Will Caiger-Smith
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Articles by Will Caiger-Smith
Software swoon hits loan market with Conga syndication caught in crossfire
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Raistone offered investors 21% returns before First Brands collapse
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Jefferies hits investor pushback on PatientPoint loan sale
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Bill Ackman dials up banks for Howard Hughes insurance plan
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Kohlberg and Warburg among Cambrex suitors as banks pitch BSL financing
Don’t miss out on news you won’t find anywhere else — get The Memo US and The Memo Europe in your inbox every two weeks. Kohlberg and Warburg Pincus are among several sponsors that have expressed interest in acquiring Cambrex, as the contract pharmaceutical manufacturer’s current owner Permira looks to sell the company, according to 9fin sources. With updated bids due in the coming days, interested parties have been taking financing pitches.
Pimco out of Corniche refi as Logan leverages deal to tweak RSA
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Freedom Mortgage launches new HY deal after private PIK note placement
Sign up for The Memo US newsletter for the latest leveraged finance news and analysis, in your inbox every two weeks. Freedom Mortgage is working with Barclays to syndicate $500m of new senior unsecured notes, building on credit profile improvements after a private capital raise in recent weeks, according to 9fin sources.
Ares floats pricing on $5bn loan for Dun & Bradstreet buyout by Clearlake
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Clearlake goes on charm offensive after spate of restructurings
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Clearlake goes on charm offensive after spate of restructurings
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Veritas explores rival bid for Dun & Bradstreet as direct lenders dial up Clearlake
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Clearlake pushed for free underwrite option in Dun & Bradstreet debt talks
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Clearlake and Veritas among sponsors circling Dun & Bradstreet
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VistaJet in talks for new funding led by RRJ Capital
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VistaJet works up new pref deal to smooth financing runway
VistaJet, which offers private jet travel through a membership model, has leaned heavily on the debt markets to fuel its rapid growth. Its most recent deal was a $500m bond issue in May 2023, which carries a 9.5% coupon and matures in 2028. Those notes are currently trading at a yield to worst of 10.2%, and the new preferred equity instrument would price a few percentage points wider than that, sources said.
Video interview - Bruce Richards, Marathon Asset Management - Cranes, compression and the ABL obsession
Podcasts and Video Will Caiger-Smith 20 August 2024•3 min read Finance professionals love compound adjectives, but lately there’s one in particular that has captured the imaginations of private credit professionals the world over: asset-based. We are part of this trend.
Staples working with JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley on potential refi
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Herbalife holds investor meetings as refi pressure mounts
News and Analysis Sasha Padbidri +Will Caiger-Smith 15 March 2024•2 min read Herbalife’s TLB due 2025 is quoted around 98.65. But its 4.875% unsecured notes due 2029 are currently quoted at 70.857 for a yield-to-worst of 12.734%, down several points since before the recent earnings report. That suggests a new debt financing could be costly.
Herbalife holds investor meetings as refi pressure mounts
Health and wellness company Herbalife has teamed up with bankers at Citi to hold meetings with debt investors, as it takes stock of its options for addressing upcoming maturities, according to 9fin sources. The meetings began around the time of the JP Morgan leveraged finance conference last month, and the company and its bankers have now met with a fairly large group of investors, the sources said. The timing and structure of any potential transaction remains fluid, sources noted.
KKR picks UBS to lead financing for VMWare asset bid
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KKR turns to banks for Cotiviti underwrite amid repricing wave
News and Analysis David Brooke +Will Caiger-Smith 11 January 2024•3 min read KKR is leaning towards banks to provide the financing for its proposed acquisition of a 50% stake in Cotiviti, partly thanks to a favorable climate for primary leveraged loan issuance which has helped recent deals price tighter, according to 9fin sources. The private equity firm has run a dual track process, taking proposals from banks and direct lenders to provide roughly $5bn of debt to fund the deal.
Cotiviti - Credit rally puts banks in pole position to win financing mandate
News and Analysis David Brooke +Shubham Saharan + 1 more 14 December 2023•3 min read This article is part of our new service, 9fin Private Credit, which will soon require a separate subscription to view. For more info on this product and the accompanying database, contact subscriptions@9fin.com.
Xerox and Jefferies prep bond deal for Icahn buyback loan
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The Unicrunch - Howdy, partner
Market Wrap Will Caiger-Smith 12 October 2023•8 min read Regular readers of this column may be wondering where David Brooke has got to over the past couple of weeks. He’s been out battling a nasty case of Covid, but is now back in the office and back on the beat. The Unicrunch will resume its regular schedule from next Wednesday — thank you for your patience. Read all our public content for free Sign up for our newsletter to read this article now We won't spam. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Ares, Blackstone among Medtronic unitranche candidates as banks offer tighter pricing
News and Analysis Shubham Saharan +Bill Weisbrod + 1 more 4 October 2023•2 min read Banks are offering Carlyle cheaper funding as the private equity firm bids for two units of medical device company Medtronic, but private credit firms are working hard to club up a rival debt package, according to 9fin sources. Blackstone and Ares areamong the lenders looking to participate in a roughly $2.5bn unitranche to fund the potential $7bn acquisition, sources said.
Hunter Point Capital to launch NAV fund with 17Capital, Ares alums
News and Analysis Shubham Saharan +Will Caiger-Smith 27 September 2023•2 min read Hunter Point Capital is in the process of raising a NAV lending fund, as a growing number of institutional lenders move into the booming space of providing stake-backed loans to the likes of private equity firms. Read all our public content for free Sign up for our newsletter to read this article now We won't spam. You can unsubscribe at any time. Recently Published What are you waiting for?
RBmedia - KKR leads debt financing for company it just sold
News and Analysis David Brooke +Will Caiger-Smith + 1 more 19 September 2023•3 min read KKR has provided debt financing for the acquisition of RBmedia by Francisco Partners and HIG Capital, which are buying the audiobook publishing company from…KKR. Read all our public content for free Sign up for our newsletter to read this article now We won't spam. You can unsubscribe at any time. Recently Published What are you waiting for?
Primary is back - but for how long?
News and Analysis David Bell +Will Caiger-Smith 14 September 2023•4 min read Let the good times roll: there’s a full slate of issuance this week, with plenty of new paper among the routine repricings and refinancings. Behind the scenes, the M&A pipeline is also picking up, meaning more potential supply down the line. “Honestly, it feels like 2021 again,” said a tired-sounding capital markets banker earlier this week, having found the time to speak with 9fin in between meetings.
Can you sweep a swap? Derivatives debate hits private credit
Deep Dive Rosa O'Hara +Will Caiger-Smith 23 August 2023•4 min read There’s a new docs debate in private credit, and it centers around an area of finance that can be just as opaque as private credit itself, and often more complex — derivatives. According to 9fin sources, in recent weeks investors and lawyers have been poring through loan documentation to figure out whether lenders might be entitled to a paydown when companies generate cash by unwinding swap arrangements.
Jefferies leads financing for KKR’s bid for Simon & Schuster
Deep Dive Will Caiger-Smith +Bill Weisbrod 7 August 2023•1 min read Jefferies is leading a group of banks and other underwriters to provide debt commitments backing KKR’s bid to acquire Simon & Schuster, according to 9fin sources. The publishing company’s current owner, Paramount Global, has been searching for a buyer for several months. Bidders have included News Corp and HarperCollins, but news broke last week that the company was set to announce a deal with KKR.
Hollywood strikes - Who’s at risk in leveraged credit?
A few months ago, we explored how rising tensions between screenwriters and the content studios that employ them could impact Creative Artists Agency, which at the time was seeking to extend its term loan. In the end, CAA got its extension — and just in time, because the situation has snowballed since then. The Writers’ Guild of America began striking against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers in May, and was joined last month by the actors’ union SAG-AFTRA.
Direct lenders back Worldwide Clinical buyout at mid-6x leverage
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Focus Financial - When is a change of control not a change of control?
When an LBO is announced, it’s usually safe to assume that the target will refinance all of its existing debt. But when interest rates are high and you have the right docs, you might be able to avoid that — as Focus Financial is poised to demonstrate. Private equity firms CD&R and Stone Point are making the most of a quirk in the company’s credit agreement to fund their $7bn takeover more cheaply.
The PE sponsors that lenders love to hate
At the end of a long cycle for corporate credit, lenders are searching for schematics. Lately, an old narrative has once again begun circulating among credit investors: deals backed by certain private equity sponsors should be avoided, as these firms will go to extreme lengths in order to protect their equity. In other words, they’re dusting off the naughty list. Some firms have only recently found their way onto this register (KKR for Envision Healthcare, Platinum Equity for Incora).
ChatGPT is the new risk-factor buzzword
As if you hadn’t already heard enough about ChatGPT, bond issuers are now including it in their offering docs.
Private credit funds are reading the fine print now
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US LevFin Wrap - So long 2022, it’s been emotional
Market Wrap William Hoffman +Will Caiger-Smith + 1 more 22 December 2022•5 min read This year’s market selloff has been a bit like Kanye West’s latest fall from grace: it was a long time coming, we all watched it happen, and there wasn’t much we could do but sigh and shake our heads. You all know what happened in leveraged finance this year. You lived it, you worked it.
US LevFin Wrap - When is a lockup not a lockup, Wheel Pros skids out, Michaels crafts a rebound
With the window for new issuance slightly ajar in recent weeks, it’s no surprise that bankers have sprung into action to close all manner of deals. Still, some of them are slightly more surprising than others — the recent selldowns of Citrix’s term loan A debt, for example.
COIN - Based and redpilled
It’s hard to be a crypto stan these days. The flaming dumpster fire of FTX has many feeling like Larry David was right all along. We’re not the first to make that joke, and we won’t be the last, but the point stands: these are dark times for digital currencies. They are also dark times for all those who create them, trade in them, and the exchanges they transact upon (at least, those that are still standing). Coinbase is one such exchange.
US LevFin Wrap - Twitter’s debt debacle, Crosby banks get hung, Continental shows the way
Market Wrap William Hoffman +Will Caiger-Smith 28 October 2022•6 min read Fine, we’ll start with Twitter. Elon Musk has finally closed his purchase of the notoriously underperforming social media giant, bringing to a close one of the most bizarre M&A stories of our time — or maybe just the first chapter of it.
ESG is having an identity crisis (9fin)
On a late summer day in September, a quartet of investors made their way through a packed venue in New York City and took the stage. For a few minutes, they exchanged views on decarbonization and sustainable investing. After two days of panels and meetings, some members of the audience looked a little worn out, but still the crowd was quiet and engaged — until the yelling started.
Radio Tompkins Episode 1 - April 26, 2020
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February 2020 Mix
Flying Lotus, The Cinematic Orchestra feat. Fontanella Bass, Cagedbaby, Yuichiro Kotani, Hiroyuki Kajino, Whitesquare and more.
January 2020 Mix
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Private Prison Operator CoreCivic Finds New Bankers As U.S. Lenders Pull Back
By Sebastian Pellejero and Will Caiger-Smith For decades, the U.S. government has quietly outsourced incarceration to private companies, but lately this trend has burst into the public consciousness. Thanks partly to the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, private prisons have become a talking point on the campaign trail and in Congressional hearings—and in more than one episode of hit Netflix show Orange Is The New Black.
Investment Banks Are Fighting Back Against Deal-Hungry Private Lenders
By Will Caiger-Smith and Bill Weisbrod In the riskier depths of the corporate credit markets, the traditional investment banking model – in which the storied firms use their networks and expertise to connect companies with lenders – has come under attack. And some bankers are fighting back. The invaders are so-called direct lenders, specialized credit funds that typically make loans to smaller companies but lately have been writing bigger checks.
The Spectacular Failure of the World's Only Hard Rock Theme Park
For someone who’s just lost a priceless possession, Jim Burton is surprisingly upbeat. It’s a sunny afternoon in November 2018, and we’re standing in the parking lot of what used to be Hard Rock Park, a 50-acre rock music-themed amusement park just outside Myrtle Beach in South Carolina.
October 2018 Mix
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Carvana Joins Tesla, WeWork And Uber In The Debt Market Disruptors Club
This article is more than 5 years old. By Paula Seligson and Will Caiger-Smith When a company taps the capital markets for debt financing, it’s usually careful to demonstrate that it’s generating enough cash to pay lenders back. But when Carvana, an online platform for buying used cars, approached high yield bond investors last week, it did just the opposite. The company has market cap of $8.5 billion thanks to a 300% rise in the stock price since it went public just last year.
Banks Pile Into Riskier Deals As Influence Of Obama-era Lending Guidelines Melts Away
By Will Caiger-Smith and Alex Plough After the financial crisis of 2008, relations between banks and regulators turned frosty. In the world of leveraged finance, federal agencies put strict limits on how much debt investment banks could load onto companies. But since self-proclaimed dealmaker Donald Trump walked into the Oval Office, the influence of those guidelines has waned, according to Debtwire data.
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