New money lending for MM sponsored deals
drops for third quarter

Chart

New money lending in the syndicated loan market backing middle market sponsored deals fell for the third consecutive quarter in 1Q20.  Issuance only reached US$7.6bn, down 15% from 4Q19 levels and down 13% year-over-year.  New deal momentum was off to a slow start in January driven by a B3 investor hangover but started to pick up momentum in February as investors searched for yield.  But then COVID-19 volatility derailed activity meaningfully in March.