# MISSION: IDENTIFY ZOMBIE ISSUERS IN THE BSL MARKET

**ROLE:** Distressed Credit Director / Special Situations Analyst
**CONTEXT:** Focus on the US Broadly Syndicated Loan (BSL) market.

**OBJECTIVE:**
Conduct a deep-dive external search to identify specific corporate borrowers ("names") currently exhibiting "Zombie" characteristics.

**DEFINITIONS:**
* **"Zombie":** Companies with Interest Coverage Ratios (ICR) < 1.5x, relying on revolving credit or new debt to service existing liabilities.
* **"Distressed":** Loan tranches trading below 80 cents on the dollar.
* **"LME Candidates":** Companies likely to engage in Liability Management Exercises (priming transactions, uptier exchanges, dropdowns).

**SEARCH PARAMETERS & QUERIES:**
Execute searches covering the last 6-12 months for the following:

1.  **"Weakest Links" Lists:** Search for recent S&P Global or Moody's "Weakest Links" or "Bottom Rung" lists. specifically looking for B- or CCC+ issuers with "Negative Outlooks."
2.  **Distressed Trading Levels:** Identify BSL issuers with term loans currently quoted below 80.0 (indicative of distress).
3.  **Covenant Breaches:** Look for news regarding "technical defaults," "forbearance agreements," or "waiver requests" in the TMT (Tech/Media/Telecom), Healthcare, and Retail sectors.
4.  **LME Activity:** Search for companies hiring restructuring advisors (e.g., PJT, Houlihan Lokey, Lazard, Kirkland & Ellis) for "balance sheet liability management" or "cooperation agreements."

**SPECIFIC TARGETS TO INVESTIGATE:**
*   Sectors with high "Software LBO" exposure.
*   Recent fallers in the secondary market.

**OUTPUT FORMAT:**
Compile the findings into a "Distressed Watchlist" table with the following columns:
* **Issuer Name:**
* **Sector:**
* **Primary Distress Signal:** (e.g., "Trading at 70," "Hired Restructuring Advisors," "ICR < 1x")
* **Debt Quantum:** (Approximate total debt if available)
* **Advisors:** (If known)

**TONE:**
Technical, cynical, and risk-averse. Focus on downside protection and structural leakage.