It was great to be back in Barcelona for Global ABS 2026, which marked the conference’s 30th anniversary and attracted close to 6,000 participants from across the global structured finance market.
Matheson was delighted to sponsor the event and have strong representation from our Structured Finance and Listing team, including Christian Donagh, Alan Keating, William Foot, Alan Bunbury, Gearoid Murphy, Nichola O’Reilly and Jamie Quirke.
The mood across the conference was noticeably positive. While market participants continue to navigate geopolitical uncertainty, evolving regulation and a higher interest rate environment, there was a clear sense that the market has moved beyond recovery mode and is now focused on growth and innovation.
Some of our key takeaways included:
- Regulatory Reform and the Evolution of European Securitisation: There was broad consensus that a more proportionate and efficient regulatory framework will be critical to improving the competitiveness of European securitisation markets and attracting greater investor participation. You can read more about the status of the current regulatory landscape in our recent article here.
- AI is becoming a practical reality: Discussions around artificial intelligence have moved beyond theory. The focus is now on how AI can enhance credit analysis, due diligence, portfolio monitoring and compliance processes, while recognising that high-quality, standardised data remains the foundation for successful implementation.
- CLOs continue to demonstrate resilience: The CLO market remained one of the busiest topics on the agenda, with strong investor demand and continued confidence in structured credit despite ongoing economic uncertainty.
- SRT transactions continue to grow: Significant Risk Transfer transactions remain an increasingly important capital management tool for banks, with strong interest from both issuers and investors.
- Infrastructure and data centres are attracting increasing attention: As demand for digital infrastructure accelerates, data centres featured prominently in discussions around infrastructure finance. Investors are increasingly focused on opportunities to finance the assets underpinning AI, cloud computing and digital transformation, alongside more traditional transport and energy infrastructure projects.
- Credit discipline remains key: While investor appetite remains strong, there was a consistent focus on transparency, underwriting standards and portfolio performance. In a more complex environment, selectivity continues to be rewarded.
- New asset classes and funding structures continue to emerge: Innovation across asset-backed finance remains a key driver of market growth, with increased interest in forward-flow structures and alternative funding solutions.
Overall, Global ABS 2026 reinforced the continued strength and adaptability of the structured finance market. The combination of regulatory reform, technological innovation, growing infrastructure investment and evolving funding structures points to a market that is well positioned for the opportunities ahead.
