Fitch to Rate OZLM IX, Ltd./LLC; Issues Presale

Fitch Ratings expects to assign the following ratings to OZLM IX, Ltd./LLC (OZLM IX):

--$317,000,000 class A-1 notes 'AAAsf'; Outlook Stable;

Fitch does not expect to rate the class A-2, B, C, D, or subordinated notes.

TRANSACTION SUMMARY

OZLM IX, Ltd. and OZLM IX, LLC (together, OZLM IX) comprise an arbitrage cash flow collateralized loan obligation (CLO) that will be managed by Och-Ziff Loan Management LP (Och-Ziff). A portion of the net proceeds from the issuance of the secured and subordinated notes will be used to repay parties that provided interim financing, allowing the issuer to purchase collateral prior to the closing date. The remainder of net proceeds will be used to purchase collateral to reach a target portfolio of approximately $500 million of primarily senior-secured leveraged loans. The CLO will have a 4.1 year reinvestment period and a 1.8 year non-call period.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Sufficient Credit Enhancement: Credit enhancement (CE) of 36.6% for class A-1 notes, in addition to excess spread, is sufficient to protect against portfolio default and recovery rate projections in the 'AAAsf' stress scenario. The level of CE for class A-1 notes is below the average for recent CLO issuances.

'B+/B' Asset Quality: The average credit quality of the indicative portfolio is 'B+/B', which is better than that of recent CLOs. Issuers rated in the 'B' rating category denote relatively weak credit quality; however, in Fitch's opinion, class A-1 notes are unlikely to be affected by the foreseeable level of defaults. Class A-1 notes are robust against default rates of up to 57.6%.

Strong Recovery Expectations: The indicative portfolio consists of 93.2% senior-secured loans. Approximately 89.9% of the indicative portfolio has strong recovery prospects or a Fitch-assigned recovery rating of 'RR2' or higher and the base case recovery assumption is 73.1%. In determining ratings for class A-1 notes, Fitch stressed the indicative portfolio by assuming a higher portfolio concentration of assets with lower recovery prospects and further reduced recovery assumptions for higher rating stresses resulting in a 35.5% recovery rate assumption in Fitch's 'AAAsf' scenario.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

In addition to Fitch's stated criteria, the agency analyzed the structure's sensitivity to the potential variability of key model assumptions including decreases in weighted average spread or recovery rates and increases in default rates or correlation. Fitch expects the class A-1 notes to remain investment grade even under the most extreme sensitivity scenarios. Results under these sensitivity scenarios ranged between 'A-sf' and 'AAAsf' for the class A-1 notes.

The expected ratings are based on information provided to Fitch as of Nov. 21, 2014. Sources of information used to assess these ratings were provided by the arranger, Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, and the public domain. Key Rating Drivers and Rating Sensitivities are further described in the accompanying presale report.

The presale report is available to investors on Fitch's web site at www.fitchratings.com. For more information about Fitch's comprehensive subscription service FitchResearch, which includes all presale reports, surveillance and credit reports on more than 20 asset classes, contact product sales at +1-212-908-0800 or at 'webmaster@fitchratings.com'.

Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'.

Applicable Criteria & Related Research:

--'Global Structured Finance Rating Criteria' (Aug. 4, 2014);

--'Global Rating Criteria for Corporate CDOs' (July 25, 2014);

--'Criteria for Interest Rate Stresses in Structured Finance Transactions and Covered Bonds' (Jan. 23, 2014);

--'Counterparty Criteria for Structured Finance and Covered Bonds' (May 14, 2014).

Applicable Criteria and Related Research: OZLM IX, Ltd./LLC

http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=819588

Criteria for Interest Rate Stresses in Structured Finance Transactions and Covered Bonds

http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=725537

Counterparty Criteria for Structured Finance and Covered Bonds

http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=744158

Global Structured Finance Rating Criteria

http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=754389

Global Rating Criteria for Corporate CDOs

http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=753057

Additional Disclosure

Solicitation Status

http://www.fitchratings.com/gws/en/disclosure/solicitation?pr_id=931636

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