That effectively gives the borrower the ability to issue up to $100M of new debt at a market clearing rate whether or not leverage exceeds 4x. Typically, the amendment sets a range for the amount that can be tendered via the new facility, as well as the spread at which the longer-dated paper will pay interest. The lenders that do not lend under the CBO are still paid for their commitment. These tranches include first- and second-lien loans, as well as pre-funded letters of credit. Suppose a corporation were to issue bonds with a face value of $100. In a syndicated loan, a lender generally receives an upfront fee based on the lender's Web1 min read Original issue discount (OID) is a form of interest. If the loan were undersubscribedif investor interest in the loan was less than the amount arrangers were looking to syndicatethe arrangers could very well be left above their desired hold level. Much of this information may be material to the financial health of the issuer, and may be out of the public domain until the issuer formally issues a press release, or files an 8-K or some other document with the SEC. Following the example above, if the loan is oversubscribed at LIBOR+250, the arranger may slice the spread further. Exchange-traded closed-end funds (ETF): These funds, which have skyrocketed in popularity over the past few years, trade on a stock exchange. Markit Group administers the LCDX, a product of CDS Index Co., a firm set up by a group of dealers. The CD option works precisely like the LIBOR option, except that the base rate is certificates of deposit, sold by a bank to institutional investors. Some practitioners express loss as a nominal percentage of principal or a percentage of principal plus accrued interest. Of course, fees are an essential element of the leveraged/syndicated loan process. After all, if an issuer defaults on $100M of debt, of which $10M is in the form of senior secured loans, the loans are more likely to be fully covered in bankruptcy than if the loan totals $90M. In contrast, if the sponsor group does not have a loyal set of relationship lenders, the deal may need to be priced higher to clear the market. Performing paper fell to a price not seen before in the loan marketwith many names trading south of 70. If the issuer defaults and the value of the loan goes to 70 cents on the dollar the participant will lose $3M. Others use rating criteria: i.e., any loan rated BB+ or lower qualifies. A list of loans or bonds that have been announced but not yet closed. This is a negotiated tender in which classholders will swap existing paper for a new series of bonds that typically have a lower principal amount and, often, a lower yield. These revolving creditscalled, not surprisingly, 364-day facilitiesare generally limited to the investment-grade market. In a syndicated loan, a lender generally receives an upfront fee based on the lender's Build-out financing supports a particular project, such as a utility plant, a land development deal, a casino or an energy pipeline. The issuer pays the arranger a fee for this service and, naturally, this fee increases with the complexity and riskiness of the loan. This was the case again the early 2000s default cycle. Leveraged loans, in contrast, are usually senior secured instruments that, except for covenant-lite loans, have maintenance covenants that are measured at the end of each quarter, regardless of the issuer is in compliance with pre-set financial tests. In an underwritten deal the arrangers guarantee the entire amount committed, then syndicate the loan. Loan sales are structured as either assignments or participations, with investors usually trading through dealer desks at the large underwriting banks. Or instead of physical delivery, some buyers of protection may prefer a cash settlement in which the difference between the current market price and the delivery price is determined by polling dealers or using a third-party pricing service. 2023 PitchBook. Origination fees depend on the type of loan and the amount you are borrowing. To make sure they can meet redemptions, many of these funds, as well as daily access funds, set up lines of credit to cover withdrawals above and beyond cash reserves. One good example was courtesy Harrahs Entertainment. These are carve-outs in covenant-lite loans that allow borrowers to issue debt without triggering incurrence financial tests. A new leveraged loan can carry an arranger fee of 1% to 5% of the total loan commitment, depending on. Investors assess this risk based on the collateral (if any) backing the loan and the amount of other debt and equity subordinated to the loan. Loss-given-default risk measures how severe a loss the lender is likely to incur in the event of default. Dont get lost in the fog of legislative changes, developing tax issues, and newly evolving tax planning strategies. These entities, such as Kohlberg Kravis & Roberts or Carlyle Group, invest in companies that have leveraged capital structures. Leveraged loans are typically senior, secured instruments and rank highest in the capital structure.
Bridge loans are loans that are intended to provide short-term financing to provide a bridge to an asset sale, bond offering, stock offering, divestiture, etc. In July 2018, new-issue loan spreads bottomed out, then rose noticeably, above a point where many companies were paying on existing loans. Debt as a share of total sources of funding for the LBO can range from 50% to upwards of 75%. CLOs and other offshore vehicles are typically brought in after the loan closes as a primary assignment, and they simply buy the loan at a discount equal to the fee offered in the primary assignment, for tax purposes. There was an unprecedented $100B of this activity in January alone, with the repricing volume in subsequent months dwarfing previous repricing peaks. OID is a sweetener to potential investors which increases the chances of a successful fundraise for the client. Price flexes can be a good barometer of just how hot (or cold) the leveraged loan market is at any given time. The OID is for the ultimate Most loans are floating-rate instruments that are periodically reset to a spread over a base rate, typically LIBOR. There are a few things at play here beyond what has already been said Note: This relates to large liquid, institutional loans (TLBs) OID is a sw As a result, second-lien lenders do not have a voice in the first-lien creditor committees. Get answers to this and many more questions about leveraged loans from our industry primer below. The LIBOR (or Eurodollar) option is so called because, with this option, the interest on borrowings is fixed for a period of one month to one year. Leveraged loans can also be referred to as senior secured credits. A competitive-bid option (CBO) allows borrowers to solicit the best bids from its syndicate group. Often, however, the syndication agent has a less specific role. Over time, however, market-flex became a tool either to increase or decrease pricing of a loan, based on investor demand. Pro rata debt consists of the revolving credit and amortizing term loan (TLa), which are packaged together and, usually, syndicated to banks. If LIBOR is 5% the return is 25.5%. This stands for offers wanted in competition and is effectively a BWIC in reverse. Lenders will also look to covenants to provide a way of coming back to the table earlythat is, before other creditorsand renegotiating the terms of a loan if the issuer fails to meet financial targets. Often, an issuers rating being lowered to BB+ or exceeding a predetermined leverage level will trigger this provision. A swingline is a small, overnight borrowing line, typically provided by the agent. Based on this, Standard & Poors uses the $50M threshold in its reports and statistics. Sometimes upfront fees will be structured as a percentage of final allocation plus a flat fee. The first is an amendment in which at least 50.1% of the bank group approves the issuers ability to roll some or all existing loans into longer-dated paper. Banks that either underwrite or hold such loans could face penalties as a result. The index provides a straightforward way for participants to take long or short positions on a broad basket of loans, as well as hedge exposure to the market. Amendments or changes to a loan agreement must be approved by a certain percentage of lenders. Pricing a loan for the bank market, however, is more complex. In fact, most loan documents do not provide for a buyback. Market technicals, or supply relative to demand, is a matter of simple economics. It usually occurs when companies issue bonds at a price less than their redemption value at maturity. If it does not the judge may choose to not pay adequate protection or to divide it pro rata among the first- and second-lien creditors. The co-agent or managing agent is largely a meaningless title used mostly as an award for large commitments. It is based on the issuers financial condition, industry segment, and conditions in that industry, as well as economic variables and intangibles, such as company management. These include: Junior and roll-up DIPs are suited to challenging markets during which liquidity is scarce. Leveraged loans were strictly on the private side of the line, and any information transmitted between the issuer and the lender group remained confidential. As of 1998, however, the leveraged issuers, arrangers and investors adopted a market flex model, which figures heavily in how the sector operates today. On the buyside there are firms that operate on either side of the public-private divide. The agent will conduct what amounts to an auction to raise funds for the borrower, and the best bids are accepted. The buyer of the protection can then buy the loan at 80 and deliver it to the counterparty at 100, a 20-point pickup.
For both investment-grade and leveraged issuers, an event of default in a credit agreement will be triggered by a merger, an acquisition of the issuer, some substantial purchase of the issuers equity by a third party, or a change in the majority of the board of directors. The first was a more active secondary trading market, which sprung up to support (1) the entry of non-bank investors into the market (investors such as insurance companies and loan mutual funds) and (2) to help banks sell rapidly expanding portfolios of distressed and highly leveraged loans that they no longer wanted to hold. There are also accounts that are public. LCDS enables participants to synthetically buy a loan by going short the LCDS or sell the loan by going long the LCDS. An issuer listsor, in the case of a P2P LBO, relistson an exchange. After that, the lenders can choose to either provide a forbearance agreement that gives the issuer some breathing room or take appropriate action, up to and including accelerating, or calling, the loan. Others use rating criteria: any loan rated BB+ or lower would qualify. Ratings are typical in investment-grade loans. These groups are often part of wider investment complexes that do have public funds and portfolios but, via Chinese walls, are sealed from these parts of the firms. Finally, the reputation of the private equity backer (sponsor) also plays a role, as does market liquidity (the amount of institutional investor cash available). It is no surprise, then, that loan investors historically fare much better than other creditors on a loss-given-default basis.