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US and China made substantial progress in trade talks, banks are getting creative to compete with private credit, Coinbase considered YOLOing its balance sheet on Bitcoin, and Citadel is lobbying for four-year non-competes which could include fresh grads.

The Wharton Online-Wall Street Prep Private Equity Certificate Program is back! Level up your PE skillset in the globally acclaimed Private Equity Certificate Program and save with our Litquidity discount. Early enrollment ends today!

Let's dive in.

Before The Bell

As of 5/9/2025 market close.

Click here to learn more about the Litquidity portfolios and subscribe to the strategies on Autopilot.*

Markets

  • US stocks closed relatively flat on Friday as investors looked ahead to US-China trade talks slated for the weekend 

  • Germany's DAX index hit an ATH for the first time since March 

  • MBSs are down 1.1% since 'Liberation Day' on April 2nd as safe haven bet falters

  • US beef prices soared to record highs as cattle inventory hit a 70-year low

  • Dollar posted its largest weekly gain since late-March

  • Bitcoin surged past $100k

Earnings

  • What we're watching this week:  

    • Today: Hertz, Chegg

    • Tuesday: JD.com, Honda

    • Wednesday: Cisco, Sony, CoreWeave, Tencent

    • Thursday: Alibaba, Applied Materials, Cava, Walmart, John Deere, Take-Two Interactive

  • Full calendar here

Prediction Markets

  • The one event that ISN'T priced in…

  • Trade your predictions on a range of events, only on Kalshi. Sign up with code LIT and get a $20 bonus when you trade $100.

Headline Roundup

  • US and China made substantial progress in trade talks (CNBC)

  • Bessent asked Congress to raise debt ceiling by mid-July (BBG)

  • Funds for wealthy investors are snapping up expensive PE stakes (FT)

  • Wall Street plays long game as PE flocks to private credit (BBG) 

  • Global equity fund inflows eased to a four-week low (RT)

  • Global investors bought Asian EM stocks for three-straight weeks (BBG)

  • PE performance hit its highest since early-2022 (ALT)

  • Dumping of dollar assets signals start of longer-term shift (FT)

  • Traders eye longer-term options to hedge post-tariff shock rally (BBG)

  • London bankers scour market for IPO reboot after Shein stalls (BBG)

  • BlackRock and UAE's IHG will set up a $1B reinsurance JV (BBG)

  • Brookfield's head of VC accused firm of asking him to lie to investors (BBG)

  • Citigroup and Barclays see sky-high demand for risky debt (BBG)

  • Goldman will wind down its ETF accelerator (BBG)

  • Proxy firm Glass Lewis endorsed activist Elliott in Phillips 66 proxy fight (BBG)

  • Activist Engine Capital ended its campaign at Lyft (RT)

  • Trump Media is pursuing M&A deals to diversify into financial services (RT)

  • Chinese firms purge supply chain of foreign parts amid US trade war (FT)

  • America's richest foundations are teaming up against Trump (WSJ)

  • Citadel is lobbying for four-year non-competes in Florida (BBG)

A Message from Wall Street Prep

Final Hours to Save $500 on the Private Equity Certificate Program

Enroll by 11:59pm ET TONIGHT to get $200 off with early enrollment, plus an extra $300 off with code LITQUIDITY — and secure your spot in the finance industry's leading PE upskilling program.

This is the same training used by top PE firms and trusted by professionals at KKR, Blackstone, Warburg Pincus, and more.

Over 8 career-defining weeks, you'll learn directly from industry leaders, sharpen your deal execution skills with hands-on case studies, and build a high-caliber network.

You'll also get exclusive access to small-group recruiting events hosted by top private equity firms.

✅ Plus…

  • Lifetime access to templates, models, and deal-driven lessons

  • Weekly office hours with personalized support

  • Certificate of completion from Wharton Online — a credential that helps you stand out in the recruiting cycle

If you're serious about breaking into private equity — or leveling up where you are — now's your chance!

Enroll Today

Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

  • ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, TotalEnergies, and Abu Dhabi's ADNOC are studying bids for rival BP, with oil trader Vitol interested in parts of the business

  • Spain's Banco Santander rejected a bid worth $13.3B-$16B from NatWest Group for its UK retail bank

  • Bain Capital is in talks to acquire a majority stake in PCI Pharma Services from SWF Mubadala and PE firms Kohlberg and Partners Group at an over $10B valuation, including debt

  • Energy Development Oman plans to sell a minority stake in its Block 6 $8B natural gas assets to raise funds for investments

  • Indian industrialist Sunil Mittal and PE firm Warburg Pincus are in advanced talks to acquire a 49% stake in the Indian unit of China's Haier Appliances for ~$2B

  • UK REIT LondonMetric will acquire Urban Logistics in a $925M cash and stock deal to create one of UK's largest property investment groups 

  • Uber acquired an 85% stake in Turkish peer Trendyol Go for $700M cash

  • Delta Air Lines and Korean Air Lines will acquire a combined 25% stake in Canadian peer WestJet from Onex Partners for $550M, with Delta taking a 15% stake and Korean Air taking a 10% stake

  • PE firm TPG acquired a minority stake in digital infrastructure-focused PE firm Peppertree Capital from PE firm Affiliated Managers for $240M

  • Singapore's City Developments failed in a bid to take-private its listed Millennium & Copthorne Hotels New Zealand unit

  • Spanish bank CaixaBank is exploring a potential acquisition of Lone Star-backed Portuguese lender Novo Banco, which is also preparing for an IPO

  • UK investment firm Man Group is in talks to acquire US-based credit investor Bardin Hill Investment Partners

VC

  • OpenAI is in talks to re-negotiate Microsoft's $13B investment in a deal which will reduce Microsoft's stake to allow for a future OpenAI IPO

  • Haemanthus, a blood-testing startup founded by the husband of disgraced biotech entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes, is in talks to raise $50M in funding

  • HR tech startup Rippling raised a $450M Series G at a $16.8B valuation led by Coatue

  • Egyptian real estate tech startup Nawy raised a $52M Series A led by Partech Africa

  • Tobin Scientific, a provider of specialized logistics for the life sciences industry, raised a $65M round led by Denali Growth Partners and Truck 9 Partners

  • Arda Biomaterials, a startup developing biomaterials from plant proteins, raised a $5.25M round led by Oyster Bay Venture Capital

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

  • UK neobank fintech Monzo is in talks with Morgan Stanley to lead an IPO at a potential $8B valuation

  • Chinese EV battery giant CATL is set to raise over $4B in Hong Kong's biggest listing this year anchored by investors led by Sinopec and Kuwait Investment Authority 

  • Japanese bank SMBC acquired a 20% stake in India's Yes Bank from State Bank of India and others for ~$1.6B to become the largest shareholder

  • Saudi hospital operator Specialized Medical sold out its $500M IPO of a 30% stake within hours

  • a16z-backed virtual healthcare firm Omada Health filed for a US IPO

Debt

  • AI cloud computing firm CoreWeave is in talks to raise $1.5B in high-yield bonds led by JPMorgan after its recent downsized IPO

  • UK fast-fashion retailer Boohoo Group is in talks to raise a $232M debt package to refinance debt amid tensions from its biggest shareholder and industry peer Frasers Group

  • Argentina's central bank intervened to stop a dollar bond sale by Banco Supervielle amid local FX pressures

Bankruptcy / Restructuring / Distressed

  • Federal IT contractor Sysorex Government Services filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and is seeking a quick asset sale amid DOGE threats

  • Veritas Capital-backed education software firm Anthology is exploring a full or partial sale as it negotiates a restructuring with lenders

  • Metals trader Liberty Commodities is set to call in administrators to place the business into insolvency

Fundraising / Secondaries

  • Private markets FOF Adams Street Partners raised ~$300M for a European VC FOF

Crypto Sum Snapshot

  • Coinbase considered investing 80% of its balance sheet in Bitcoin

  • SEC is seeking to settle with Ripple Labs for $50M

  • Check out our Crypto Sum newsletter for the full stories on everything crypto!

Exec’s Picks

Financial Services Recruiting 💼

If you're a junior banker looking for your next career move, check out Litney Partners, a recruiting firm established by Litquidity and Whitney Partners (the oldest purely financial services executive search and consulting firm).

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

We're currently seeking talent for some incredible roles. Head over to Litney Partners to drop your resume / create your profile and we'd love to get in touch!

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*DISCLAIMER: Investment advice provided by Autopilot Advisers, LLC ("Autopilot"), an SEC-registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investing carries risks, including loss of principal. As always, be smart out there. Litquidity is compensated to promote AutoPilot. Compensation details available upon request.