FICC Focus

Sentiment is improving across the emerging-market investment landscape, but it takes local expertise to manage risk and crystallize returns. Thea Jamison, Founder and Managing Director of Change Global Investment, joins Bloomberg Intelligence Chief Emerging Markets Credit Strategist Damian Sassower to break down the opportunities and risks facing emerging-market equity practitioners across the globe. Jamison and Sassower touch on performance dispersion, market catalysts and idiosyncratic opportunities across a broad range of EM countries, from Greece and Poland to Nigeria and Vietnam. The EM Lens podcast is part of BI’s FICC Focus series.

David Geenberg, the Head of North American Corporate Investment for Strategic Value Partners, shares insights on distressed debt and investment strategies. He emphasizes the importance of exit strategies and thoughtful assessments before making deals. The discussion also highlights the challenges of smaller companies facing bankruptcy and the innovative approaches SVP employs to blend credit investment with operational management. Additionally, Geenberg assesses the evolving landscape post-COVID and its implications for liability management in the credit market.

This week we’re talking economics and finances of the world’s game with professor, author and podcaster Kieran Maguire of University of Liverpool. (We apologize in advance for those who thought this show was about gridiron football, but with the Club World Cup beginning June 14, we thought it would be interesting to discuss football/soccer finance and some economic implications of the 2026 World Cup in North America.) Maguire joins Macro Matters podcast host Ira Jersey, Bloomberg Intelligence’s chief US rates strategist, and Business of Sports co-host and EM Lens host Damian Sassower, BI’s chief emerging market fixed income strategist. The group discusses football club valuations, the economic benefits (or pitfalls) of hosting the World Cup, and how clubs used debt to finance player transfers and club operations. The Macro Matters podcast is part of BI’s FICC Focus series.

Craig Scordellis, CIO of Credit at CQS UK, brings his expertise in managing $15 billion in credit to discuss the evolving landscape of alternative credit and leveraged finance. He and Mahesh Bhimalingam delve into how recent tariff changes influence global inflation and currency dynamics. They explore credit market risks, the impact of central bank policies, and provide insights on default predictions for Europe and the US. Their conversation highlights emerging investment opportunities despite the prevailing financial challenges.

“I’m an entrepreneur, I’m a capitalist. I love growth, I love to back entrepreneurs,” said Ted Koenig, founder, chairman and CEO of Monroe Capital, on how he sees the firm’s expansion to over $20 billion in assets under management from its founding in 2004. Koenig joins Bloomberg Intelligence’s Noel Hebert and Sam Geier on this episode of Credit Crunch podcast to discuss the company’s founding, attracting capital, identifying partners for growth and the market landscape. The three talk about diversification and CLOs, how big is too big and giving back to the community.

The structural dollar bearish case is holding into 2H, though fiscal considerations are what dollar bears may lean on going forward after  being driven mainly by tariff uncertainty and the impact on the de-dollarization narrative. Bloomberg Intelligence’s Chief G10FX Strategist Audrey Childe-Freeman talks to Stuart Paul, US and Canada economist at Bloomberg Economics, about the US debt dynamics and how the fiscal outlook could shape and drive the dollar view into 2H. Stuart and Audrey also touch on the narrow path to a potential dollar recovery via short-term cyclical dynamics should the US economy prove more resilient than expected. This isn’t Bloomberg Intelligence’s central working assumption, but it’s a scenario worth acknowledging.

Sue Hill, a senior portfolio manager at Federated Hermes, dives into the intricacies of T-bills amidst debt ceiling uncertainties. She emphasizes the necessity of strategizing around low default risks and unappealing yields. The discussion also covers the Federal Reserve's reverse repo facility, which may gain a permanent role in liquidity management. Hill highlights the industry's gradual shift towards central clearing, reflecting on evolving strategies in liquidity management that cater to diverse investor needs.

Commercial real estate lending remains highly sensitive to US interest rates, yet it also offers a much wider complexity premium than competing fixed income asset classes, with potential for outsized investor returns. Robin Potts, chief investment officer of Real Estate at Canyon Partners, joins BI chief fixed income strategist Damian Sassower to discuss her firm’s approach to risk management, recovery mechanisms, loan origination and product evolution. Potts and Sassower discuss financing structures, liquidity trends, operating expenses and the broader landscape for institutional capital.

Jeffrey Kivitz, Chief Investment Officer at Canyon Capital Advisors, shares insights on navigating market uncertainty and seizing investment opportunities. He emphasizes the importance of breaking traditional rules in credit investing and discusses the balance of macro and micro analyses as a CIO. Kivitz also explores complex investment landscapes, including distressed markets and the role of private credit. The conversation wraps up with light-hearted lessons from tennis, linking strategy and grace under pressure to effective problem-solving in finance.

Municipal bonds scored a win in President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” passed by the House earlier this week. They didn’t lose tax-exempt status, though the bill now moves to the Senate, where it can be changed and sent back to the House for another vote. BI analysts Eric Kazatsky and Karen Altamirano are joined by BI tax analyst Andrew Silverman and BI policy analyst Nathan Dean to discuss the legislation. The team discusses the legislation’s impact on the tax-exempt municipal market, federal spending and the bond market’s signaling of displeasure with deficits.