IXIS Corporate & Investment Bank is structuring a synthetic collateralized debt obligation that will be sold globally and will be the firm's first offering for which it will manage a portfolio deal in-house.
"Within limits, IXIS will be able to substitute credits to defend the portfolio from defaults," said Brett Clancy, director in credit structuring in Tokyo. He said the firm's proprietary investments team in Paris will overlook the portfolio. He said the deal may appeal to investors who don't want the rigidity of a static deal, but also shy away from paying the fees of a managed CDO.
The deal, called Belem, will be referenced to 100 credits with an average rating of A3 plus and a maturity of 5.5 years. The tranches include: offensive/defensive equity which can withstand two-to-four defaults, Baa2, A2, Aa1 and Aaa. Capital protected notes with coupons linked to the structure will also be issued.
IXIS is expecting at least USD200-250 million in commitments and the CDO should go live at the onset of March.
