This week on "Know More. Risk Better." features host Winnie Cisar, global head of strategy at CreditSights, and Zachary Griffiths, Head of IG & Macro Strategy, as they reflect on a turbulent 2025 in US credit markets and preview the landscape for 2026. The conversation dives into defining moments of the year, lessons learned, and the persistent impact of technicals and liquidity on market resilience. 

Winnie and Zach tackle the complexities of forecasting interest rates, the impact of monetary policy surprises, and the effects of tariffs and trade policy on investment grade corporates, while debating new issue supply, the dynamics between high yield and broadly syndicated loans, and looming refinancing risks. Additional highlights include a candid lightning round on private credit, covenant quality, and AI CapEx, as well as a discussion on the importance of risk assessment and the paradigm shift in market behavior post-pandemic. This episode offers key insights for navigating a complex, late-cycle credit environment heading into 2026. 

Season 9, Episode 22

This week on "Know More. Risk Better." features host Winnie Cisar along with Mark Lightner, for a comprehensive review of the 2026 Special Situations Outlook. The conversation examines the liability management transaction landscape, highlighting how creditor-on-creditor dynamics remained largely unchanged in 2025 despite the landmark Serta decision.

The team explores the emerging antitrust challenge to creditor cooperation agreements, with two recent lawsuits (Selecta and Altice USA) alleging federal antitrust violations and seeking treble damages. Lightner discusses why this represents "the most important issue going into 2026" and how it could fundamentally alter the collaborative approach to restructurings. The discussion also covers the high-stakes Monsanto litigation heading to the Supreme Court, which could determine whether the $40 billion debt company faces bankruptcy over Roundup-related claims.

Season 9, Episode 21

This week on "Know More. Risk Better." features host Zachary Griffiths along with Andy DeVries, for a data center deep dive following the Edison Electric Institute investor conference. The conversation examines the supply-demand disconnect in data center capacity, with utilities committing to approximately 100 gigawatts of new capacity by 2030 against third-party estimates indicating only 50 gigawatts of actual demand.

This week “Know More. Risk Better.” delivers a comprehensive 2026 Global Strategy Outlook, featuring expert analysis across US, European, Emerging Markets, and APAC credit sectors. CreditSights Global Strategy team opens with a review of macro and policy trends, including US growth slowdown, Fed rate cut trajectory, proactive ECB action, and regional fiscal stimulus. Speakers examine credit fundamentals, spread forecasts, and sector performance, highlighting drivers such as labor market fragility, tariff volatility, and AI-driven issuance.  

The team discusses implications for investment grade, high yield, and leveraged finance, as well as EM sovereign and local currency bonds, outlining risks and opportunities for investors. Best practices in sector allocation, quality bias, and diversification are emphasized as the market navigates technical shifts, supply pressures, and evolving global risks. Panelists conclude with actionable insights and 2026 “bingo card” scenarios, stressing the importance of fundamentals, positioning, and agility for credit market participants. 

This week on "Know More. Risk Better." brings together hosts Winnie Cisar and Zachary Griffiths along with Peter Simon, Todd Duvick, and Jory Eisenberg for an "Autos Mythbuster" edition examining auto loan performance, consumer credit health, and whether rising repossession rates signal broader systemic risk. The team explores the bifurcation in consumer credit by income tier, the backward-looking nature of current delinquency and repo data, and why 2022 vintage loans have proven particularly problematic due to aggressive post-COVID origination, elevated vehicle prices, and deteriorating affordability for lower-income consumers.

Peter and Todd discuss diverging trends at CarMax and Carvana, regional variations in auto loan performance, and the impact of extraordinary vehicle price depreciation on underwater loans. The team analyzes new and used car affordability challenges, tariff impacts on vehicle pricing, Ford and GM's profit-driven strategies, and the stabilization of competitive dynamics in the auto sector. They examine the ABS market's role in auto lending, loan-to-value considerations, and the minimal exposure of larger banks to subprime auto risk. This insightful discussion provides valuable context for credit analysts, investors, and market participants seeking to understand consumer credit trends, auto sector dynamics, and risk management in today's economy.

This week on "Know More. Risk Better." brings together host Logan Miller along with Luke Millar for a comprehensive analysis of the European leveraged finance landscape, examining 2025 market performance, primary market dynamics, and the outlook for 2026. The discussion covers record issuance volumes driven by refinancing, sector performance in chemicals and energy, and increased dividend recap transactions due to muted LBO activity.  

Logan and Luke examine widening triple C spreads, recent market disruptions affecting sentiment, and the impact of high first-call premiums on refinancing. They also assess CLO demand via warehouse data, potential growth in M&A and sponsor activity, and Europe’s capacity for large LBOs post-EA deal. Additional topics include the 2026-2028 maturity wall, US firms issuing in euros for cheaper funding (reverse Yankees), and the rise of private credit as a significant capital source. This essential discussion provides strategic insights to navigate refinancing waves, re-leveraging trends, and capital structure optimization in today's complex European credit markets.  

This week on “Know More. Risk Better.” brings together host Zachary Griffiths along with Barry Eichengreen and Cedric Chehab for a deep dive into the parallels and differences between the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and today’s global financial landscape. The panel explores historical market booms, the impact of new technologies, fiscal dominance, and political polarization, drawing comparisons with current risks and central bank responses.  

This week on “Know More. Risk Better.” Zachary Griffiths is joined by Peter Simon and Meghan Neenan to unpack the latest “cockroach risk” headlines in U.S. capital markets, following bankruptcies at Tricolor and First Brands. The team analyzes credit quality trends for regional banks and BDCs, finding that fundamentals remain solid and recent losses are idiosyncratic, not symptomatic of broader stress. 

Meghan highlights differentiation across BDCs, notes that exposures to recent bankruptcies were minimal and mainly linked to broadly syndicated loans, not private credit. The discussion explores leverage, dividend management as rates fall, and a looming 2026 maturity wall. The team flags growing liquidity and suitability risks as perpetual BDCs and private asset vehicles expand and touches on the increasing interconnectedness between banks and non-bank lenders. 

Season 9, Episode 15

The panel analyzes market-macro disconnects as equities rally despite mounting headwinds, assesses German fiscal expansion's potential boost to European growth, and highlights China's structural vulnerabilities beneath headline GDP figures, including collapsing fixed asset investment and persistent deflation. The episode concludes with contrarian takes for 2026: potential dollar strength despite bearish consensus, heightened China macro risks, and fundamentals returning to credit markets after a technically-driven year, providing essential perspective for navigating policy uncertainty and evolving global risks.

Season 9, Episode 14 

This week “Know More. Risk Better.” offers a focused analysis on the SEC’s potential shift from quarterly to semiannual reporting, highlighting legal, covenant, and credit market impacts as the change is considered for US issuers. The panel begins with an overview of the SEC rulemaking process and regulatory drivers, then explores practical and legal challenges, such as disclosure consistency, litigation risks, and the continued role of anti-fraud obligations. Covenant experts review implications for bond and loan agreements, noting that most public company covenants defer to SEC requirements, while sponsor and private deals often maintain stricter quarterly reporting regardless of regulatory changes.  

The discussion also examines market dynamics, including investor pressure for timely updates, impacts on spreads and volatility, and possible changes in management communication strategies. The team assesses how reduced reporting frequency may influence market structure, sell-side research, liquidity, and ETF rebalancing, emphasizing the importance of best practices for consistent material event disclosures. Panelists conclude that while the rule change may require a gradual adjustment period, actual market impacts will depend on issuer fundamentals, covenant language, and evolving investor expectations.