Polar Asset Raises $300 Million Fund for Booming Credit Trade
- Toronto-based firm launches vehicle for credit risk transfers
- Canadian banks increasingly offloading risk to other investors
Bank of Montreal, Bank of Nova Scotia and Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) buildings in the financial district of Toronto
Photographer: Chloe Ellingson/BloombergCanada’s Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. raised $300 million for a fund that will invest in credit risk transfers, taking advantage of a trend that sees banks offloading risk into a fast-growing corner of the credit markets.
The fund offers institutional investors a way of participating in the transactions with Canadian and global banks, according to a statement seen by Bloomberg. Polar CRS Fund-1 — the acronym stands for “credit risk sharing” — is likely to be the first in a series of similar vehicles, the Toronto-based firm said.