13th May 2019

The Q1 bounce back


Overview

Q1 2019 saw a broad rally across asset classes to levels last seen before the sell-off in Q4 2019. The ~40% round trip in global equity aggregates was barely felt in European direct lending margins, reinforcing the stability of the asset class through otherwise volatile periods.

Whilst we note that US direct lending spreads moved wider with market volatility, we still see an attractive pick-up for investors in Europe, particularly in an environment where European default rates continue to track at half the level being seen in the US.

Lastly, we continue to see opportunities for direct lenders to increase market share as on-off banking mergers (such as Commerz-DB) distract banks

Download report