MUFG was the first arranger to introduce the applicable margin reset (AMR) method of repricing a CLO, slashing the senior debt of TCW 2019-1 AMR by 37bp. The transaction garnered significant interest from the buyside, with 13 unique investors participating, including hedge funds, asset managers and insurance companies.
Repricing via AMR allows for higher efficiency and cost savings, resetting the price of the bonds through an auction rather than the process of an arranger placing the securities with investors. The auction, which repriced five tranches of the $402.9m transaction, took place on online auction platform KopenTech, moving the CLO market closer to digitalization and solidifying MUFG’s position as a pioneer among arrangers of CLO transactions.
“We partnered with Crescent Capital and the CLO manager and MUFG as the leading underwriter, who did a phenomenal job educating the market on the new features and its benefits,” said Olga Chernova, founder and CIO of Sancus Capital Management, which helped develop the AMR concept alongside MUFG.
MUFG managing director Asif Khan told GlobalCapital that he believes AMR is “a more democratic” method of repricing the bonds.
“Though some investors may resist change, I think the market will come to an understanding that this is a useful tool,” Khan added.
The functioning of the CLO market has changed little over the years, and the bold steps taken by MUFG not only to offer investors and managers a more efficient process of repricing the securities, but also bring the sector into the digital age, made the bank a standout among the competition for this year’s award. The pitches received by GlobalCapital were highly compelling, but MUFG took the top spot for its commitment to new ideas, new processes and educating the market on what was ultimately a highly successful first AMR auction, and for these reasons, we are pleased to name MUFG as The Most Innovative Securitization Bank of the Year for 2019.