2020 was a difficult year for the world, and a challenging year for credit. In our corner of the credit market – fund finance – lenders’ initial response to the pandemic was to pause and re-assess risk exposures.

On January 1, 2021 the Corporate Transparency Act (“the Act”) was passed into law by incorporation into the  National Defense Authorization Act. This marks an important step in bringing the USA into compliance with international transparency standards.

Investors continued to demand higher levels of transparency from managers throughout 2020 on their Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles, processes and procedures – a trend that accelerated during the pandemic and one that is here to stay in 2021 and beyond.

Despite the desire to move forward without looking back, it seems inevitable that 2020 will be discussed and referred to for many years to come, characterised by a numerous and complex set of pressures and demands from various stakeholders.