Asset Backed Securities

Douglas Charleston, believes 2024 will continue to provide the carry that has been so welcome, but see market growth and diversity continuing to make European ABS increasingly scalable. 

2023 proved to be a second year where European ABS gave investors the strongest returns in fixed income with the benefit of very low volatility. As risk-free rates grew to what we expect to be the peak, income was maximised whilst the various market pivots on rates came and went in the rear view mirror.

After a horrible year for financial markets in 2022, the macro-outlook for 2023 had a lot of consensus views, with most predicting a much better year ahead, helped by supportive rate cuts from central banks and positive returns from both government bonds and credit.  

Elena Rinaldi, Portfolio Management, discusses how banks have benefited from many years of ultra-cheap financing from central banks – which is now coming to an end and giving way to a more dedicated capital market funding needs - and touches on what the results of these changes are.

Elena Rinaldi gives an update on the market, highlighting the peak in rates in the quarter, the performance of ABS for the quarter, and delving deeper into the primary issuance activity over the summer months.

Our most recent Spotlight on ESG: Unlocking sustainable opportunities within ABS webinar, hosted by Pauline Quirin and Elena Rinaldi, explored European ABS from an ESG perspective.

Our most recent ABS Investor Update webinar, hosted by Douglas Charleston and Aza Teeuwen provided an outlook for the European ABS market and why they think investors should be considering the asset class as a long term investment in an environment where we have reached peak rates and a soft landing is expected. 

This paper takes a deep dive into the flourishing ESG sector and examines the trends, challenges, and opportunities that have emerged in recent years, with a particular focus on data quality, the expansion of ESG labelled bonds, action from central banks and whether or not the green premium or ‘greenium’ makes sense for issuers.

Douglas Charleston believes European ABS has once again provided a rare bright spot for fixed income. He explains how, from Q1 to Q2, focuses have shifted, and delves into different macro-economic variables affecting the ABS market.

There has been a noticeable pick up in the European ABS new issuance market this year, with demand far outstripping supply. John Lawler looks at what makes a UK RMBS deal ‘Prime’, and why not all deals are the same.

Given the current macro environment, Pauline Quirin believes loans with near term maturities provide a useful insight into where risk lie.

Partner and Portfolio Manager, Aza Teeuwen, discusses the impact of Q1 events on the European ABS market and how he expects the markets to respond moving forward.