Following Global Credit Data’s recent Loss Given Default (LGD) report, Nina Brumma, Head of Research and Analytics at Global Credit Data, explores what happens when a corporate defaults and how banks can manage the risk in Global Banking & Finance Review.
Despite a slow but steady remission from the global economic crisis at the end of the last decade, global debt has reached a record-breaking $237 trillion. As a result, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) voiced concern in its latest Global Financial Stability Report, stating, “the prolonged period of loose financial conditions in recent years has raised concerns that financial intermediaries and investors … may have extended too much credit to risky borrowers.”
This serves as a warning to banks and corporates, asking them to consider the consequences of corporates beginning to default on their debts. Especially with less familiar or riskier borrowers, it is therefore essential for financial institutions to seek collateral for their loans, and for the debt to take seniority if the borrowing body defaults. This maximizes the chances of a near-full recovery in the case of a default.
This said, Global Credit Data’s recent LGD report, which compiles statistics from over 50 member banks since 2000, reveals that, on average, banks recover 75% of defaulted corporate debt. And given that defaulted debt accounts for just 1% of the average bank’s loan book, it means banks recover a total of 99.75% of all corporate debt – before factoring in profit from interest payments and coupons. If a company has taken the right precautions, a bank can feel comfortable in a climate of low LGD.
For more information, read the full article here and the full report here.
S&P Global Ratings has published its inaugural edition of U.S Corporate Insights – answering the questions on investors’ mind regarding the latest corporate credit trends, such as: how are looming trade wars and higher debt levels affecting appetite? And, as we near the latter stages of the credit cycle, is the current state of play one of peak, plateau, or peril?
