SFA’s response to the Fixed Income Market Structure Advisory Committee (FIMSAC) recommendation regarding ways to mitigate conflicts on interest in credit ratings focused on 1) enhanced issuer disclosure, 2) increased NRSRO disclosure, 3) bondholder ratification of issuer-selected NRSROs, and 4) our members’ general comments around potential conflicts of interest.

A new report by S&P Global found that year-to-date issuance across the four major sectors (ABS, CLO, CMBS and RMBS) reached $397 billion in October.

New data from S&P Global found that global issuance across the four major sectors (ABS, CLOs, CMBS and RMBS) totaled $54 billion in September bringing year-to-date issuance to $333 billion.

After financial experts warned that the pandemic would cause the CLO market to go through its own crisis because of a wave of rating agency downgrades, new data found that this “wave” turned out to be only a small trickle.

A new survey by the Promontory Interfinancial Network found that many banks are preparing to deal with the economic consequences of the coronavirus for the long term.

Corporate bankruptcies are on track to reach the highest level in ten years according to new data from S&P Global. 424 companies have declared bankruptcy, as of August 9, with most of these bankruptcies occurring in the consumer, industrial, and energy markets.

In a statement issued on Monday, August 3, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) called for banking agencies to offer more loans and provide for additional loan modifications as the first-round of these programs comes to an end.

Last Friday, July 31, Fitch Ratings announced that they would be lowering the U.S. government’s credit rating outlook from “stable” to “negative” but would be keeping the U.S.’s overall credit rating as AAA.

During this week’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, the Federal Reserve (the Fed) expressed doubts that the US economy would experience a V-shaped recovery in the near future. The doubt comes as numerous states are seeing increases in COVID-19 cases with some states rolling back the progress they made on reopening.

On Tuesday, July 28, SFA and DBRS Morningstar will be hosting a webinar on the current state of the CMBS market, concerns related to COVID-19 and credit, and recent trends in the commercial real estate sector.