distressed-debt
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The Bank That Wins When Everyone Else Is Losing
It ranks No. 1 in global M&A by deal count and No. 1 in restructuring. One of those businesses thrives in good times, the other in bad. Houlihan Lokey owns both.
9fin
9fin is a London-based, AI-native intelligence platform for the global debt markets. Founded in 2016 by former banker Steven Hunter and former engineer Huss El-Sheikh, it uses machine learning to extract structured data from dense financial documents and pairs that data with news, analytics, and AI-powered workflows. Its platform covers leveraged loans, high-yield bonds, distressed debt, CLOs, private credit, and asset-based finance, and is used by investment banks, asset managers, hedge funds, law firms, and advisors. In March 2026 the company raised a $170M Series C at a $1.3 billion valuation.
Michael Kao
Michael Kao is a veteran macro investor, former hedge fund manager, and founder of Akanthos Capital Management, now running his family office. A UC Berkeley EE/CS and Wharton MBA graduate who traded commodities at Goldman Sachs and co-founded Canyon Capital Arbitrage Fund, he built his career on a proprietary framework called 'Alpha With Asymmetry.' Known online as @UrbanKaoboy, he publishes the Kaoboy Musings newsletter on Substack - covering finance, macroeconomics, geopolitics, and thrash metal - and co-hosts the KAOS THEORY podcast with Grant Williams.