Market term used for the looming over-demand for bank loan refinancings by borrowers. It is called a cliff because many of the loans that were entered into during boom years become due to mature around the same time.

For example, after the 2008 financial crisis, there was less liquidity available in the loan markets, which left borrowers facing uncertainty about whether there would be sufficient liquidity in the loan market to enable them to refinance their loans when they matured. To deal with the refinancing cliff and the anticipated lack of lenders willing to provide new loan facilities, borrowers began to consider alternatives to address their concerns about their loan maturities, such as:

To deal with refinancing cliff of loans that were due to mature between 2012 and 2014, borrowers and lenders actively addressed the issue, particularly with amend & extends and bond refinancings.