. This includes all the nascent and niche areas like venture debt and tech lending.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, senior private credit reporter Peter Benson sits down with Ron Daniel, co-founder and CEO of Liquidity Group, a direct lender focused on tech lending. The conversation ranges from the concepts of venture debt and tech lending and how they are structured, to how the current macro environment is affecting the niche are and what the future looks like.Have any feedback for us? Send us an email at podcast@9fin.com.

Generally speaking, lenders don't lend money to companies with the intention of ending up as equity owners. But things don't always go to plan. And anyone who's been there can tell you that the hard truth for certain companies is that no plan could have ever saved it — or as Jon Weber would say: “If the baby's ugly, the baby's ugly.”In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, senior private credit reporter Shubham Saharan sits down with Jon Weber and Gisele Everett of restructuring advisory Jon F Weber & Co, to talk about some of the hard truths they confront in their work. Among them, is how to avoid “tissue rejection,” to borrow a term from the medical field, which can occur when integrating new owners into an existing company.They also discuss a recent article that Jon and Gisele co-authored in the Journal of Corporate Renewal.Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

A seemingly endless cycle of tariff pronouncements and delays has been sending stocks and liquid debt markets on a roller coaster ride in recent weeks.But what does ever-changing US tariff policy and associated market volatility mean for private credit firms? How do direct lenders keep protect themselves from the fallout and what are the key points in credit agreements these days? Join 9fin's senior private credit reporter, Shubham Saharan, and Mayer Brown's head of NY private credit, Sheel Patel, in exploring those themes.Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

In this episode of Cloud 9fin, Tanvi Gupta, global head of CLOs at 9fin, talks with Carlyle's Lauren Basmadjian, global head of liquid credit, and Matt Maxwell, head of US loans, to discuss how CLO managers are positioning themselves in the current tariff induced volatility.They talk about taking advantage of the dislocation in the market, sector specific tariff risk, opportunities for a pull to par trade, how to pick the right assets with the current backdrop of LME risk and how these pockets of volatility could be another positive data point for CLOs.

In this episode of Jane's LME Addiction, our head of LME coverage Jane Komsky brings in founder and board member of Creditor Rights Coalition, Dan Kamensky, to discuss treatment for similarly situated creditors within liability management exercises. They discuss when disparity in treatment becomes an issue, lender tools to fight back, and where advocacy is most needed.Find all our coverage on creditor organization at 9fin.com.Have any feedback on the podcast? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com — thanks for listening!

On why some lower middle market lending specialists like to stay investing in companies with a sub-$50m EBITDA, they like to joke that it is because they like covenants.With some larger private credit managers jostling for deals at the upper end of the middle market, a larger number are sticking to their knitting in focusing on financing those smaller companies. It's private credit's historical sweet spot and is a space immune to some of the more borrower-friendly trends seen in competitive situations with the syndicated market.In this episode, a senior reporter in 9fin's US private credit team, Peter Benson, sat down with Bill Sacher, partner and head of private credit at Adams Street, to discuss what is happening in the core middle market. Is deal flow will be coming back? Will ETFs will take hold?Want to share feedback on this episode? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

Was Ardagh's carve-out of its metal packaging business in 2021 an early example of a European LME before LMEs went global? Call it what you will, the troubled packaging conglomerate is getting a taste of both the potential upside and the backlash caused by these controversial financial maneuvers.In this episode, 9fin's global head of restructuring, Max Frumes, sat down with European senior distressed credit analyst Emmet McNally to discuss some of the events that led us here. Events so far have culminated in the company cleansing creditors party to restructuring negotiations that failed to reach common ground.Unsecured creditors Arini and Canyon have sued the company for alleged value extraction and fraudulent conveyance dating back to the metal carve-out. Emmet and Max talk us through the headline terms of the proposals put forward by the company and the unsecured bondholder group, and discuss how bid-ask spreads between the two proposals could be narrowed to reach a mutually agreeable deal.Want to share feedback on this episode? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

AI is eating the world, or so the headlines say. But what does this really mean for debt markets? Where does AI truly excel, and what limitations persist? What implications does this technological shift hold for analysts' jobs? And how is 9fin deploying AI to address specific challenges confronting debt market professionals?Sujeet Indap, Wall Street editor at the Financial Times, sat down with Steven Hunter, CEO and co-founder of 9fin, to cut through the hype and dissect the real impact of AI on debt markets. This episode was produced from a recent 9fin webinar. If you'd like to learn more about how 9fin's AI-powered platform can give you a competitive edge in debt markets, we'd love to chat.Schedule a personalised demo→ https://9fin.com/sign-up?utm_source=hubspot&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ai_debtmarkets_webinarOr, stay up to date with all the latest for 9fin's insights, news, upcoming events, and new featuresJoin our newsletter→ https://share.hsforms.com/1KaeNlWvzRlqYjJGJjHbZmgby77cFollow us on LinkedIn→ https://www.linkedin.com/company/9finHave any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

No one likes that feeling of being a little too thick in the middle. But finding the right balance of strength and cushion is no easy task. We're talking about the middle office here, of course.The middle office may not always be in the spotlight, but when loan data goes awry it's the team that keeps the gears turning and numbers in check. In this episode, head of podcasts Chase Collum chats with Jared Vest, global co-head of middle office solutions at FIS, to break down the middle office's essential roles, risks, and evolving responsibilities. They explore how accurate data and strong operational support are critical to navigate today's fast-paced loan market.This episode was produced in partnership with FIS as part of a three-part series diving into the challenges facing middle office practitioners and users of global loan data sets.Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

In the credit markets, it's important practitioners get their fax straight. No, you didn't read that wrong — even in 2025, people still use fax machines to transmit some loans data.In our latest Cloud 9fin episode, Chase Collum, head of podcasts, and private credit analyst Devin McGinley, sit down with John Smullen, product manager at FIS. They chat about how global data trends are shaping strategies in the leveraged finance world as private credit CLOs and direct lending gain ground.This episode is part of a three-part series we'll publish in partnership with FIS on Cloud 9fin, so look out for our next episode, coming next Thursday! Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

In this episode of Jane's LME Addiction, our head of LME coverage Jane Komsky brings in global chair of Gibson Dunn's restructuring group, Scott Greenberg, to discuss the evolution of cooperation agreements within liability management exercises. They discuss the different types of co-ops, why co-ops have become expected in US deals, their spread to the EU, and the validity of antitrust arguments.Find all our coverage on co-ops at 9fin.com.Have any feedback on the podcast? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com — thanks for listening!

Three media companies, in vaguely the same vicinity, in fair debt markets where we lay our scene — where ancient business models encounter new scrutiny, and AI generates images you can't unsee…Valentine's Day has been and gone, so why on earth are we besmirching Romeo and Juliet with terrible puns? You should listen to the episode for the full picture, but basically we're discussing three recent debt transactions from X/Twitter, Snap, and Getty Images.These deals might not seem immediately connected, but there's a thread running through all three. In an age of political upheaval and rapid technological advancement, what do they tell us about the future of media? William Hoffman, David Bell and Will Caiger-Smith are here to discuss, and to crowdsource ideas for sponsored 9fin Snapchat filters.Want to share feedback on this episode? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

In the private equity world, continuation vehicles have been a bit of a blockbuster, so can the structure's success transfer to private credit?We have already seen BlackRock's $1.3bn continuation vehicle last year, and some market participants are expecting to see even more in 2025. On the other side however, this might not be as straight forward as in the PE world, and there is a growing pool of skeptics.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, senior private credit reporter Synne Johnsson sits down with private credit reporter Jemima Denham, to discuss all things private credit continuation vehicles -- Why are they the current talk of the town? What are the challenges? And will they eventually take off?Have a listen to hear this discussion on continuation vehicles in the private credit market. If you have any feedback for us, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

We talk a lot about leverage at the 9fin office (it's kind of the story behind our company name, in case you were wondering) so it should come as no surprise that we think it's interesting. But in the world of Significant Risk Transfer, it's especially fascinating — and controversial.You may have caught the story that Celeste Tamers, part of our growing asset-based finance team, broke last week about Deutsche Bank pulling back from offering repo financing on SRT trades.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, Celeste and our asset-based finance editor Owen Sanderson pick that story apart and use it to explore the history of SRT, to help listeners understand why regulators are raising their eyebrows at the recent growth of this important market.Any feedback on this episode? Email us at podcast@9fin.com.

Long live liability management.In this episode of our new show Jane's LME Addiction, our head of LME coverage Jane Komsky brings in Latham & Watkins partner George Klidonas and C Street founder and CEO Jon Henes, to discuss the Better Health transaction and its implications for future LMEs.Also under discussion: how liability management has taken off as an industry, how law firms and advisors are adapting to this boom in business, and the creative moves market participants are making to ensure the LME space lives a lengthy and healthy life.Listeners might notice a bit of background noise because this episode is also recorded in video format! Find it on YouTube here! Have any feedback on the podcast? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com — thanks for listening!

Publicly traded leveraged debt issuers are facing a collective maturity wall of $219 billion in the coming years. But unlike the Chiefs' offensive line in the Super Bowl, credit market watchers aren't expecting that wall to collapse.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, US managing editor Bill Weisbrod sits down with credit analyst Ben Dickerman and leveraged finance reporter Dan Mika about their recent piece looking at how the 2026-27 maturity wall in the US is shaping up.Among the highlights: how issuers are hanging on to cheap debt costs, how a leveraged finance market starved for new-money deals is giving BB-rated companies plenty of time to refinance, the uncertainties surrounding Trump administration's economic policies, and how this story was powered by Dan's love of drum and bass music.As always, if you have any feedback for us, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com

With Super Bowl Sunday upon us, much like over a third of the US, we thought we'd focus on sports.Private credit has been circling sports for some time as an investment opportunity. Many regulatory changes in the past year and an increasing number of emerging sports leagues have brought it back into view to begin this year.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, senior reporter Peter Benson sits down with Aaron Kless, managing partner and CIO at Andalusian Credit Partners, to discuss all things private credit and sports.The discussion topics include the institutionalization of the sports market, how credit works with sports franchises and other areas of the sporting world that are ripe for credit investment.As always, if you have any feedback for us, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com

People love to talk about the battle between banks and private credit firms in leveraged debt markets. And at a high level, it's true that the dealflow has bounced back and forth between the two over recent years — but markets are a lot more complex than a game of table tennis.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, Synne Johnsson sits down with Soren Christensen, partner and head of capital markets at Cinven, and Amit Bahri, co-head of European direct lending at Goldman Sachs, to break down how private credit's role has evolved over the years.Among the highlights: how sponsors have adapted to embrace private credit, what the return of the BSL market means for direct lender strategies, the attraction of junior PIKs, and predictions for 2025.As always, if you have any feedback for us, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

The full extent of the damage from this season's California wildfires is yet to be determined, but one thing that is certain is that some leveraged credits are starting to feel the heat.In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, US managing editor Bill Weisbrod and deputy leveraged finance editor Sasha Padbidri survey the extent of the damage and discuss which industries are among the most impacted.Find Sasha's latest report about the wildfires' impact on leveraged credits here. If you have any feedback or want to get in touch, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening!

After years of growth and positive sentiment, 2024 saw private credit's smallest fundraising haul since 2019. But the year-on-year drop in capital raised was far less significant than the drop in the number of funds that were closed.In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, US private credit editor David Brooke and reporter Anna Russi discuss the latest results in private credit fundraising and how LPs are consolidating around their favorite firms. The conversation walks through how investors are feeling about the asset class and whether the incoming Trump administration can help or hinder funds on the road next year. Read Anna and David's article diving into these trends here.Have any questions or feedback for us? Want to join us on the podcast? Send a note to podcast@9fin.com to get in touch. Thanks for listening!

For this week's Cloud 9fin episode, we're launching a new monthly recurring series: Jane's LME Addiction, in which distressed legal analyst Jane Komsky dives into the latest news in liability management. Joined by 9fin global head of distressed and restructuring Max Frumes and 9fin head of legal James Wallick, Jane walks through the landmark decision out of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in the Serta Simmons case and what it means for LMEs going forward.Find all our coverage on Serta at 9fin.com, including our latest stories on the contours of potential uptiering transactions in 2025 and the evolution from Serta blockers to “Fifth Circuit blockers.”If you have any feedback for us, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

A record breaking year comes to an end. What could possibly come next? How about another?In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, Tanvi Gupta, global head of CLOs at 9fin, talks with Pratik Gupta, head of CLO and RMBS research at Bank of America, to discuss the outlook for 2025. They talk about ETFs, performance across the CLO capital structure, LMEs, co-op agreements, HY bond buckets and why 2025 might match the record breaking levels of issuance we've seen in 2024.Have any feedback on the episode? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

Who is more invested in a breakfast of eggs and bacon — a chicken or a pig? And what does this have to do with leveraged finance?Find out in this week's episode of Cloud 9fin as global head of distressed debt and restructuring Max Frumes talks with Mike Harmon about his forthcoming book The Financial Restructuring Tool Set: How to Fix Your Broken Balance Sheet. They talk about the various ways that a company can restructure in and out of court, the evolution of the distressed debt playbook, and what restructuring has in common with Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland.Mike Harmon is a lecturer in management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, managing partner of Gaviota Advisors, LLC who spent 21 years in the special situations and global principal groups at Oaktree Capital Management.Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

After a great run co-founding and helping to build up the European Leveraged Finance Association, Sabrina Fox is putting ELFA on the shelf to focus on her work at Fox Legal Training and Good Girl to Goddess.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, ESG analyst Jennifer Munnings sits down with Sabrina to explore how ELFA has shaped buyside engagement and elevated standards in credit markets. From the rise of J.Crew blockers and their impact on covenant protections to ELFA's efforts to foster transparency and innovation in ESG practices, Sabrina offers a front-row perspective on the evolving landscape of leveraged finance. They also discuss the challenges of balancing incumbent flexibility with investor safeguards and what lies ahead for the industry as Sabrina embarks on her next chapter.Have any feedback on this episode? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

Are you a business owner and now looking to retire? Not to worry, because as private equity sponsors fund that move to Florida, their acquisitions are made possible by the private credit firms which have cultivated a lower middle market lending strategy.But lower middle market lending is, of course, not without its challenges. Intensifying competition from firms honing in on the space and a complicated macroeconomic picture have pushed pricing down to levels last seen in the giddy days of 2021.In the latest episode of Cloud 9fin Michelle Handy, chief investment officer of First Eagle Alternative Credit's Direct Lending business, joins 9fin senior reporter Shubham Saharan to talk about that corner of the private credit world.They unpack the opportunities and obstacles in lower middle market lending, the benefits of having a large existing portfolio, while also touching on the growing asset-based lending market (not to be confused with asset-backed lending!).For feedback on the podcast, or to learn how to get involved, send a note to podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening!

More and more, the lines are blurring between our private credit and distressed coverage.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, private credit editor David Brooke mines the reportage of Bianca Boorer, senior distressed debt reporter, and Shubham Saharan, senior private credit reporter. They talk about the challenge Lycra's stakeholders face in navigating the company's balance sheet, and why the company is considering a private credit option, even if it wouldn't provide it with all the liquidity — or should we say elasticity — it needs to tackle its entire capital stack. Do listen in to find out why private credit has the leg(ging) up on the competition!Follow all of 9fin's coverage of the Lycra situation here. If you have any feedback for us, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

Not all that glitters is gold. And not everyone agrees that the recent era for private credit should be called “the golden age.”In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, produced in partnership with Arena Investors, senior private credit reporter Peter Benson sits down with Arena co-founding CEO and CIO Dan Zwirn to talk through his latest white paper. He takes a contrarian look at the direct lending space, and considers whether this high-rate environment will turn out to be as fruitful for late adopters as the hype would lead one to believe.Have any feedback for us? Please send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening!

Private credit in both the US and Europe has faced a great deal of pressure from bank lenders in 2024. But despite a slow start, the asset class is holding its ground on a year-to-date basis.In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, private credit editor David Brooke digs into the data with analysts Devin McGinley and Elijah Jackson. They chat through the trends, diving into their respective Q3 2024 private credit reports. You can read both reports here and here.To learn more about 9fin's private credit reports, send a note to the team at private-credit@9fin.com. For feedback on the podcast, or to learn how to get involved, send a note to podcast@9fin.com.Thanks for listening!

A majority of American voters have embraced Donald Trump's message, and a lot of things are about to change. What does his resounding victory in this week's Presidential election mean for debt capital markets?It's a little early to give a comprehensive answer, but in this special edition of Cloud 9fin we've done our best to touch on some of the big issues. Tune in to hear Will Caiger-Smith and Sasha Padbidri break down the implications in a short but sweet 10 minutes.

All eyes are on the results of the US election results today, and soon, they'll turn back to the Federal Reserve. Hinging on whether the Fed decides to continue rate cutting at its next meeting — and how deeply — a flood of M&A could hit the market. In the meantime, though, funds have been forced to take extraordinary measures to make their way through the muddle in the middle.In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, private credit editor David Brooke sits down with private credit reporter Peter Benson for a whistle stop tour through NAV — or Net Asset Value — loan structures. Check out Peter's recent article on NAV structures here, and find all of the latest private credit coverage on 9fin.com.Have any feedback for us? Send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

Batten down the hatches, because the cost of environmental damage continues to rise.Hurricanes and natural disasters pose a threat to leveraged credits. This year's Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June to November, has caused significant physical and financial damage to borrowers and civilians located mainly in the southeastern part of the US. Damages from hurricanes Helene and Milton, specifically, are estimated by published reports to be around $50bn each, ranking them among the costliest disasters in recent history.In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin hosted by leveraged finance editor David Bell, senior reporter Sasha Padbidri talks to Karen Clark, a Nobel Prize-winning pioneer in the catastrophe modeling space. Clark was also the subject of Michael Lewis' 2007 article In Nature's Casino for The New York Times Magazine, which examines the topic of catastrophe modeling in great detail.Together, they discuss how the technology of catastrophe modeling has advanced since the 1980s and why understanding these risks are critical for company executives and insurers as natural disasters continue to reshape the financial landscape.

Even with competition heating up, the direct lending market is ripe with opportunity.In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, Fin Strathern interviews Bill Ammons, founding partner and portfolio manager at AlbaCore Capital.They discuss the evolution of leveraged finance as direct lending develops, and the importance of providing flexibility and optionality. Bill shares insights from his extensive career, emphasizing the importance of credit selection and AlbaCore's mission to adapt to market demands.Have any feedback for us? Send us an email at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening!

Every now and then a situation comes around that stretches the limits of possibility. System1 is just such a situation, and private credit investors should take note. In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, distressed legal analyst Jane Komsky and distressed credit analyst Swapnil Sawant reveal the playbook of SPAC-era darling System1's unique take on a liability management exercise that highlights a novel approach asset stripping. Read more about the mechanics of this deal in Swapnil's analysis on 9fin.com. To get involved in the podcast, drop us a line at podcast@9fin.com.

CLO captive equity funds have emerged as an important part of a manager's toolkit, affording greater control over CLO issuance patterns. In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, MidOcean Partners' Jamil Nathoo tells 9fin's global head of CLOs Tanvi Gupta about the strengths and weaknesses of certain fund structures.They discuss new frontiers opening up in the Middle East and South America amid increasing appetite for CLOs and how this poses its own challenges, as well as how to compete with private credit fundraising. This is a conversation you won't want to miss.If you have any feedback or would like to get involved in the CLO series on Cloud 9fin, reach out to us at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

Stop me if you've heard this one before but what the heck did DISH (Echostar) and DIRECTV just say they were going to do? And will it actually happen this time?In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, listen in as senior reporter William Hoffman sits down with 9fin credit analysts Kartik Dar and Daniel Stone to untangle the DISH and DIRECTV transactions and debt exchanges and speculate on the merger's antitrust prospects.Find Dan's latest piece on the path to regulatory approval for the DISH-DIRECTV merger here, and find Kartik's latest analysis on the deal here. Another worthy read is this piece by our distressed team, co-authored by William, Kartik and our deputy distressed editor Rachel Butt.If you have any feedback for the team or would like to learn more about how to get involved, send a note to podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

By nature, private credit is opaque. At least for now. But 9fin's private credit team is hard at work building a data set that will help shed light on the trends and movements in the direct lending space.In this bonus episode of Cloud 9fin, private credit editor David Brooke invites private credit analyst Elijah Jackson to share his experience in building the inaugural 9fin private credit report.To learn more about our private credit data platform and how to access Elijah's report, email elijah@9fin.com. And as always, if you have any feedback on this episode or any other, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

Cooperation agreements have taken the LME world by storm, foiling distressed companies' plans to play creditors off of one another to secure a better deal. But are these agreements anti-competitive?In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, our global head of distressed and restructuring Max Frumes delves into this quandary with distressed legal analyst Jane Komsky. They compare the use of co-op agreements to a US Supreme Court case that pitted an apparel supplier against the NFL, and look into whether co-op agreements could be considered a Sherman Act violation.For more detail on this topic, read Jane's analysis and our follow-up Default Notice newsletter on 9fin.com. If you have any feedback for us about this episode, or requests to get involved in the podcast, email us at podcast@9fin.com. Thanks for listening.

One of the strengths of private credit is its flexibility. And who doesn't love to PIK and choose?In this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, US private credit editor David Brooke asks senior reporter Shubham Saharan to add another contribution to the ever-evolving private credit glossary as they dive into the definition of synthetic PIKs. Listen in to learn about what these instruments are, how they're being used by the industry, and whether they're likely to become a passing trend or an emerging staple.If you have any feedback for us, send us a note at podcast@9fin.com.

Zombie companies are businesses that, despite being insolvent, manage to survive for extended periods. Traditionally, these companies are defined by their inability to cover interest payments, but a more refined definition points to companies with low Z-scores, indicating a high probability of default. Over the past three decades, the prevalence of zombie companies has surged, especially in the US, leading to concerns about their broader impact on the economy.The growing number of zombie companies contributes to the misallocation of resources, disinflation, and reduced productivity. Although zombie companies are inefficient, they continue operating for years due to financial and structural support.In this episode of Cloud 9fin, distressed debt reporter Max Reyes sits down with Dr. Edward Altman, professor emeritus at the NYU Stern School of Business and famous for developing the Altman Z-Score, to talk about what defines zombie companies, their prevalence and the negative effects they have on the economy.

All eyes are on media giant Paramount Global and its $13bn debt stack, amid the threat of a downgrade to junk status. With streaming wars intensifying and cable subscribers slowly converting to Paramount Plus, many are left asking: Is Paramount's debt heading for a rocky road, or is there still a way back to stability?Despite its challenges, Paramount holds a strong liquidity position with $2.3 billion in cash and $3.5 billion in undrawn revolver capacity. However, with debt maturing soon and uncertainty surrounding the Skydance acquisition, the stakes are high as Paramount works to balance leverage and boost cash flow amid a shifting media landscape.For this week's episode of Cloud 9fin, senior reporter William Hoffman and credit analyst Dan Stone explore the drama unfolding at Paramount, the implications of its potential downgrade, and whether other media giants like Warner Bros. Discovery could be next in line.

Private credit funds are venturing back to their roots, embracing a strategy that blends the old with the new as hybrid deals are back in vogue.But is this a nostalgic trip down memory lane, or a calculated move with long-term implications?In this episode of Cloud 9fin, leveraged finance reporter Ryan Daniel and senior private credit reporter Synne Johnsson discuss this trend, the driving forces behind this shift and ponder the future of private credit in this evolving market.

Hedge funds are making a bold push into the private credit arena, lured by the promise of higher returns. However, new territory is not without its hurdles, as these funds navigate a landscape already populated by established players.In this episode of Cloud 9fin private credit reporter Peter Benson and senior private credit reporter Shubham Saharan discuss the complexities of this market shift and the different strategies hedge funds are using to gain a foothold in private credit.