At least a half dozen multi-billion dollar deals are slated to hit the market from now until the end of the year, providing a hearty test of market capacity. Collateralized loan obligation managers will be asked to take large chunks of credits, but most investors agree banks will be pressed to take more than their fair share. "Banks are probably going to eat a lot of it," said an investor. Market players noted that the loan-only credit default swap market could see a significant pick up as banks look to hedge the risk of the credits they hold on their books.

The recently announced $8.6 billion credit backing the management-led buyout of Kinder Morgan joins deals for Aramark, Michaels and Univision on the roster of big credits coming to market soon. The largest, and maybe the best test of the market, is HCA's expected $16 billion credit, more than double everything else in the pipe. "The bellwether deal is going to be HCA" said one investor. "A lot of CLOs are [filled up] on their healthcare buckets ­ why should I sell something at LIBOR plus 2 1/4% to buy something seven times leveraged at a higher price?"

HCA'S $16.8 billion credit facility is led by Bank of America, JPMorgan, Citigroup, and Merrill Lynch. The deal consists of a six-year, $2 billion revolver; a six-year, $2 billion asset-based revolver; a six-year, $2.25 billion "A" term loan; a seven-year, $9.3 billion term loan "B" and a seven-year, $1.25 billion term loan denominated in dollars, euros and other currencies to be mutually agreed on, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The lead banks started shopping the deal to potential top-tier lender and broader syndication is expected to kickoff after this week.

Last week's entry, Kinder Morgan, has tapped Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, Wachovia Securities and Merrill Lynch for a credit facility that should be around $8.6 billion and is expected to close late in the fourth quarter, according to a banker and an analyst. Richard Kinder, ceo, and Bill Morgan, co-founder, as well as Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, American International Group, The Carlyle Group and Riverstone Holdings will pay $22 billion to take the company private, including the assumption of about $7 billion of debt.