144A-For-Life Securities: A Growing Presence in High Yield

144A-for-life securities have become a dominant and sufficiently liquid segment of the high-yield market, so investors should reconsider guidelines that exclude them.

• Rule 144A was amended by the SEC in 2007 to improve liquidity, attract investors to private offerings and reduce issuers’ cost of capital while preserving investor protection.
• 144A securities without registration rights can remain unregistered; they are initially available only to qualified institutional buyers but may trade among other investors in the secondary market when conditions are met.
• 144A-for-life securities accounted for approximately 92% of US high-yield new-issue volume in December 2025, compared with less than 17% of annual issuance before the 2008 financial crisis.
• In the Bloomberg Global High Yield Index, 144A-for-life securities represented 59% of the market as of December 31, 2025, reflecting their broad integration into global high yield.
• The authors state that there is no meaningful liquidity difference between 144A and registered bonds, although the data and conclusions rely partly on J.P. Morgan market information and the report was originally published in May 2017.

Takeaway: Excluding 144A-for-life securities may be costly because of their market scale and comparable liquidity, so investors should examine whether their investment guidelines unnecessarily restrict access to this segment.