ClearPar September Insights: Loan market trends, Master Participation automation, and ClearPar Analytics

The September edition of ClearPar Connect Live brought together James Irwin (Head of ClearPar, EMEA) and Jack Colombini (Head of ClearPar, Americas) to explore market trends, recent platform updates, and what’s ahead for the rest of the year. It was a busy summer across both the LSTA and LMA markets, and the conversation highlighted how record volumes are shaping a “new normal” while automation and new analytics are giving participants more tools than ever to adapt.

Secondary market strength and the “new normal”

Secondary trading remained healthy through the summer months. After April and May set all-time records, volumes have now stabilized at levels far above those seen in prior years. In Q3, LSTA secondary par volumes were up 34% year-on-year, while the LMA market posted a 27% increase. What’s just as notable is that settlement times have held steady — in fact, slightly improving in the LSTA market — showing the efficiency gains made possible by agent integration and automation.

Primary issuance also surprised to the upside during what is often a slower period. Refinancings, restructurings, and new deals kept activity strong, with EMEA primary volumes 50% higher than last year. The contribution of these trends put 2025 firmly on track to be the busiest year yet for secondary trading.

Efficiency and integration on the rise

Agents continue to support greater market wide efficiency. Among the top 12 agents in the LSTA market, 93% of settlements this year have closed through integrated workflows. In Europe, four out of five trades are now settled via an electronically integrated Agent. Custodian messaging has become near-ubiquitous as well, ensuring payments flow seamlessly even in periods of high volume. Private credit also remains an area of focus: despite recent slower months, more than 25,000 secondary trade allocations have already settled year-to-date..

Recent enhancements you may have missed

Over the summer, several small but meaningful improvements were introduced to ClearPar. The Agent review process is now smoother when a Security Agent is involved, trade list views have been expanded to 100 trades, and Agents can now maintain private disqualified entity lists at deal level. Theres also been a heavy focus on user self-administration features, from trade account settings to the upcoming default routing, while institutions can now answer transfer questions in bulk — complete with ‘previously saved responses. Each change is designed to support more efficient workflows and reduce manual effort.

Spotlight on Master Participation

One of the biggest milestones this month is the launch of ClearPar Master Participation functionality. This new capability allows users to link together and track trades involved in the same Master Participation Agreement, generate an up-to-date Master Schedule, and efficiently elevate to agents for settlement via Assignment. Crucially, it introduces a proper funding workflow, eliminating duplicate funding notices and aligning settlements with the participation agreement date. Whether clients prefer to elevate trades immediately or post-funding, the flexibility is built in.

A dedicated webinar on October 8^th will take a deeper dive into this new feature, including a demo and supporting materials. Register for the session here!

ClearPar Analytics now available for Party & Agent

ClearPar Analytics is now available, providing on-demand reporting and data visualization across the ClearPar dataset. It combines pre-built dashboards with the flexibility to create fully customized reports, covering everything from trade details and characteristics, to delayed compensation economics and settlement performance.

The new Agent module offers institutions access to a vast set of Agent data and reporting capabilities for the first time. Agents can benchmark turnaround times, track counterparty readiness, and drill into performance at a granular level. With more than 250 data points to work with, ClearPar Analytics puts data-driven decision-making at the center of loan settlement.

Looking Ahead

The roadmap for the rest of 2025 and intro early 2026 is one packed full of big ticket deliverables. An AI-driven in-platform chat feature will soon provide guidance and training support. Restructure functionality, one of the largest projects undertaken to date, will allow trades to roll seamlessly into new facilities and ensure documents are updated instantly, signatures retained, and pricing documents incorporate both facilities.. Additional self-administration features, new pricing document updates, and expanded ClearPar Analytics dashboards are also on the horizon.

Closing Thoughts

View the September webinar on demand to gain deeper insights into market trends, Master Participations, and how ClearPar Analytics can help institutions manage volume and improve operational performance.

Don’t miss the upcoming dedicated Master Participation webinar on October 8 — register now to see a full demo of the dashboard, Master Schedule, workflow features, and learn how to make the most of these tools.

Missed our July edition? Read the essential insights here.