Participation in Leveraged Loans : It's Not Just About Credit Risk

Even as banks have decreased their exposure to residential mortgage loans since 2008, bank exposure to leveraged lending has risen dramatically. The $1 trillion total asset leveraged loan market poses a significant and growing source of credit risk to U.S. depository institutions and investors. Further, the full extent of the risk posed by leveraged loans as an asset class is not adequately understood by investors, regulators, and the markets as a whole. In addition to the well-documented credit risk posed by leverage loans, KBRA believes that the widespread practice of participating shares of leveraged loans represents a significant additional risk to financial institutions and other investors from this asset class