US managers set the pace in European CLO market

The burgeoning market for collateralised loan obligations in Europe has attracted the attention of large, established US managers, keen to get a piece of the action. So what effect is this influx of transatlantic thoroughbreds having on the European CLO market? Philip Moore reports

The European collateralised loan obligation market is undergoing a sea change. For years the business was dominated by a handful of stalwart CLO managers; but a recent spurt in primary market volumes - up from EUR120 billion in 2005 to an expected EUR150 billion this year, and a remarkable 250% increase from two years ago - has attracted the attention of the big boys from the other side of the Atlantic.

Now a number of experienced CLO managers in the US are recognising that Europe has generated