Unlocking Alternatives: Seeking Opportunities in Specialty Finance

Text on screen: PIMCO

Text on screen: PIMCO provides services only to qualified institutions and investors. This is not an offer to any person in any jurisdiction where unlawful or unauthorized

Text on screen: What is specialty finance?

Text on screen: Kyle McCarthy, Alternative Credit Strategist

Kyle McCarthy: Specialty finance refers to any kind of private lending that is outside the scope of corporate and commercial real estate markets. It is often secured by an asset, typically hard collateral supporting the cash flows of the investment itself.

This could be a house, a car, aircraft, equipment, even business receivables and intellectual property, just to name a few. Practically speaking though,

Text on screen: Specialty finance refers to unique assets in the private lending markets that are cash flow-producing

Images on screen: Home exterior, car driving down a road, airplane taking off, microphone inside a studio

within the private credit and private lending markets, it really refers to more unique, unconventional, idiosyncratic or diversifying assets that are cash flow producing. So this falls within the broader category of performing credit, rather than stressed and distressed type investment strategies.

These collateral types are typically less widely held and often lead to pretty complex investments that require a great degree of structuring expertise, strong sourcing relationships and portfolio manager specialisation. This is a very broad reaching heterogeneous space overall.

Today, the investment universe is actually quite scalable and it has continued to grow as a result of a number of factors:

Text on screen: TITLE – Reasons why the specialty finance market has grown: BULLETS – Stringent regulation, Balance sheet constraints, Adoption from institutional investors, Demand for diversification

Stringent regulation, continued balance sheet constraints, greater adoption from institutional investors, as well as increased demand from investors seeking greater diversification and other high quality sources of income as we see private debt allocations more broadly continue to mature across investor portfolios.

It’s worth noting that the terms specialty finance, specialty lending and asset-based lending are all essentially synonymous with one another and are used interchangeably throughout the industry.

Text on screen: How diverse are the opportunities in specialty finance?

One way of thinking about the entire universe of specialty finance is to break it down into three main sub-components:

IMAGE: TITLE – Specialty lending opportunities: LIST – Consumer: consumer loans, credit card receivables, auto loans, student loans, residential credit. Commercial: Small business loans, aviation finance, equipment finance, tech infrastructure, trade finance, NPL portfolios. Esoteric: Music royalties, drug royalties, litigation, life settlements, collateralized reinsurance, capital relief.

those being consumer, commercial, and then esoteric or niche.

The consumer category is relatively straightforward. It includes a lot of consumer-oriented credit and debt such as autos, credit card receivables, student loans, and residential mortgage credit.

The next category is commercial or non-consumer, and these are more corporate-related assets. So things like aviation finance, or aircraft leasing, equipment finance, small business loans, or even trade finance.

The last category – the esoteric or more niche-type investments – tend to be less trafficked asset types. They also tend to not have direct ties to the broader business cycle and as a result may be quite uncorrelated to financial markets: like equities, interest rates, even traditional credit. So these include investments like music royalties, litigation finance, reinsurance, and even portfolio solutions or portfolio finance.

Text on screen: What are the key benefits specialty finance may offer to investors?

Text on screen: TITLE – Potential benefits: BULLETS – Attractive yield, Diversification, Downside risk mitigation

First and foremost, relatively attractive yields overall. These tend to be high income producing assets, where you're really trying to focus on capturing that private market illiquidity premium.

The second potential benefit is diversification. Given the idiosyncratic nature of the underlying assets themselves, these can really be complementary to an investor's portfolio with little to no overlap with credit exposures elsewhere within their broader asset allocation, given how unique and uniquely sourced many of these assets are.

And then last but not least, potential downside risk mitigation, just given the cash flow profiles that are secured by the collateral and oftentimes these assets have structural seniority at the top of the capital structure.

Text on screen: What role can specialty finance play in a broader asset allocation?

The most common placement that we typically see is within a broader private credit allocation.

Text on screen: Role 1: Complement to corporate direct lending

Images on screen: PIMCO trade floor

So here it's used as a complement to corporate direct lending, which has tended to be the primary focus for a lot of clients in recent years. There are a lot of similarities here to what you would typically see within private credit: so high income potential, senior secured placement within the broader capital structure, but focused entirely on more unconventional, non-corporate related assets and markets as we discussed earlier. And in many cases, with very limited competition and a lot less crowding than we typically see in the corporate credit space.

Text on screen: Role 2: Extension to fixed income

Images on screen: PIMCO trade floor

Secondarily, some clients view specialty finance as a natural extension to traditional fixed income – it has many similar attributes such as producing income and offering downside risk mitigation, but with different exposures from traditional fixed income.

Here at PIMCO, we approach the space in a diversified opportunistic way. So we're applying a relative value lens across the different asset classes, focusing on those areas that we believe offer the best risk-adjusted returns while avoiding those where we think fundamentals are less attractive.

Text on screen: For more insights and information, visit pimco.com

Text on screen: PIMCO

DISCLOSURE

IMPORTANT NOTICE

Please note that the following contains the opinions of the manager as of the date noted and may not have been updated to reflect real time market developments. All opinions are subject to change without notice.

All investments contain risk and may lose value. Private credit involves an investment in non-publically traded securities which may be subject to illiquidity risk. Portfolios that invest in private credit may be leveraged and may engage in speculative investment practices that increase the risk of investment loss. Investments in illiquid securities may reduce the returns of a portfolio because it may be not be able to sell the securities at an advantageous time or price.  The value of real estate and portfolios that invest in real estate may fluctuate due to: losses from casualty or condemnation, changes in local and general economic conditions, supply and demand, interest rates, property tax rates, regulatory limitations on rents, zoning laws, and operating expenses.

Investing in the bond market is subject to risks, including market, interest rate, issuer, credit, inflation risk, and liquidity risk. The value of most bonds and bond strategies are impacted by changes in interest rates. Bonds and bond strategies with longer durations tend to be more sensitive and volatile than those with shorter durations; bond prices generally fall as interest rates rise, and low interest rate environments increase this risk. Reductions in bond counterparty capacity may contribute to decreased market liquidity and increased price volatility. Bond investments may be worth more or less than the original cost when redeemed. Equities may decline in value due to both real and perceived general market, economic and industry conditions. Diversification does not ensure against loss.

The correlation of various indexes or securities against one another or against inflation is based upon data over a certain time period. These correlations may vary substantially in the future or over different time periods that can result in greater volatility.

Statements concerning financial market trends or portfolio strategies are based on current market conditions, which will fluctuate. There is no guarantee that these investment strategies will work under all market conditions or are appropriate for all investors and each investor should evaluate their ability to invest for the long term, especially during periods of downturn in the market. Outlook and strategies are subject to change without notice.

This material contains the opinions of the manager and such opinions are subject to change without notice. This material has been distributed for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy or investment product. Information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but not guaranteed.

PIMCO as a general matter provides services to qualified institutions, financial intermediaries and institutional investors. Individual investors should contact their own financial professional to determine the most appropriate investment options for their financial situation. This is not an offer to any person in any jurisdiction where unlawful or unauthorized. | Pacific Investment Management Company LLC, 650 Newport Center Drive, Newport Beach, CA 92660 is regulated by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. | PIMCO Europe Ltd (Company No. 2604517) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (12 Endeavour Square, London E20 1JN) in the UK. The services provided by PIMCO Europe Ltd are not available to retail investors, who should not rely on this communication but contact their financial adviser. | PIMCO Europe GmbH (Company No. 192083, Seidlstr. 24-24a, 80335 Munich, Germany), PIMCO Europe GmbH Italian Branch (Company No. 10005170963), PIMCO Europe GmbH Irish Branch  (Company No. 909462), PIMCO Europe GmbH UK Branch (Company No. 2604517) and PIMCO Europe GmbH Spanish Branch (N.I.F. W2765338E) are authorised and regulated by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) (Marie- Curie-Str. 24-28, 60439 Frankfurt am Main) in Germany in accordance with Section 15 of the German Securities Institutions Act (WpIG).  The Italian Branch, Irish Branch, UK Branch and Spanish Branch are additionally supervised by: (1) Italian Branch: the Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa (CONSOB) in accordance with Article 27 of the Italian Consolidated Financial Act; (2) Irish Branch: the Central Bank of Ireland in accordance with Regulation 43 of the European Union (Markets in Financial Instruments) Regulations 2017, as amended; (3) UK Branch: the Financial Conduct Authority; and (4) Spanish Branch: the Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV) in accordance with obligations stipulated in articles 168 and  203  to 224, as well as obligations contained in Tile V, Section I of the Law on the Securities Market (LSM) and in articles 111, 114 and 117 of Royal Decree 217/2008, respectively. The services provided by PIMCO Europe GmbH are available only to professional clients as defined in Section 67 para. 2 German Securities Trading Act (WpHG). They are not available to individual investors, who should not rely on this communication.| PIMCO (Schweiz) GmbH (registered in Switzerland, Company No. CH-020.4.038.582-2). The services provided by PIMCO (Schweiz) GmbH are not available to retail investors, who should not rely on this communication but contact their financial adviser. | PIMCO Asia Pte Ltd (Registration No. 199804652K) is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore as a holder of a capital markets services licence and an exempt financial adviser. The asset management services and investment products are not available to persons where provision of such services and products is unauthorised. | PIMCO Asia Limited is licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission for Types 1, 4 and 9 regulated activities under the Securities and Futures Ordinance. PIMCO Asia Limited is registered as a cross-border discretionary investment manager with the Financial Supervisory Commission of Korea (Registration No. 08-02-307). The asset management services and investment products are not available to persons where provision of such services and products is unauthorised. | PIMCO Investment Management (Shanghai) Limited Unit 3638-39, Phase II Shanghai IFC, 8 Century Avenue, Pilot Free Trade Zone, Shanghai, 200120, China (Unified social credit code: 91310115MA1K41MU72) is registered with Asset Management Association of China as Private Fund Manager (Registration No. P1071502, Type: Other) | PIMCO Australia Pty Ltd ABN 54 084 280 508, AFSL 246862. This publication has been prepared without taking into account the objectives, financial situation or needs of investors. Before making an investment decision, investors should obtain professional advice and consider whether the information contained herein is appropriate having regard to their objectives, financial situation and needs. | PIMCO Japan Ltd, Financial Instruments Business Registration Number is Director of Kanto Local Finance Bureau (Financial Instruments Firm) No. 382. PIMCO Japan Ltd is a member of Japan Investment Advisers Association, The Investment Trusts Association, Japan and Type II Financial Instruments Firms Association. All investments contain risk. There is no guarantee that the principal amount of the investment will be preserved, or that a certain return will be realized; the investment could suffer a loss. All profits and losses incur to the investor. The amounts, maximum amounts and calculation methodologies of each type of fee and expense and their total amounts will vary depending on the investment strategy, the status of investment performance, period of management and outstanding balance of assets and thus such fees and expenses cannot be set forth herein. | PIMCO Taiwan Limited is managed and operated independently. The reference number of business license of the company approved by the competent authority is (110) Jin Guan Tou Gu Xin Zi No. 020. 40F., No.68, Sec. 5, Zhongxiao E. Rd., Xinyi Dist., Taipei City 110, Taiwan (R.O.C.). Tel: +886 2 8729-5500. | PIMCO Canada Corp. (199 Bay Street, Suite 2050, Commerce Court Station, P.O. Box 363, Toronto, ON, M5L 1G2) services and products may only be available in certain provinces or territories of Canada and only through dealers authorized for that purpose. | PIMCO Latin America Av. Brigadeiro Faria Lima 3477, Torre A, 5° andar São Paulo, Brazil 04538-133. | No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written permission. PIMCO is a trademark of Allianz Asset Management of America L.P. in the United States and throughout the world. ©2022, PIMCO.

CMR2022-0118-1980279