After a quiet period set off by the coronavirus pandemic, private equity deal activity in the United States surged through mid-November as investment managers prepare for a possible tax policy change under President-elect Joe Biden. And the middle market has seen an uptick in deals. The overall surge has been striking, with the number of U.S. and ... READ MORE >
Financial Services
Comprising everything from private equity firms to family offices, financiers are active participants in the middle market. They provide the vital capital infusions needed to take growth companies to the next level.
A Labor Department rule puts spotlight on ESG in retirement plans
As investors increasingly focus on environmental, social and governance issues in the corporate sector, an important question remains: What is the true purpose of ESG? Is it to drive returns, or to simultaneously do right by society? Along with that question has come concern over fiduciary responsibility. Do investors hold up their legal and ethical ... READ MORE >
Federal Reserve eases Main Street Lending Program terms to encourage participation
The Federal Reserve on Friday announced changes to the Main Street Lending Program intended to make financing more readily available to small and medium-size businesses struggling amid a resurgence of coronavirus cases. The changes come as negotiations over another round of fiscal aid drag on in Congress and as businesses face the prospect of ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: The rise of the zombies
The cheap corporate financing and increasingly light debt covenants that have come with the accommodative monetary policy of recent months are starting to show up in S&P 500 Index companies. While investors have benefited from the rise in the equity markets, a number of these companies have fueled that growth by seeking out financing to cover daily ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Markets prepare for favorable clean energy policies
Joe Biden’s clean energy plan has recently been a point of focus. And the prospect of a Biden victory in the presidential election has spurred a rise in stocks set to benefit from his proposed $2 trillion package, which is meant to kick-start the nation’s economy toward net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. By contrast, returns for oil and gas producers are ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Hedge funds are faring well, but there is a range
Hedge funds are faring well after years of lackluster results, but the returns have not been uniformly strong. A closer look at the returns shows a range of results within strategies and even substrategies. For example, data from Hedge Fund Research’s subindices show that returns for the equity hedge strategy through September have ranged from as high at 17% ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Plunging private equity deal flow in Canada
The economic distress from the coronavirus pandemic is hitting the Canadian private equity market hard. The number of deals reached in Canada this year through Oct. 6 fell to 194, which at that pace would represent a 60% decline from 2019, according to PitchBook. The value of the deals plunged as well, falling to $26.8 billion. This represents a $53.2 ... READ MORE >
SBA announces simplified PPP loan forgiveness
Some businesses that accepted financing under the Paycheck Protection Program now have a streamlined path to receiving the promised forgiveness of those loans, under new guidelines released late Thursday. The Small Business Administration, in consultation with the Treasury Department, announced updated forgiveness instructions for Paycheck Protection ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: Business development companies show continued risk
Business development companies are still lagging the market in a sign of persisting concern over the performance of loans to small and midsize businesses. Although default rates and losses in BDC loan portfolios have not been as dire as initially expected during the depth of the market panic in March, BDCs have struggled to recover, even as the broader ... READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: A record year for SPACs
Special purpose acquisition companies are continuing their blockbuster year, with dollars raised in 2020 already beating the total from the previous 10 years combined, according to data from Bloomberg. And with more than two months remaining in the year, the number of transactions has doubled the record set last year. The boom is likely to continue as ... READ MORE >