Updates and analysis on current issues and topics faced by our structured finance lawyers
Read time: 3 minutes
2021 is so far proving to be a stellar year for European CMBS, and if the current momentum continues 2021 will go down as a truly bumper year for the product. Like many other financial transactions, despite a promising start to 2020, CMBS certainly ended up having a torrid ride on…
Read time: 3 minutes 50 seconds
Fourteen years ago this September, I distinctly recall attending a conference hosted by the European CMSA that was focussed on the advent of CRE CDO’s. At the time, the emergence of these structures was seen as an extremely exciting development as it marked a natural progression for the maturing…
Whether you are a supporter of using CMBS to finance commercial real estate or not, the simple fact is that it provides an efficient mechanism to transfer commercial real estate loan risk away from the banking sector, whilst at the same time providing much needed transparency to the commercial real estate lending market. In light…
Read time: 2 minutes 20 seconds
The economic fallout of COVID-19 will be hugely significant for the European CMBS market, as a perfect testing environment has been created to truly examine the resilience and robustness of CMBS 2.0. Indeed, the impact of COVID-19 will be a true litmus test as to whether those structural reforms…
Read time: 3 minutes 30 seconds
When it comes to the nuts and bolts of commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), one of the key features that will be at the very forefront of any Arranger’s mind will be the mechanism by which ‘excess spread’ (i.e., the positive difference between amounts received on the underlying loans and the liabilities of the issuer – or, in other words, profits) is not only extracted from structures in an efficient manner, but also in such a way as to maximise returns. Although this is a standard feature for CMBS, a review of recent transactions reveals a high degree of variance in extraction structures across deals.
Continue Reading CMBS 2.0 – Class X – variety is not always the spice of life
As was the case prior to the global financial crisis, the current driver for all new European CMBS deals stems from the adoption by investment banks of the originate-to-distribute business model for financing commercial real estate assets. This trend is showing no sign of abating in the CMBS 2.0 era. Although this is a proven and effective mechanism for producing much needed CMBS product, it is important for market participants to be aware that these conduit deals are not the only CMBS structures in the market and that agency deals could potentially be an invaluable tool for any sophisticated borrower that is looking to directly tap the capital markets to raise cheaper finance.
Continue Reading Agency CMBS – is now the time for borrowers to capitalise?
Read time: 2 minutes 45 seconds
Thus far CMBS has had a storming year and all current indicators point towards 2018 being a bumper year for the product. After two years of relative malaise on the primary issuance front, the first half of 2018 has proven to be anything but sluggish. Notable transactions that have so far taken place include Citibank and Morgan Stanley closing an extremely well priced transaction secured by Finnish assets (a CMBS 2.0 first), Bank of America Merrill Lynch achieving some hugely impressive pricing on an Italian CMBS and most recently the spotlight has turned to Goldman Sachs who have recently obtained excellent pricing on a £427m CMBS secured by a portfolio of UK hotels. The market though has not simply been confined to conduit deals as demonstrated by the fact that Blackstone successfully closed CMBS Pietra Nera Uno (which is apparently the first of a swathe of Agency CMBS deals that Blackstone are expected to bring to the market) and the recent market rumours that Natwest are currently in the midst of structuring a synthetic CMBS. Taken together all these transactions provide the firmest indicator yet that that the beleaguered CMBS product is firmly back in vogue.
Continue Reading The European CMBS market is positively booming!
Read time: 2 minutes 15 seconds
Rather like the Hans Christian Anderson story about the little match girl, the news that BAML has successfully launched two CMBS deals in quick succession has flickered light into an otherwise cold and beleaguered primary issuance market. Not only do these transactions provide a clear indicator that there is still life in the market, but this news is the most positive development for the industry since the summer of 2015, when adverse macro-economic factors precipitated by concerns over Grexit and the Chinese financial crisis shut down primary CMBS issuance.
Continue Reading CMBS – the little match girl of European ABS
Fuelled by continued macro-economic uncertainty, the European CMBS market is currently experiencing a prolonged period of malaise. Meanwhile the Italian legislative cogs have continued to turn. The news last week that the Italian government has finally approved a decree on NPL securitisations, which comes hot off the heels of the proposals to establish a private…
Almost a year ago to the day, I posted a blog questioning whether CMBS was the answer to Italian bank deleveraging woes. One year on, I am pleased to say that the Italian government (clearly channelling me!) has just reached an agreement with the European Commission to provide for a guarantee mechanism for the …
