FEATURES

ABL Roundtable 2014: More of the Same Amid Signs of Improvement - Regular ABF Journal contributor Lisa Miller spoke with five ABL leaders to get their take on the outlook for ABL in 2014. All agree the environment continues to be impacted by excess liquidity and the challenge of finding new money opportunities; however, there is general agreement that clear signs of improvement are emerging.
KPMG Survey: Capital-Chasing & Creative Financing Options - According to a recent KPMG LLP survey, banks may be lending less, but alternative entities are lending more. These alternative sources of capital include hedge funds, business development companies, credit opportunity funds and the resurgence of collateralized loan obligations.
Considerable Confusion: Syndication Loan Market Sideswiped by Regulation - Rules and regulations concerning both leveraged loans and collateralized loans continue to be a source of confusion for many. The author dissects the roles of Leveraged Lending Guidance, the Volcker Rule and the Risk Retention in the U.S. syndicated loan market, and provides insights into what each may portend for the future of the market.
Partnering for Growth: Siena Lending Brings ABL to Community Banks - Siena Lending Group employs a dual-prong model combining a traditional ABL balance sheet business with a customized servicing platform tailored for community banks. This enables a company that is seeking a financial solution to tap into the broader community banking universe along Siena, which has resulted in origination growth for both the bank and Siena.
Crystal Financial… Leveraging a ‘Compelling Opportunity’ with Solar Capital Ltd. - The ABF Journal recently invited Ward Mooney, chief executive officer of Crystal Financial, to engage in a Q&A to provide our readers with some additional background into his one-year relationship with Solar Capital Ltd., while gaining insights into the current environment, the asset-based capital markets and what’s in store for 2014.
Villanova 2014: Judges, Lenders, Attorneys, Consultants Combine for Best Program Yet - Howard Brod Brownstein provides commentary on this year’s Seventh Annual Education & Networking Conference where bankruptcy court judges, asset-based lenders and attorneys shared their views on restructuring alternatives, lending in today’s environment and recent bankruptcy cases. This was the largest Villanova conference to date with a sell-out crowd of active participants.

COMPANY PROFILE: NEW ON THE SCENE

Staying Customer-Focused… Service a Top Priority at Investors Bank’s New ABL Unit - Investors Bank jumped into asset-based lending late last year as part of a strategy to diversify its lending products. The group’s new executive team provides insights into how they intend to keep the customer at the center of the process by offering complete depository services plus robust ABL products, encompassing revolvers, term loans and equipment finance.

FROM ALL FACETS

TURNAROUND CORNER

Canal Shores: How a ‘Great Shot out of the Rough’ Saved a Community Golf Course - Located in Chicago’s North Shore suburbs, The Evanston-Wilmette Community Golf Course was overwhelmed by financial troubles at the close of 2012. Tim Dable of Winston & Strawn and Dan Wikel and Chris Maier of Huron Business Advisory detail the turnaround efforts led by the newly elected board members and the course’s staff in 2013 to recover with a great shot out of the rough.

SPECIALTY LENDING

Enduring Worth of Lender-Borrower Relationships — Why Lowest Price Isn’t Always Best Value - CIT’s Jon Lucas provides insights into why a good lender-borrower relationship is tantamount to ensuring the longevity of a partnership that is rooted on the proposition that a lender may not always have the lowest price but can be counted on to stand by the side of the borrower over the long term.

BANKRUPTCY UPDATE

Valuing Claims in Multi-Debtor Cases: Aggregation of Collateral on the Rise - In multi-debtor bankruptcy cases, it is becoming unclear whether a secured creditor’s claim should or should not be determined by aggregating the collateral of all of the debtors. The valuation method used will have a direct impact on the secured portion of a creditor’s claim.

LEGAL EYES

Credit Bidding at Bankruptcy Sales: A Powerful Tool, But Not Absolute - The authors discuss how recent bankruptcy cases may level the credit bidding playing field for lenders by initiating bidding caps during a bankruptcy sale process. They recommend proceeding with caution: Lenders who are overzealous, especially in “loan-to-own” scenarios, may invite accusations of unfair conduct that could undercut their right to credit bid.

FINAL CUT

FinalCut: Brookstone Files for Chapter 11 - ABF Journal illustrator Jerry Gonzalez provides his take on recent retail trends whereby e-commerce is the preferred shopping medium over brick-and-mortar stores, resulting in retail shop closures and bankruptcy filings (i.e., Brookstone’s Chapter 11).