SpaceX: Reading between the lines

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has given markets a rare opportunity to test risk appetite across credit and equity in recent days, having followed its blockbuster initial public offering (IPO) with a bond market debut.

Reading recent headlines in the financial press, in addition to recent proposals from both US and European regulators, you could be forgiven for thinking banks are undergoing a wave of deregulation.

Wednesday’s Federal Reserve (Fed) press conference was one of the most eagerly awaited in a very long time. Kevin Warsh’s debut as chair, after three weeks in post, was not an easy one.

Last week marked a milestone for the structured finance industry with a record 6,003 market participants gathered in Barcelona for the 30th Global Asset-Backed Securities (ABS) conference.

Yesterday, the European Central Bank (ECB) delivered a widely expected 25 basis point (bp) rate hike. becoming the first major central bank in developed markets to have raised rates in response to the Iran conflict.

Having initially expected central banks to cut interest rates in 2026, investors now face a hawkish pivot after the European Central Bank (ECB) hiked rates at its June meeting.

The Italian banking sector has kicked off the week with news of a potentially blockbuster merger, showing the theme of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in European banking is very much alive.

In 2026, we are at a crucial juncture for European CLO managers. The 2021 and 2022 vintages are reaching the end of their reinvestment period. Understanding why this is significant is vital to grasping the current state of the CLO markets.

The conflict in Iran has driven a sharp repricing at the front-end of rates markets, pushing central bank expectations from cuts to hikes in a matter of weeks. While the reaction is understandable given the inflationary impact, the scale of the move has left front-end yields on a more attractive footing.