Know More. Risk Better.

From Boom To Bust: Lessons From The 1920s

This week on “Know More. Risk Better.” brings together host Zachary Griffiths along with Barry Eichengreen and Cedric Chehab for a deep dive into the parallels and differences between the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and today’s global financial landscape. The panel explores historical market booms, the impact of new technologies, fiscal dominance, and political polarization, drawing comparisons with current risks and central bank responses.  
 Barry and Cedric discuss the structural constraints of the gold standard, lessons from banking crises, and the evolving role of non-bank financial systems. They analyze deflation risks, the future of the US dollar, and the rise of gold in central banks’ portfolios, highlighting ongoing challenges for policymakers and investors. This insightful discussion provides valuable context for professionals and market participants seeking to understand macroeconomic trends, global finance, and risk management in today’s interconnected world. 

Credit Cockroaches: Infestation or Isolation?

This week on “Know More. Risk Better.” Zachary Griffiths is joined by Peter Simon and Meghan Neenan to unpack the latest “cockroach risk” headlines in U.S. capital markets, following bankruptcies at Tricolor and First Brands. The team analyzes credit quality trends for regional banks and BDCs, finding that fundamentals remain solid and recent losses are idiosyncratic, not symptomatic of broader stress. 
Meghan highlights differentiation across BDCs, notes that exposures to recent bankruptcies were minimal and mainly linked to broadly syndicated loans, not private credit. The discussion explores leverage, dividend management as rates fall, and a looming 2026 maturity wall. The team flags growing liquidity and suitability risks as perpetual BDCs and private asset vehicles expand and touches on the increasing interconnectedness between banks and non-bank lenders. 

Hot Takes & Cold Data: The 2026 Economic Bingo Card

Season 9, Episode 15This week "Know More. Risk Better." offers a comprehensive macro outlook for 2026, examining how private sector adaptation and fiscal stimulus helped mitigate 2025's tariff shocks while exploring key takeaways from recent IMF meetings - including cautious relief on trade impacts, excitement about AI-driven capex, and concerns about equity valuations and labor market weakness. The discussion navigates critical tensions facing policymakers, particularly the Fed's challenge balancing conflicting inflation and employment signals, debates over tariff pass-through to consumer prices, and questions about AI investment sustainability amid uncertain returns.
The panel analyzes market-macro disconnects as equities rally despite mounting headwinds, assesses German fiscal expansion's potential boost to European growth, and highlights China's structural vulnerabilities beneath headline GDP figures, including collapsing fixed asset investment and persistent deflation. The episode concludes with contrarian takes for 2026: potential dollar strength despite bearish consensus, heightened China macro risks, and fundamentals returning to credit markets after a technically-driven year, providing essential perspective for navigating policy uncertainty and evolving global risks.

SEC Shifting to Semiannual Reporting Requirements?

Season 9, Episode 14 
This week “Know More. Risk Better.” offers a focused analysis on the SEC’s potential shift from quarterly to semiannual reporting, highlighting legal, covenant, and credit market impacts as the change is considered for US issuers. The panel begins with an overview of the SEC rulemaking process and regulatory drivers, then explores practical and legal challenges, such as disclosure consistency, litigation risks, and the continued role of anti-fraud obligations. Covenant experts review implications for bond and loan agreements, noting that most public company covenants defer to SEC requirements, while sponsor and private deals often maintain stricter quarterly reporting regardless of regulatory changes.  
The discussion also examines market dynamics, including investor pressure for timely updates, impacts on spreads and volatility, and possible changes in management communication strategies. The team assesses how reduced reporting frequency may influence market structure, sell-side research, liquidity, and ETF rebalancing, emphasizing the importance of best practices for consistent material event disclosures. Panelists conclude that while the rule change may require a gradual adjustment period, actual market impacts will depend on issuer fundamentals, covenant language, and evolving investor expectations. 

High Score! EA’s Record-Setting LBO

Season 9, Episode 13
This week on “Know More. Risk Better.” Zachary Griffiths sits down with Hunter Martin and Kerry Kantin to break down the largest LBO on record: EA’s $55 billion take-private deal. The team unpacks the investor consortium behind the transaction, led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, explores why the equity check is unusually large, and analyzes the implications for EA’s balance sheet, leverage, and outstanding bonds. 
They discuss deal timing, with early 2026 targeted for closing, and regulatory hurdles including antitrust and national security reviews. The conversation expands to current market conditions, expectations for future LBO activity, and the impact of elevated rates and AI-driven growth on deal making. Listen for clear takeaways on base case scenarios, market probabilities, and positioning around legal and macro catalysts that could influence spreads and sector performance. 

Global Strategy Outlook: 4Q25/Preliminary 2026

Season 9, Episode 12
This extended episode provides a comprehensive outlook across US, Euro, EM, and APAC credit markets as we head into 4Q25 and 2026. In US Credit Markets, the team sets an updated macro outlook and credit strategy, flags key trends shaping sovereign and corporate credit, and identifies the risk factors and market catalysts to watch. In Euro Credit Markets, they review sovereign and credit fundamentals, assess sector developments and potential issuer themes, and discuss the implications of policy and macro shifts across the region. For Emerging Market Sovereigns, they share the latest perspectives on EM credit risk and performance, highlight regional and country-specific views, and outline approaches to navigating volatility in global EM credit. In APAC Credit Markets, they examine risk factors and market catalysts, provide the latest read on APAC EM credit risk and performance, and review sovereign and corporate credit fundamentals across the region.

25 for 25: The Future of Credit Research: Looking to the Next 25 Years

Special Edition Podcast Mini Series: 25 for 25: E5
In the finale of our 25 for 25 series, Winnie Cisar and Zachary Griffiths host CreditSights Co-Heads Erin Lyons and Matt Zloto to explore the future of credit research. They discuss AI’s role in improving efficiency and expanding coverage, the rise of private credit and related regulatory implications, and why people-powered insights and skeptical analysis still matter - plus how CreditSights is investing in talent and purpose-built tools to cut through noise and deliver actionable ideas.

25 for 25: Power in Partnership: Collaboration Across Businesses

Special Edition Podcast Mini Series: 25 for 25: E4
Winnie Cisar and Zachary Griffiths host a special 25th anniversary roundtable with Tony Canale, Luke Millar, Andrew Maier, and Beau Kuhn exploring how collaboration across the CreditSights and wider Fitch family creates investor advantage. They break down how news flow from LFI, covenant insights from Covenant Review, fundamental analysis from CreditSights, and data standardization from Bixby combine to deliver what Beau calls "the power of three plus data and analytics."
Expect candid insights on how human expertise remains the essential differentiator in an increasingly data-driven world, plus a preview of future innovations including enhanced primary transaction coverage, European BSL market expansion, and AI-powered trade idea generation that will further integrate the "technicolor picture" these complementary businesses create together.