From USD 18 to 40 Billion
The Nordic High-Yield (NHY) market has experienced a strong growth surge since 2019: the market value has risen from around USD 18 billion to roughly USD 40 billion – an increase of about 120%. Over the same period, the more established High Yield markets expanded at a much more moderate pace (European High Yield: +48%, US High Yield: +24%). At the same time, the investor base has shifted: the share of Northern European investors declined from 59% (2022) to 32%, while UK and US investors together increased their share to 43%.
“What was long considered a regional niche has developed into a liquid, internationally sought-after submarket with robust primary market dynamics.” Benedikt Schröder, Senior Portfolio Manager, Seahawk Investments
Structural Advantages as a Catalyst
One driver of this market maturity is the streamlined new issuance framework: new issues do not require an official rating; the documentation is significantly more compact at around 200 pages compared to a typical US-prospectus (~600 pages). Issuances often take place under Norwegian law with medium-sized volumes starting at about USD 50 million – a setup that enables swift placements and access to underserved tranches.
“The Nordic bond framework is efficient: lower barriers, clear documentation, short time to market – ideal conditions for capturing premiums in smaller, less standardized tranches.” – Benedikt Schröder
Floating Rates as an Interest Rate Cushion, Higher Coupons as Return Drivers
In the challenging bond year 2022, NHY demonstrated remarkable resilience: as of September 29, 2022, US High Yield reached a low of -14.9%, while the drawdown of NHY was only -1.5% – an outperformance of around 14.7 percentage points. The main reason is the high share of floating-rate notes (60–70%) and the correspondingly low interest-rate duration (~0.93% vs. ~4.4% in US High Yield). In addition, Nordic High Yield bonds offer, on average, higher coupons (~8%) and a spread premium of roughly +150 Bp compared to US High Yield.
Source: Bllomberg; 30.09.2025
Broader Sector Base – Opportunities in Energy, Transport, and Offshore
As the market volume expanded, heterogeneity increased: the share of oil & gas dropped from 64% (2009) to below 20%, while transport and energy infrastructure gained importance. For specialized, actively managed portfolios, this creates a diversified universe – from offshore services and shipping to transmission and distribution operators – with pronounced idiosyncratic spread drivers. The combined share of oil & gas, transport, and energy currently stands at about one-third – offering attractive investment opportunities in Seahawk’s focus sectors.
Primary Market: High Activity, Clear New Issue Premiums
The Nordic primary market continues to set records; placements are often well covered by books and, particularly for debut issuers, offer noticeable new-issue premiums. Liquidity in the secondary market depends on issue size but is compensated by a higher liquidity premium – an additional return component for selective buyers.
Source: Bllomberg; 30.09.2025
Strategic Positioning
Within a benchmark-free, sector-focused credit approach, Nordic High Yield serves as a component offering short duration, above-average carry, and recurring primary market opportunities.
In the October report, the Seahawk Credit Opportunities Fund reported an investment quota of 107%, an effective duration of 2.3%, and a market-weighted coupon of 8.2% for the overall portfolio. The focus included shipping (24%) and oil services (20%); Europe accounted for 55% of the geographic allocation. Selective participation in Nordic primary market transactions – such as Navios Maritime – was noted. The Nordic High Yield segment currently represents 37% of the portfolio and is one of its key focus areas.
Our complete Quarterly Note can be found at the following link: Quarterly Note 3
Disclaimer
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Recommendations and forecasts are non-binding estimates of future events. They can therefore prove to be inaccurate regarding the future development of a product. The information contained in this document is based exclusively on the date on which this “CI” was provided. A guarantee for the actuality and correctness cannot be given. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.
This information is protected by copyright; no reproduction or commercial use is permitted. Date: October 31st, 2025.
Author/Issuer: Hubertus Clausius, Seahawk Investments GmbH, Bettinastrasse 62, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Investment advice according to section 2 para. 2 no. 4 German Wertpapierinstitutsgesetz (WpIG).
Seahawk Investments GmbH is authorized to provide financial portfolio management, investment advisory services, as well as investment mediation and contract brokering in accordance with Section 15 Paragraph 1 in conjunction with Section 2 Paragraph 2 Nos. 3, 4, 5, and 9 of the WpIG (Securities Institutions Act) and is subject to supervision by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin). Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht (BaFin) Marie-Curie-Straße 24-28, D-60439 Frankfurt am Main.