Vietnam Doesn't Play

A Vietnamese property tycoon was sentenced to death, big tech is expected to lead Q1 earnings, India’s top traders are making millions, Norges’ CEO is crushing the podcast game, and Harvard suddenly reinstated standardized testing requirements.

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Litquidity Capital
April 12, 2024

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Good Morning,

A Vietnamese property tycoon was sentenced to death, big tech is expected to lead Q1 earnings, India’s top traders are making millions, Norges’ CEO is crushing the podcast game, and Harvard suddenly reinstated standardized testing requirements.

Let’s dive in.

Before The Bell

As of 04/11/2024 market close.

Markets

  • US stocks rebounded from yesterday's sell-off on encouraging producer inflation data

    • The Nasdaq closed at a new record high

  • US 30Y and 10Y yields rose as the US budget deficit topped $1T

Earnings

  • Constellation Brands rose slightly on a Q4 beat-and-raise thanks to resilient demand for its core beer brands despite sticky inflation (RT)

  • What we're watching this week:  

    • Today: JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, BlackRock, Citigroup, Progressive

  • Full calendar here

Headline Roundup

  • Vietnamese property tycoon sentenced to death over $12B fraud (FT)

  • India’s top traders are raking in million-dollar salaries (BBG)

  • Norway's $1.3T SWF CEO’s podcast is making a killing (WSJ)

  • Fed rate cuts now matter of if, not when (WSJ)

  • Unraveling rate cut bets spur investors to adjust portfolios (RT)

  • VC deal flow remains muted in Q1 (WSJ)

  • US is investigating Morgan Stanley’s wealth arm over money-laundering vetting (WSJ)

  • ECB held rates but signaled potential for a June rate cut (RT)

  • ECB cannot ignore Fed in own rate cut path (RT)

  • Big tech is expected to lead Q1 earnings growth (RT)

  • Rent the Runway shares surge 200%+ after getting caught in AI frenzy (RT)

  • US 30Y bond auction saw muted demand despite decade-high yields (BBG)

  • US active ETF flows soar past previous records (FT)

  • Managers to shut/convert $220B of US MMFs before rule change (FT)

  • Investors flock to US 20Y+ Treasury ETF amid selloff (RT)

  • IMF chief sees higher US rates as worry if they persist (RT)

  • ExxonMobil raised CEO pay to ~$37M in 2023 (RT)

  • Mortgage rates rose back to ~7% (WSJ)

  • Peru passes bill allowing for $7B in pension withdrawals (BBG)

  • Amazon CEO touts AI revolution while committing to cost cuts (WSJ)

  • Rivian and Lucid stock closed at new lows (BBG)

  • NYC RTO rate nears 80% (BBG)

  • Harvard will reinstate SAT/ACT testing requirements (HC)

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Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

  • UAE state-owned ADNOC recently eyed $110B oil giant BP as takeover target (RT)

  • Clearlake Capital Group is exploring a renewed takeover offer for $4.1B cloud software provider BlackBaud (BBG) 

  • Blackstone and CVC are among potential bidders for European festivals organizer Superstruct Entertainment, which could be valued at up to $1.9B in a sale (RT) 

  • Brookfield Asset Management is in advanced talks to buy a majority stake in private credit manager Castlelake for over $1.5B (FT)

  • CGN New Energy Holdings’ parent China General Nuclear Power, is considering taking the $1.3B Hong Kong-listed power producer private (BBG) 

  • French lender BPCE will acquire Societe Generale’s professional equipment financing business for $1.2B (RT) 

  • European self-storage company Shurgard agreed to acquire UK-listed rival Lok'nStore in a $474M all-cash deal (RT) 

  • Investment firm General Atlantic will take a minority stake in marketing software provider HighLevel (WSJ)

VC

  • Musk’s AI startup X.AI is looking to raise $3B-$4B at an $18B valuation to compete with OpenAI (BBG)

  • Zero-emission truck developer Windrose Technology raised a $110M Series B led by HSBC New Economy Fund (PRN)

  • Factorial, a Catalan business and HR management platform for SMBs, raised $80M in funding from General Catalyst (FN)

  • Arcadia, a global utility data and community solar platform, raised a $50M growth round from Macquarie Asset Management and more (PRN)

  • Anrok, a global sales tax platform for software companies, raised a $30M Series B led by Khosla Ventures (BW)

  • Kenyan solar irrigation startup SunCulture raised a $27M Series B from InfraCo Africa, Acumen Fund, and more (FN)

  • Abre, a K-12 data platform, raised a $24M Series A led by PeakSpan Capital (PRN)

  • Mimo, a fintech automating admin behind B2B payments, raised a $19.6M round led by Northzone (EU)

  • Trident IoT, a silicon provider and RF technology company, raised a $10M round led by Todd Pedersen (PRN)

  • Simbian, a fully autonomous security platform, raised a $10M seed round led by Cota Capital, Icon Ventures, and more (BW)

  • Udio, a startup using AI to help people create and share music, raised a $10M seed round led by a16z (FN)

  • Uplink, a startup democratizing internet access, raised a $10M round led by Framework Ventures (FN)

  • Tabs, an accounts receivable platform for B2B businesses, raised a $7M seed round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners (BW)

  • Tokyo-based digital embedded finance startup Smartpay raised a $7M pre-Series A led by SMBCVC and Angel Bridge VC (FN)

  • Writ, a startup helping companies use data for decision-making, raised a $3.8M seed round led by Gradient Ventures (PRN)

  • Data movement platform for PostgreSQL PeerDB raised a $3.6M seed round led by 8VC (BW)

  • Superintelligent, a platform to teach AI, raised a $2M pre-seed round led by Learn Capital (FN)

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

  • Safety science firm UL Solutions raised $946M in an upsized IPO (BBG)

  • PACS Group shares rose ~10% in its trading debut, giving the nursing home operator a $4B valuation after its $450M IPO (RT) 

  • Italian bank UniCredit received ECB approval for a $3.3B share buyback (RT)

  • Norwegian hydrogen technology company HydrogenPro raised $8.3M in equity from ANDRITZ AG via a private placement (PRN)

Debt

  • Drugmaker Endo International sold $2.5B in bonds and loans to fund its emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy (BBG) 

  • CarMax kicked-off a $1.3B ABS sale just hours after reporting a Q4 earnings miss (BBG) 

  • Dish Network, a satellite-TV provider with over $20B in debt, received at least one proposal from private credit firms offering over $1B in financing (BBG) 

  • El Salvador sold $1B in bonds linked to an IMF deal or credit upgrade (BBG)

Bankruptcy / Restructuring / Distresses

  • A subsidiary of China's Ping An Insurance failed to pay a $107M trust product on time, citing the property market crisis (RT) 

Fundraising

  • Seed-stage VC FoF Cendana Capital and partner Kline Hill Partners raised a new $105M fund to acquire LP stakes (TC) 

Crypto Corner

  • SBF will appeal his conviction and 25-year prison sentence (BBG) 

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