2026 has been a year of multifaceted uncertainty for borrowers and lenders across the leveraged finance market—but conditions have improved from early-year lows, settling into a trend of solid issuance volume and borrower-friendly pricing. There continues to be cautious optimism around further improvement in M&A activity and the resiliency of economic conditions as we move towards 2027. Learn more about performance and trends shaping the leveraged finance market in our latest report.
William Blair Leveraged Lending Index
Each quarter we ask middle-market lenders to rate overall conditions in the leveraged finance market on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the most borrower-friendly conceivable.
