Banking

The Athene acquisition completes a process that Rowan – who succeeds Black as CEO no later than July – started in 2009, when he created the annuity business so that it would send vast sums of cash to Apollo for investments

Deals, trends and research in structured finance and asset-backed securities for the week of Feb. 26-March 4

In the midst of the pandemic recession, banks have benefited from government stimulus payments to consumers, low interest rates and constraints on the supply of new vehicles. But intensifying competition and real concerns about borrowers’ ability to pay loans that went into forbearance could soon threaten profits and credit quality.

Credit investors are stepping into a void left by banks and insurance companies and providing debt financing for top-quality hotels in a bet on a post-pandemic recovery, according to a report from the real estate services firm JLL.

DBRS Morningstar and S&P Global Ratings each have lower projected net losses for the $1.1 billion Westlake Automobile Receivables Trust 2021-1 transaction, in comparison to the subprime auto lender’s prior $1.4 billion securitization that priced in October 2020.

At least four leveraged loan issuers came to market with deals that included “Revlon clawback language” in credit documents in recent weeks.

About $4 billion in value was erased from 118 retail-anchored properties with commercial mortgage-backed securities debt after reappraisals triggered by payment delinquencies, defaults or foreclosures.

Nearly all of the loans were originated by affiliates of Prime; a majority of the loans were for property acquisitions (26, 72.6%), with the remainder for refinance.

Citigroup restated fourth-quarter results after writing down a portion of a loan to Revlon it now owns after losing a court battle.

Already contending with stressed retail, hotel and restaurant loans, bankers are beginning to view office lending — historically a safe bet — as increasingly risky as companies of all types rethink their space needs.