Top 10 of 2015

From refinancing the wall of maturing CMBS to getting CLO manager skin the game, these articles held your interest the longest.

Thanks to the buoyant commercial property market and rising property values, sponsors had little trouble refinancing the wall of commercial debt coming due this year. Even problem loans like the one backing Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village are being resolved. Click here for full story.

The solar power industry relies heavily on tax credits, which are being phased out. But so long as the credit exists, any securitization of solar assets has to avoid jeopardizing it for existing investors. Click here for full story.

The Obama Administration’s efforts to east the debt burdens of college students have had unintended consequences for investors in federally guaranteed student loans. Student loans are being repayed so slowly that many bonds backed by this debt are in danger of not paying off at maturity. Click here for full story.

In an effort to produce something that mimics as closely as possible the risk in private-label mortgage-backeds, they have been moving to deals with exposure to actual losses, as opposed to estimated losses. Click here for full story.

Marketplace lenders’ rapid growth has stared to attract calls for more regulation. Todd Baker (right) of Broadmoor Consulting, warns the industry “can operate at levels of financial leverage unheard of in the banking industry. Mike Cagney (left), CEO of SoFi, counters that there is greater financial risk on bank balance sheets. Click here for full story.

After several years of outbidding insurers for exposure to natural catastrophes, “alternative capital has begun to draw a line in the sand in terms of pricing,” says Ben Brookes, of RMS. “Insurers and re-insurers are now competing to keep that business and winning it back in some cases. Click here for full story.

As key interest rates turned negative in Europe, every day financial transactions entered the realm of fun-house mirrors. German banks charged depositors for holding funds; Danish consumers received interest on borrowed funds. Not so asset-backeds, where yields stayed positive. Click here for full story.

It turns out Standard & Poor’s recalibration of rating criteria wasn’t the only thing holding up securitization of the servicer advance receivables. Ocwen Financial, one of the biggest issuers, is restricted from making acquisitions. That meant most deals coming to market refinance old commitments. Click here for full story.

Managers of collateralized loan obligations spent are finally coming to grips with impending rules requiring them to hold a 5% stake in each of their deals. Click here for full story.

With regulators nipping at their heels, subprime auto lenders had good reason this year to retrench. But that’s not what they did. Stalwart Santander expanded the size of its book. “We feel like we are doing it in a way that makes sense,” CEO Jason Kulas said of the company’s strategy. Click here for full story.