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Good Morning,

Investors are plowing into the Big Tech dip, US is considering breaking up Google, Eurozone investor confidence collapsed, Elliott is going after Southwest's board, and Starbucks fired and replaced its CEO causing a $20B share rally.

With over 80% of lenders now looking past credit scores, Plaid released some quick insights on four trends shaping the future of finance.

Let’s dive in.

Before The Bell

As of 08/13/2024 market close.

Markets

  • US stocks surged as investors reacted to the first of this week's inflation data

    • All three major US indexes rose for a third-straight day

  • Europe's Stoxx 600 rose to a two-week high

  • Japan's Nikkei 225 rallied 3.5% to recover all losses since its 12% rout

  • Dollar hit its lowest mark since April

Earnings

  • Home Depot beat Q2 EPS and revenue estimates but lowered its FY sales forecast due to lower consumer demand and high rates (CNBC) 

  • What we're watching this week:  

    • Today: UBS, Cisco

    • Thursday: Walmart, Alibaba, Applied Materials

  • Full calendar here

Headline Roundup

  • US PPI inflation slowed to 2.2% YoY (CNBC)

  • Goldman and JPMorgan see markets pricing in higher recession odds (BBG)

  • US small business sentiment is near a 2.5-year high (RT)

  • Eurozone investor confidence fell by the most since Covid (FT)

  • China new loans hit a fifteen-year low (RT)

  • Investors plow into tech megacaps at fastest rate in two decades (BBG)

  • Investors are swapping stocks for cash (RT)

  • Volatility funds saw their first net inflows in over a year (RT)

  • Overseas investors are turning bearish on Japanese stocks (RT)

  • BofA institutional clients were net buyers of US stocks for first time in five weeks (RT)

  • US is considering breaking up Google (BBG)

  • Starbucks named Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol as new CEO (CNBC)

  • Elliott is targeting 66% of Southwest's board (WSJ)

  • Norway's $1.7T SWF trimmed stakes in Meta, Novo and ASML (BBG)

  • UAW filed labor charges against Trump, Musk for threatening workers (WSJ)

  • People are leaving New Zealand in record numbers (RT)

  • Silicon Valley home prices topped $2M for the first time (BBG)

  • Job hunters flood recruiters with AI-generated resumes (FT)

A Message From Plaid

The world of finance can be a fickle one. Today’s innovative ideas can be tomorrow’s security concerns, and vice versa – exactly why it’s important to stay informed on what’s trending.

Lucky for you, Plaid has it covered. Their latest report on the Top Trends Driving The Future Of Finance breaks down what's moving and shaking finance today, how these trends are shaping the next era of the industry, and why they should matter to you. 

This quick guide peels back the curtain on the 4 biggest trends in finance, and walks you through some actionable insights into…

  • How pay by bank can cut payment costs by 20-70%

  • Why 83% of lenders are ready to look beyond credit scores

  • How almost half of all fraud attempts now incorporate AI

  • And more

Ready to check it out? Download your free copy right here from Plaid.

Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

  • Carlyle agreed to acquire Baxter's kidney-care unit Vantive for $3.8B (RT) 

  • Blackstone is weighing a sale of events organizer Clarion Events for $2.6B (RT) 

  • Australian packaging products maker Orora rejected a $2.3B takeover offer from US PE firm Lone Star Fund (RT) 

  • Japanese lender SMBC and UAE's Emirates NBD are in talks to acquire State Bank of India's 24% stake in smaller rival Yes Bank for $2.2B (RT) 

  • Warburg Pincus, Georgian and Canada's CDPQ are exploring a sale of cybersecurity firm eSentire at a $1B valuation, including debt (RT) 

  • Rheinmetall will buy US-based military vehicle parts maker Loc Performance in a $950M deal (RT)

  • UK homebuilder Bellway unexpectedly dropped its $920M bid for smaller peer Crest Nicholson (RT) 

  • Bain Capital emerged as the frontrunner to acquire a 60% stake in $586M Indian-listed cancer hospital chain HealthCare Global Enterprises from CVC (BBG) 

  • Private UK pension USS acquired a portfolio of 3k homes from Blackstone for $518M (BBG) 

  • A consortium led by French PE giant Ardian will acquire a 10% stake in Italian telecoms tower company INWIT from Telecom Italia for $273M (RT)

  • Vista Equity Partners agreed to acquire software company Jaggaer from PE firm Cinven (BBG) 

  • EQT is nearing a deal for a majority stake in waste management software provider AMCS (BBG) 

  • Abu Dhabi SWF ADQ is in talks to buy Turkish lender Odeabank from Lebanon's Bank Audi (BBG) 

  • German heating and refrigeration manufacturer Viessmann agreed to acquire freezer manufacturer KPS Global from PE firm D Cubed (BBG) 

VC

  • 'Care now, pay later' startup PayZen raised a $32M Series B led by NEA (TC)

  • Guidewheel, an AI-powered FactoryOps, raised a $31M Series B led by Decarbonization Partners (BW)

  • Setpoint, an infrastructure provider for the credit industry, raised a $31M Series B led by 645 Ventures (BW)

  • AI data labeling startup Encord raised a $30M Series C led by Next47 (TC)

  • Singaporian investment app Syfe raised a $27M Series C from Valar Ventures and Unbound (TC)

  • Vayana, an Indian trade credit infrastructure platform, raised a $20.5M Series D led by SMBC's Asia Rising Fund (FN)

  • MD Ally, a startup providing 911 virtual care services, raised a $14M Series A led by Frist Cressey Ventures (PRN)

  • FRVR, a Portuguese gaming distribution platform, raised a $12.7M round led by Iberis Capital (EU)

  • ArborXR, a startup for companies to manage AR/VR devices, raised a $12M Series A led by Mercury Fund and Cortado Ventures (TC)

  • 3D design platform Spline raised a $10M Series A led by Third Point Ventures (BW)

  • Mexican fintech Aviva raised a $5.5M seed round from Carao Ventures, Rainforest Capital, and more (FN)

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

  • Shares of baby-products retailer Brainbees Solutions jumped 46% in its trading debut after its $500M Indian IPO (BBG) 

  • Intel sold its $147M stake in UK chip designer Arm (RT)

Debt

  • India's Torrent Pharmaceuticals is weighing raising up to $3B from global banks to acquire KKR's controlling stake in JB Pharma (BBG) 

  • JetBlue Airways plans to upsize its bond sale to $2B and downsize its loan to $750M in its $2.75B ABS sale (BBG) 

  • India’s largest shadow bank Bajaj Finance is seeking a $500M offshore loan (BBG) 

  • Canada's CPP is seeking to sell a distressed Spanish loan portfolio with a $329M par value (BBG) 

Bankruptcy / Restructuring / Distressed

  • Apollo-owned telecom Brightspeed reached a creditor deal to slash $1.1B of debt and receive $3.7B of new capital (BBG) 

  • PE firm Kinderhook Industries will acquire troubled healthcare company Steward Health's managed care business for $245M (BBG) 

  • Natura's US beauty brand Avon Products filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to deal with talc-lawsuits (WSJ)

Crypto Corner

  • Coinbase will return to Hawaii after exiting the state in 2017 (BBG) 

Exec’s Picks

Financial Services Recruiting 💼

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We aim to place strong candidates across private equity, hedge funds, venture capital, growth equity, debt funds, and investment banking.

To get started, simply head over to Litney Partners and create your profile by dropping your resume / filling out the form:

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