The collapse of wood pellet producer Enviva last month was swift and brutal. The story’s not over yet for all of the company’s investors (for an extremely thorough analysis, check out our distressed team’s deep-dive report) but it is for at least one of them: Inclusive Capital.Founded just a few short years ago to great fanfare, Jeff Ubben’s much-vaunted ESG activism fund closed its doors around the same time that Enviva’s capital structure fell apart. What can the implosion of these two entities tell us about the state of ESG in America?For this week’s episode of Cloud 9fin, our US managing editor Will Caiger-Smith quizzes senior reporter Sasha Padbidri on these interlinked stories. Listen now to end the year on a cheery note.

Looking back on 2023, we’ve seen financial markets tested by ongoing geopolitical upheaval. We sit down with 9fin’s CEO Steven Hunter to take us through the highs and lows of the year as well as our company’s growth story.Also tune in to find out how Steven unwinds in his spare time and what he thinks about pints in New York!

“9fin AI enables our users to find and process the information they need quicker. Speed is essential in financial markets and debt is no exception.”9fin has been leveraging AI since the company was founded back in 2016, but we’ve recently stepped-up our game.‘9fin AI’ allows subscribers to ask questions about companies within debt capital markets and receive high quality answers in real time.For this episode of the podcast, we sat down with 9fin’s Sean Löfgren and Hannes Kindbom to talk us through the exciting new project, their thoughts on future opportunities and their stance on potential risks linked to generative AI.

Commercial real estate is in crisis — specifically, office buildings.The pandemic unleashed an unpredictable torrent of changes in how people work and live, and the dramatic rise in interest rates over recent months has broken funding models for many property owners.That’s extremely bad news for a lot of investors in the real estate market, but it also creates opportunities for savvy lenders. On this week’s podcast, Will Caiger-Smith asks Rich Byrne, president of Benefit Street Partners, what we can learn from the distress in CRE.

German real estate is very in vogue in distressed land. In keeping with that trend, German real estate investment firm Corestate Capital is trying to turn its ill fate around through asset sales after finally completed its debt restructuring three months ago. The restructuring deal took a whole year to push through after a lot of back and forth with its bondholders and shareholders.The deal was implemented consensually with a large majority of its bondholders and shareholders agreeing to the deal, which involved a 78% haircut in exchange for the noteholders taking over 80% of the company. The reinstated debt was extended to mature in 2026.However, it was not entirely straightforward. After a deal was agreed at the end of last year, the company struggled to find an auditor. It also needed to raise more bridge financing to keep afloat as the restructuring completion took longer than expected.Corestate’s legal advisors Sven Pruefer and Hauke Sattler from Allen & Overy talk us through what landed the company in this mess, the proposals exchanged and what caused the delay in closing the deal.

Explore the recent appeal process of Adler Group and its significance for UK Restructuring Plans. Learn about the challenges faced during the implementation of a solvent wind down and the arguments made by dissenting classes. Discover the differences between UK restructuring plans and other processes, including a new feature called 9-fin AI. Understand the concept of paripasset treatment and the discretion of the judge in sanctioning the plan. Delve into different approaches used in schemes and CVA's, including the allocation of restructuring surplus.

ESG has had a rocky ride in 2023, so how is the legal sector responding?This week, 9fin’s Head of ESG, Jack David talks with prominent sustainability-focused lawyers Sukhvir Basran from Cadwalader and Alex Smith from Eversheds about the evolving world of ESG and sustainability from a legal perspective.We cover the US backlash, the ins and outs of sustainability-linked deals and what the future holds for the ESG within levfin and private credit.

Sami Vukelj, an expert in private credit firms and the secondary market for life insurance policies, discusses the intriguing topic of life settlements. They explore the process of selling life insurance policies, the controversy surrounding life settlements, and the metrics to consider when analyzing life insurance portfolios. Tune in to learn more about this morbid yet fascinating segment of specialty finance.

The new high interest rate environment poses a huge challenge for companies with debt maturing in the next two years. What risks and opportunities do investors see in the current debt market?For this week’s episode of Cloud 9fin Bianca Boorer sits down with Mike Scott, Head of Global High Yield & Credit Opportunities at Man GLG. Scott discusses how Man GLG is navigating this new normal. Scott also goes into his team’s approach when it comes to more stressed or distressed situations.

Debt purchasers face scrutiny over their business models; Nathan Mitchell and Matthew Hughes discuss debt purchaser predicaments, options, and predictions for the years ahead. They explore the impact of rising interest rates, financial challenges faced by Interim and AFE, and ESG risks in debt purchases.