UK universities pension plan in novel deal with Credit Suisse

The pension plan for UK universities has snapped up most of a $3.1bn portfolio of loans backed by lending to European companies, in a collaboration with Credit Suisse which highlights the shifting roles of banks and investors in the continent’s capital markets.

The £55bn Universities Superannuation Scheme has agreed to provide debt financing to private equity and asset management groups that have raised so-called direct lending funds. These funds make loans to medium-sized businesses, displacing traditional bank lending.

It comes as Credit Suisse undertakes a reordering of its business designed to reduce activity which requires large commitments of capital, in favour of advising clients in return for regular fees.

In the first deal of its kind for a UK pension fund, the collaboration begins with the Swiss investment bank offloading most of a portfolio of loans and loan commitments made in 2014 and 2015, typically lasting five to seven years. The bank, which retains a small portion of the original lending, will manage the pool of loans and arrange new financing for USS on the same basis.

Ben Levenstein, head of private credit and special situations for USS, said the pension fund allocates a quarter of its capital to investments where it can earn a higher income than equivalent securities in public markets, which can be easily bought and sold. “We do have a tolerance for illiquid assets,” he said.

The $3.1bn of existing lending commitments to groups such as GSO Capital Partners, part of the alternative investment group Blackstone, will eventually be backed by around $6bn of lending to medium-sized businesses, in competition with commercial banks.

“Non-bank lending is a structural shift in capital markets, and the asset managers want a funding source not reliant on bank financing,’’ said Jonathan Moore, co-head of credit products in Europe, the Middle East and Africa for Credit Suisse.

Several years of very low interest rates have forced pension funds to search for unusual sources of income, at the same time as regulatory changes have caused many banks to conserve capital. Since 2013, $119bn has been raised for direct lending, by more than 200 investment funds, according to Preqin, a data provider.

The funds typically lend to businesses with earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of less than €50m, too small to access public debt markets. A borrower might expect to pay 600-800 basis points above interbank borrowing costs, for a five-year loan.

Asset managers boost investment returns by raising debt against the funds. The lending commitments arranged by Credit Suisse are so-called senior loans, financing half the value of the underlying portfolio at low risk. The typical cost of such funding is around 250-300 basis points over interbank borrowing costs, according to participants in the market.

While the deal may be a model for institutional investors to follow, USS is unusual among large UK pension schemes which offer defined benefits to members in retirement. USS remains open to new members and continues to make new investments as contributions flow in.