Middle Market Deal Terms at a Glance – May 2026
SPP Capital Partners published its May 2026 Middle Market Deal Terms snapshot, detailing leverage caps and pricing spreads for micro‑cap, small‑cap and mid‑cap transactions. The data compare May 2026 to May 2025, showing lower leverage limits and higher pricing across the board. EBITDA thresholds have been raised, particularly for micro‑cap deals, and spread widening ranges from 25 to 50 basis points year‑over‑year. The release signals a noticeable tightening of credit conditions in the middle‑market lending space.
Bloomberg: Leveraged Lending Insights – 5/25/2026
U.S. leveraged loan issuance rebounded sharply in May 2026, reaching about $99.3 b through May 27, up from $28.35 b in April. An additional $8 b is expected, pushing total above $100 b, the first month since January to do so. The surge follows three...
Covenant Trends – 5/25/2026
Covenant Trends released its May 25 2026 data set detailing how companies allocate synergies and cost‑saving initiatives as EBITDA addbacks across different time horizons. The accompanying chart visualizes the distribution of short‑term, medium‑term and long‑term addbacks, and the full spreadsheet is available...
Leveraged Loan Insight & Analysis – 5/25/2026
Institutional leveraged loan repricings surged in May, with issuers dominating negotiations. More than 40% of secondary loans traded above par, even as the average bid price hovered at 96% of face value. The rebound marks the strongest monthly repricing volume...
Octus: Private Credit & Deal Origination Insights – 5/18/2026
Private‑equity sponsors are rapidly expanding their footprint in European credit markets, with sponsor‑backed direct lending now the dominant source of new financing. A recent chart shows sponsor share climbing across direct lending, bank‑loan and high‑yield segments from 2024 through Q1 2026,...
Debtwire Middle-Market – 5/18/2026
Leveraged buyout (LBO) activity surged to $17.9 bn in March, the strongest monthly total since September 2021’s $22.8 bn peak. The spike lifted LBO‑driven loans to nearly half of the $37 bn institutional leveraged‑loan issuance for the month. The uptick comes amid lingering macroeconomic...
Middle Market & Private Credit – 5/18/2026
Fitch released its first‑quarter 2026 snapshot of the privately monitored middle‑market credit portfolio it rates for asset managers. The rating distribution is heavily weighted toward B‑ (64%), with B at 25% and only 11% of issuers rated B+ or higher....
Bloomberg: Leveraged Lending Insights – 5/11/2026
U.S. leveraged loan issuances surged to $34.75 billion through April 13, marking the first week since February that launches topped $30 billion. The market, which had stalled amid Iran‑related geopolitical tension and AI‑driven volatility, saw weekly volumes spike to nearly $57 billion in mid‑January...
Leveraged Loan Insight & Analysis – 5/11/2026
Technology‑focused leveraged loans have risen in price over the past year, yet they continue to trade at a discount relative to the broader secondary loan market. Investors are reassessing exposure to software firms amid growing concerns that artificial‑intelligence breakthroughs could...
Debtwire Middle-Market – 5/11/2026
The VanEck BDC Income ETF (BIZD) posted a dividend yield of 13.4% on May 8, up 156 basis points year‑to‑date and 168 basis points versus a year ago. Listed business development companies (BDCs) are trading at an average price‑to‑NAV of 0.81×,...
Covenant Trends – 5/11/2026
Covenant Trends published its May 11 2026 report on the share of first‑lien institutional loans that cleared key covenant terms. The latest data show a modest slip in covenant compliance compared with the previous quarter, suggesting tightening credit conditions. The release includes...
The OG of Private Credit: Par for the Course
Loans are valued by credit risk and market risk. Despite macro noise, BDC loan portfolios have been trading essentially at par, offering a reassuring data point. However, the surge of retail capital into private credit creates a mismatch, as retail...
Chart of the Week: Value Proposition
The latest Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) DLD Default Research shows that roughly 89% of its covered universe is rated above 95 as of April 28, 2026. A score above 95 signals strong valuation metrics and low default probability, suggesting credit stability...
Bloomberg: Leveraged Lending Insights – 5/4/2026
The Bloomberg US Leveraged Loan Index posted a 1.18% return in April, the strongest monthly gain since May 2025’s 1.53% rise. Year‑to‑date performance improved to 0.61% as secondary‑market prices climbed to 95.49, up from a March low of 94.60. The...
Debtwire Middle-Market – 5/4/2026
AI-driven market shifts have exposed concentration risk in tech‑led direct lending. Over the past three years, technology firms consistently accounted for more than one‑third of all direct‑lending issuance, reaching $127 bn in 2025 out of a total $370 bn. Healthcare lagged far...