Retirement plan solutions

Robust issuance continued into Q3, reflecting solid supply–demand dynamics. As the IG private credit market grows, however, we take a closer look at the diverse array of origination channels in this investment universe, discussing the potential benefits, drawbacks and possible misconceptions surrounding these sources of deal flow. 

For our 2025 SLC Management Insurance Asset Management Survey, we conducted quantitative and qualitative interviews with 250 insurer decisionmakers on their investment positioning and the results are in.

In a year already marked by tariff uncertainty, market volatility and macro-level changes, what’s next for the rest of 2025? In our newest podcast series, Checking In, Looking Ahead, our investment team provides insights and outlook on what’s to come.

Issuance activity overcame a slower start to the quarter to end at volumes exceeding Q1. Also, the continued uncertainties over global trade, inflation and fiscal policies highlight the potential benefits of IG private credit against this backdrop.

Credit markets reported considerable year-over-year deal activity, with investor demand a principal driver. Meanwhile, continued development, expansion and innovation in the asset-backed finance (ABF) space requires a renewed perspective into the possible benefits and risks of these investments.

Strong October issuance led to a strong fourth quarter of 2024. Meanwhile, business development companies (BDCs) continue to grow as potential opportunities for IG private credit investors.

Welcome to SLC Management’s investment outlook for 2025. In this report, our investment teams and solutions providers discuss public and private fixed income, real estate, infrastructure, insurance asset management and retirement plans.

It’s that time of the year, where everyone’s social media is filled with “Spotify Wrapped,” covering the most listened to artists and tracks of the calendar year. This prompted us to think: why not end 2024 by looking back on the trends, events, and milestones that defined the insurance industry? Check out 2024 Insurance Wrapped.

Amid continuing pressures on social infrastructure, SLC Management discusses investor opportunities to enhance returns, while advancing public interest initiatives.

Check out these insights from Louis Pelosi, Managing Director, Client Solutions at SLC Management. Louis was a special guest on the Insurance AUM podcast, where he discussed the unique needs of clients in the insurance asset management business, managing asset allocations against liabilities and more.

Fund finance, which includes strategies such as net asset value (NAV) lending, has become a fast growing tool employed by asset managers seeking financing and for institutional investors seeking potential risk–return benefits. Gain further insights from our investment team: 

LDI programs often face a tradeoff between hedging liabilities and enhancing diversification, among other competing goals. Our investment team discusses how IG private credit can help solve the conundrum.

Our insurance specialists discuss how a multitude of risk components can affect an insurer’s capital structure, returns and ability to generate shareholder value. Read more on our latest insights.

In this issue, we discuss cooling inflation, price softness across several CPI categories and alternatives to RRBs in inflation hedging.

In this issue, we discuss cooling inflation, decreasing liquidity in real return bonds (RRB), and why the cost of implementing a U.S. based inflation strategy has increased.

With investors increasingly looking into the potential benefits of NAV lending, SLC Management takes a closer look at this asset class.

Welcome to SLC Management’s investment outlook for the mid-year point of 2024. Learn more about what our investment teams and solutions providers expect for public and private fixed income, real estate, infrastructure, insurers and retirement plans.

In this issue, we discuss cooling inflation, decreasing liquidity in real return bonds (RRB), and why the cost of implementing a U.S. based inflation strategy has increased.

Market statistics for the private placement market sourced from Private Placement Monitor, a standard proxy for the IG private credit market.

Robust volumes, greater demand from a growing investor base and tightening spreads characterized private credit during the first quarter. New investors coming into the market has also led to increased market capacity and larger deal sizes. Meanwhile, fund finance has emerged as a growing, evolving sector for institutional investors looking for potential diversification, investment premiums and risk managed performance

At the beginning of 2024 there was little solid consensus on the direction of interest rates. Expectations for federal bank actions ranged from rate decreases for earlier in the year to rates remaining high until at least 2025. Such uncertainty can make things difficult for fixed income investors, as in many cases bond yields are highly correlated to interest rates.

Investment grade (IG) private credit volume in Q4 2023 was the strongest for the year at US$28.6 billion, bouncing back from US$14.1 billion in Q3 2023, the lowest quarterly volume of the year. While we won’t know final results for a few months, preliminary 2023 volume of US$90.7 billion fell short of US$92.3 billion in 2022. Issuers that had something to get done came to market in the last quarter and investors responded positively. This was in contrast to much of 2023 when issuers were put off by high rates or market uncertainty and investors were either less liquid or more cautious immediately after the failure of Silicon Valley Bank.

Welcome to SLC Management’s investment outlook for 2024. In this report, our investment teams and solutions providers discuss public and private fixed income, real estate, infrastructure, insurance asset management and retirement plans.

In a slow quarter for the investment grade (IG) private credit market, robust industrial and utility sector issuance helped support volume amid decreased financial issuance. We are seeing a possible turnaround in decreasing IG private credit demand to date as markets begin to adopt “higher for longer” rate expectations. Meanwhile, we are taking a closer look at infrastructure debt investments amid increased focus on the diversification, risk management and other potential benefits of the asset class.

Issuance of investment grade private credit (IG private credit) proved resilient in Q2 2023, with the market providing some respite during uncertainty in the public debt space. H1 2023 issuance, however, is still behind that of the same period last year, largely due to a decrease in volume in financials. Amid other promising sectors, we see potential value in asset-backed securities (ABS), in particular senior IG ABS. From a volume and return perspective, 2023 could be an especially strong year for ABS investors, in our view.  

Our affiliate Crescent Capital Group’s John Fekete and Chris Wright recently sat down with Private Debt Investor to discuss the evolution of private debt and the future of credit.

Welcome to SLC Management’s investment outlook for mid-year 2023. In this report, our investment teams and solutions providers share their insights, analyses and perspectives on public and private fixed income, real estate, infrastructure, insurance asset management and retirement plans.