Global ABS 2024 Conference Highlights: Market Updates, Panel Discussions, and Regulatory Insights
The Global ABS 2024 conference in Barcelona drew a record number of attendees, with over 5,000 registered participants, including 2,000 issuers and investors. The event, hosted by AFME and Invisso, marked its 28th anniversary as the largest annual European structured finance conference.
The conference reflected the positive momentum of European securitisation markets in 2024, with new transaction issuance starting the year on a strong note. Investors arrived with a positive outlook for the months ahead, as highlighted in KBRA’s quarterly issuance report.
Day one panels covered a range of topics including asset-backed securities (ABS), collateralised loan obligations (CLOs), commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), and nonperforming loans (NPL). Discussions also touched on regulation, synthetic risk transfer securities, and the role of private securitisations in the market.
One panel focused on securitisation markets globally, with a particular emphasis on the US and Australian markets. Panellists discussed the increasing role of private securitisations and the dominance of nonbank lenders in the European market. They also highlighted the growth of standardised, transparent, and simple verified transactions.
Another panel explored the use of artificial intelligence in credit scoring for lending, as well as the performance of European consumer borrowers in the face of rising interest rates. The discussion also touched on new products and trends in the market, such as buy now, pay later lending and subscription products.
The conference also featured panels on private securitisations, CLOs, market outlook, and securitisation regulations. Speakers discussed topics such as maturity amendments, reclassification concepts, restructuring, and recent developments in European CLOs.
Overall, the conference provided valuable insights into the state of the European securitisation market, with discussions on performance, trends, and regulatory challenges. Attendees left with a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing the industry in the coming months.