Esoteric

The allure of promised savings persuaded most Chicago City Council members.

The deal does not even merit a BBB-plus, according to Fitch, which cites insufficient credit enhancement, exposure to high-risk obligors, and the servicer's lack of experience.

At $307.5 million, the deal is more than twice the size the sponsor's initial transaction completed in February; it includes a prefunding account, which could introduce drift in the credit quality of the collateral.

The investment arm of Microsoft founder Paul Allen has also committed $100 million of funding to help CleanFund warehouse additional PACE assets that will eventually be securitized.

Fitch is comfortable that payment plans with terms of over 24 months are not being used for lower-credit obligors, as they are for some other kinds of consumer loans.

Most of the 181 jets used as collateral were acquired from GE Capital Corp. in 2015; proceeds from prepayments and liquidations can be used to acquire additional aircraft.

The $75 million deal is backed by financing for a variety of property types, including office buildings, manufacturing facilities and hospitals; it was privately placed with TIAA Investments.

On Friday, the U.S. International Trade Commission voted 4-0 that imported panels are crippling American manufacturers, giving President Trump until January to decide whether to impose tariffs.

Regulatory relief remains uncertain, but there's plenty to celebrate as some more esoteric asset classes, such as franchise fees and aircraft leases, move into the mainstream, while others, such as nonprime RMBS, are starting to revive.

The growth in securitizations in the esoteric asset class has drawn in more investors seeking long-duration high yield; that, in turn, is spawning more deals from new issuers filling the demand.