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FICC Focus

Bloomberg Intelligence
FICC Focus offers the latest market views on interest rates, corporate bonds, emerging market debt, commodities, and currencies by Bloomberg Intelligence analysts.
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Episodes

Katten’s Winters on Distressed Governance: State of Distressed Debt

Investigations into debtors’ pre-bankruptcy machinations are evolving toward a “consensus model” where committees of independent directors are cooperating with unsecured committees, according to Julia Winters, a partner in Katten’s commercial litigation practice. She shared her perspective on corporate governance amid financial turmoil, when Chapter 11 examiners make sense and the critical role indenture trustees play with Bloomberg Intelligence’s Negisa Balluku and Phil Brendel. Prior to that, ...

May 11, 20241 hr 20 min

BOJ Intervention Alone Won't Turn Dollar-Yen Fortunes: FX Moment

The challenges of unilateral FX intervention by the Bank of Japan may mean that a confirmed dovish Fed adjustment and/or a step-up in the BOJ tightening cycle remain the best path to address the cost-of-carry yen conundrum and take dollar-yen lower in the process, according to the latest FX Moment podcast. Host Audrey Childe-Freeman, Bloomberg Intelligence's chief G-10 FX strategist, talks to Chris Gaffney, World Markets president at EverBank, about whether it could be time to rejoin the dollar-...

May 09, 202419 min

Special Situations Landscape With Polus’ Dafforn: Credit Crunch

Slowing growth and elevated interest rates are opening the door to fresh opportunities in the special situations world, as companies face growing “time under tension.” Rob Dafforn, chief investment officer of opportunistic credit at Polus Capital Management, joins Bloomberg Intelligence’s Noel Hebert and Sam Geier on this episode of Credit Crunch, part of the FICC Focus podcast. Dafforn dives into the three main investment targets — cyclical losers, secular losers and frauds — along with credito...

May 06, 20241 hr

Geopolitics, Biden vs. Trump and Markets: All Options Considered

In this edition of All Options Considered, BI's Chief Global Derivatives Strategist Tanvir Sandhu is joined by Jennifer Welch, Chief Geo-economics Analyst. They focus on geopolitics and market volatility, with topics including the conflicts in the Middle East, oil politics and the US election.

May 03, 202416 min

Fed Balance Sheet Runoff and Treasury Issuance: Macro Matters

Chairman Jerome Powell had opportunities at the May FOMC meeting to put interest rate hikes back on the table and surprisingly did not, says Ira Jersey, host and Chief US Interest Rate Strategist for Bloomberg Intelligence. On this Macro Matters edition of the FICC Focus podcast, Jersey is joined by associate US Interest Rate Strategist Will Hoffman to discuss the key takeaways from both the Federal Reserve and US Treasury Department’s May 1 policy announcements. The pair unpack the implications...

May 02, 202420 min

IMF’s Natalucci and Wu on Risks to Financial Stability: EM Lens

Loose financial conditions are helping to alleviate short-term stability concerns, yet medium-term vulnerabilities are rising as the result of less-optimistic monetary policy expectations. In this month’s EM Lens & Look-Through podcast, Fabio Natalucci, deputy director of monetary and capital markets at the IMF, and Jason Wu, head of the IMF’s Global Markets division, join Bloomberg Intelligence Chief EM Fixed Income Strategist Damian Sassower to share their views on underlying asset valuati...

Apr 30, 202426 min

The Economy, the Fed, and the Mortgage Market: Macro Matters

Inflation is holding stubbornly above the Federal Reserve’s target, throwing expectations for rate cuts into turmoil and playing havoc with housing and mortgage markets. On this Macro Matters edition of the FICC Focus podcast, host and Bloomberg Intelligence Chief US Rates Strategist Ira Jersey is joined by Erica Adelberg, BI’s chief MBS strategist, and Will Hoffman, associate US rates strategist, to discuss the current and future state of the MBS market ahead of the May FOMC meeting. Adelberg b...

Apr 25, 202422 min

Rate-Cut Delays Wounded Credit - How Much Longer?: Credit Crunch

Credit markets sold off in the past month, across the board, on rate-cut delays being priced in globally, led by the Fed. It takes us to an interesting juncture where we ask if this has longer to go or is largely done, and how it affects various asset classes in its aftermath. In this episode of our Credit Crunch podcast, host Mahesh Bhimalingam, Chief European Credit Strategist at Bloomberg Intelligence, and Raphael Thuin, Head of Capital Markets Strategies at Tikehau Capital, discuss the globa...

Apr 23, 202451 min

Yieldstreet’s CIO on Opening Up Alternatives: Credit Crunch

Alternative investments have historically been available only to institutions and ultrahigh-net-worth individuals, but that may be changing. Yieldstreet Chief Investment Officer Ted Yarbrough says democratizing access to alternatives is the company’s mission. He joined Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Noel Hebert and Sam Geier to talk about sourcing deals, leveraging technology and the importance of education when combining illiquid investments with retail clients. Yarbrough also spoke to the dis...

Apr 19, 202449 min

Blind Spots in Active Muni Management: Masters of the Muniverse

Part of being an active manager is not only looking for assets that have an edge, are mispriced or are the next hottest thing, but also learning to avoid pitfalls and blind spots when it comes to municipal credit. In this Masters of the Muniverse episode of Bloomberg Intelligence’s FICC Focus podcast, Ben Barber, director of municipal bonds at Franklin Templeton, joins BI analysts Eric Kazatsky and Karen Altamirano to discuss municipal active management and best defensive and offensive strategie...

Apr 17, 202444 min

Arena's Zwirn on Flexibilty in Special Situations: Credit Crunch

Complexity and illiquidity are desirable features for Dan Zwirn, CEO, CIO and Co-Founder of Arena Investors. Zwirn talks about the benefits of the special situations strategy, his concern about concurrent asset bubbles, and how partnering with others can benefit the investment process. That and much more as he joins hosts Noel Hebert and Sam Geier, each of Bloomberg Intelligence, on this episode of Credit Crunch, part of the FICC Focus podcast series.

Apr 15, 202459 min

US Rate Markets Refresh After Two Weeks of Mayhem: Macro Matters

The US Treasury’s liquidity-support buyback operations aren’t quantitative easing by a different name, says Bloomberg Intelligence US Rates Strategy Associate Will Hoffman. On this Macro Matters edition of the FICC Focus podcast, Hoffman joins co-host and BI’s Chief Interest Rate Strategist Ira Jersey to unpack the drivers and implications of a tumultuous two-week period for the Treasury market. The pair discuss key economic developments, including the recent CPI surprise that sent yields soarin...

Apr 12, 202420 min

Euro-Dollar Parity Talk, Dollar-Yuan, Intra-Asia FX: FX Moment

In our latest FX Moment podcast, Audrey Childe-Freeman, Bloomberg Intelligence chief G-10 FX strategist, and Stephen Chiu, chief Asia FX and rates strategist, reflect on navigating the G-10 and Asia foreign exchange markets in 2Q, while awaiting a shift in US economic data, Fed easing expectations and the dollar's fortunes. Audrey acknowledges recent chatter about euro-dollar parity, but doesn't embrace the view for now as much bearish news is priced in already. Stephen confirms that dollar-yuan...

Apr 10, 202415 min

Volatility Forum 2024 Part II: All Options Considered

This edition of All Options Considered is part II of the recording of the Bloomberg Volatility Forum 2024 held in London on March 19th. This is the discussion from the second panel on zero-days-to-expiry options (0DTEs) by David Cross, Co-Head of US options at DASH Financial Technologies, Henry Schwartz VP and Global Head of Client Engagement at Cboe Global Markets, JB Mackenzie, Vice President & General Manager at Robinhood and Zubin Ramdarshan, Head of Equity and Index Product Design at Eu...

Apr 08, 202444 min

Ken Feinberg on Mass Tort Mediation: State of Distressed Debt

Deadlines and ensuring the right parties are at the table are two crucial ingredients for successful mediations, according to Ken Feinberg, who was the Special Master of the Federal September 11 Victim Compensation Fund and has helped administer some of the most complex public crises in American history. He discussed mass tort’s intersection with Chapter 11 with Bloomberg Intelligence Bankruptcy Litigation Analyst Negisa Balluku (6:00). Prior to that, BI’s Noel Hebert and Phil Brendel discuss th...

Apr 05, 20241 hr 3 min

DiNapoli on NY and Taxpayer Migration: Masters of the Muniverse

New York City hasn’t fully recovered from the pandemic, and that leaves both the city and state concerned about future revenue to face any new economic contractions and market volatility. Thomas DiNapoli, State of New York comptroller, joins Bloomberg Intelligence’s Eric Kazatsky and co-host Karen Altamirano in this month’s bonus episode of the Masters of the Muniverse podcast to discuss aligning spending and revenue. This edition marks a slight departure from the previous slate of guests who ha...

Mar 30, 202429 min

Volatility Forum 2024: All Options Considered

This edition of All Options Considered is the recording of part of the Bloomberg Volatility Forum 2024 held in London on March 19th. The first part is the opening speech by BI's Chief Global Derivatives Strategist Tanvir Sandhu on macro and volatility across markets. This is followed by the recording of the discussion from the first panel on VIX and option strategies by Pierre De Saab, Partner at Dominice, Tom Leake, Head of Solutions at Capstone Investment Advisors and Valeriu Trufas, Fund Mana...

Mar 28, 202455 min

Chatterjee on Carrying in a Low-Volatility Beta Regime: EM Lens

Event risk will garner greater attention as the emerging-market election calendar heats up in May. In this month’s EM Lens & Look-Through podcast, Wells Fargo Global Macro Strategist, FX & Emerging Markets Aroop Chatterjee joins Damian Sassower, Bloomberg Intelligence chief EM credit strategist, to share his views on funding currency diversification as the EM carry trade remains alive and well. Chatterjee and Sassower discuss the propensity for currency volatility to mean-revert, debate ...

Mar 26, 202428 min

Mid-Market Lending With Jim Fellows, First Eagle: Credit Crunch

Philosophy, process, people and performance — that’s what Jim Fellows, co-president and CIO of First Eagle Alternative Credit, says underpins FEAC’s investment approach. Fellows joins hosts Noel Hebert and Sam Geier, Bloomberg Intelligence credit analysts, on this episode of Credit Crunch to talk through the value of culture, the evolution in direct lending, leveraged loans and CLOs, and why he wants credit to just be boring. They discuss mid-market lending, the right risk premium between direct...

Mar 23, 202453 min

Powell’s Dovish March Surprise With Anna Wong: Macro Matters

I think the Fed is extremely data dependent, if anything, too data dependent, says Anna Wong, chief US economist for Bloomberg Economics. In this Macro Matters edition of the FICC focus podcast, Wong joins host Ira Jersey, chief US interest rate strategist for Bloomberg Intelligence, to unpack the March FOMC meeting. The pair discuss the surprises and developments from the meeting, including revisions to the Statement of Economic Projections and their implications for the path of Fed policy. Rev...

Mar 21, 202422 min

Muni Manager’s Active Focus Bucks Tide: Masters of the Muniverse

Municipals are starting the year semi-flat, and the latest read on consumer prices won’t do much to alleviate the concern of market participants that performance could be stagnant for the foreseeable future. At the same time, there are still some areas of relative value, even though the absolute tradeoff from late 2023 has faded to a large degree. In the latest Masters of the Muniverse episode of Bloomberg Intelligence’s FICC Focus podcast, Eric Kazatsky and Karen Altamirano are joined by Jason ...

Mar 15, 202436 min

Is Credit Too Tight On Low Defaults and Rate Cuts?: Credit Crunch

Credit markets had a strong six months of rally, particularly in spreads, although not necessarily in yields. Are credit spreads too tight, and is that supported by low defaults? Is that rally justified on expected rate cuts? In this episode of our Credit Crunch podcast, host Mahesh Bhimalingam, Chief European Credit Strategist at Bloomberg Intelligence, and Marina Cohen, Head of European High Yield at Amundi Asset Management, discuss the situation in credit and the specific challenges of portfo...

Mar 12, 202451 min

Houlihan Lokey's Hardie on Yet-to-Crest Wave of Distressed Debt: State of Distressed Debt

The distressed cycle is on the upswing as rates pinch post-pandemic borrowers, in the eyes of William ‘Tuck’ Hardie, Managing Director in Houlihan Lokey’s Financial Restructuring Group (3:30). He joined the State of Distressed Debt podcast team to talk liability management transactions, where we are in the cycle, and why the involvement of private credit and CLO investors may mean more persistent distress. Tuck also shares stories from his 20-plus years with Houlihan and speaks to the culture th...

Mar 09, 20241 hr 30 min

Treasury Market Updates With AmeriVet’s Faranello: Macro Matters

The Federal Reserve is restrictive, and policymakers left themselves room to cut on the way up, says Greg Faranello, head of US rates at AmeriVet Securities. In this Macro Matters edition of the Bloomberg Intelligence FICC Focus podcast, Faranello joins hosts Ira Jersey, BI chief US rates strategist, and Will Hoffman, US rates strategy associate, to discuss the state of the Treasury market. The trio examine the recent repricing of Fed policy expectations, outlook for quantitative tightening and ...

Mar 08, 202418 min

What's Next for the Swiss Economy, the SNB and Franc?: FX Moment

In the latest FX Moment podcast, host Audrey Childe-Freeman, Bloomberg Intelligence's chief G10 FX strategist, talks about the Swiss economy, the SNB's outlook and prospects for the franc with Valerie Lemaigre, head of Investment Office and chief economist at Banque Cantonale de Geneve. In particular, Valerie and Audrey explore how the outlook for Swiss growth and inflation may sway SNB near-term monetary policy direction and why the franc's recent underperformance (to the extent that it feeds p...

Mar 06, 202419 min

JP Morgan’s Maciunas on Shifting Demand for MBS: Macro Matters

MBS demand from banks and international buyers is seen as weakening in the near term as expectations for the US Federal Reserve’s first rate cut and a taper in the pace of quantitative tightening is being pushed further into 2024, says Nick Maciunas, head of agency MBS research at JP Morgan Securities. In this Macro Matters edition of the Bloomberg Intelligence FICC Focus podcast, Maciunas joins hosts Ira Jersey, BI chief US rate strategist, and Erica Adelberg, BI’s chief US MBS strategist, to d...

Feb 29, 202425 min

Driving Illiquid Muni Pricing with AI: Masters of the Muniverse

For a market notoriously known for resisting change, the municipal bond market is arguably one of the most in need of advanced technologies. Artificial intelligence may finally bring better fair value pricing to munis’ nuanced and illiquid market. In the latest Masters of the Muniverse episode of Bloomberg Intelligence’s FICC Focus podcast, Eric Kazatsky and Karen Altamirano are joined by ficc.ai’s co-founder, Charles Elkan, to discuss how machine learning and muni ETFs can bring real-time prici...

Feb 28, 202441 min

SocGen’s Kalen Remains Upbeat on Emerging Market Carry: EM Lens

Emerging market carry should continue to outperform, as the fall in foreign exchange volatility reflects capitulation by dollar bulls. In this month’s EM Lens & Look-Through edition of Bloomberg Intelligence’s FICC Focus podcast, Phoenix Kalen, Head of EM Research at Société Générale, joins Damian Sassower, Bloomberg Intelligence chief EM fixed income strategist, to share her view on valuations and investor positioning across EM local rates, currencies and credit. Macroeconomic risks appear ...

Feb 27, 202421 min

Acadian’s Richardson Dives Into Systematic Credit: Credit Crunch

Systematic credit investors seek to capitalize on mispricings that can be overlooked or hard to identify in more traditional investment strategies. Scott Richardson, director of Systematic Credit at Acadian Asset Management, has been at the forefront of the approach and joins Bloomberg Intelligence podcast hosts Noel Hebert and Sam Geier on this episode of Credit Crunch to talk through they keys to success: Identifying relative value, modeling default forecasts, portfolio construction, comparing...

Feb 23, 20241 hr 16 min

Bitcoin ETFs, 0DTEs With CBOE: All Options Considered

In this edition of the All Options Considered podcast, BI's Chief Global Derivatives Strategist Tanvir Sandhu is joined by Catherine Clay, Global Head of Derivatives at Cboe. They discuss zero-days-to-expiry options (0DTEs), cross-asset volatility and potential for options on Bitcoin ETFs.

Feb 19, 202415 min
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