The Great Russian Pullout

Bank runs have started in Russia while US citizens are advised to leave the country (shocker), Lucid tanked after investors realized a company shouldn't be worth $500M per car delivered, TikTok is introducing longer videos, Russia destroyed the world's biggest plane (RIP), and Shell is dumping its Russian oil stakes.

Together with

Good Morning,

Bank runs have started in Russia while US citizens are advised to leave the country (shocker), Lucid tanked after investors realized a company shouldn't be worth $500M per car delivered, TikTok is introducing longer videos, Russia destroyed the world's biggest plane (RIP), and Shell is dumping its Russian oil stakes.

If you want to take a break from doom-scrolling through social media, check out today's BSD podcast. Lit and Mark pull from their own experiences to discuss how to work smarter, not harder. Listen to the latest episode onĀ SpotifyĀ andĀ Apple Podcasts.

Let's dive in.

Before The Bell

As of 2/28/2022 market close.

If you want to learn more about crypto trading strategies and the world of DeFi, check out ourĀ Foot GunsĀ newsletter.

Markets

  • Stocks rallied into the close yesterday after opening sharply down

    • The Dow and S&P both booked small losses while the Nasdaq closed in the green

  • Investors will continue monitoring the effects of the Russia-Ukraine conflict

    • Currency fluctuations from Russiaā€™s interest rate hike and economic sanctions such as the barring of Russian banks from SWIFT could increase volatility

    • Putin announced counter-sanctions, while officials also introduced some capital controls to try and stop the ruble plunge

    • There's now a risk that Russia's stocks and bonds could be kicked out of major investment benchmarks as they become increasingly hard to trade

  • Oil pushed higher as traders balanced the possible release of emergency stockpiles against fears of disruption to Russian energy exports

Earnings

  • Berkshire Hathaway shares were up 1%+ AH after their earnings report showed a surge in operating earnings as well as $27B in share buybacks in 2021 (CNBC)

  • Lucid shares dropped 14%+ after hours after the EV startup cited supply chain constraints as reasoning for slashing its 2022 vehicle production forecast (CNBC)

  • Lordstown Motors shares fell yesterday after reporting increasing losses and announcing they would need to raise more funding to launch sales and production of their first electric pickup truck later this year (WSJ)

  • Zoom shares tanked as much as 13% in extended trading after beating on quarterly EPS and revenue but posting a worse-than-expected revenue forecast (CNBC)

  • What weā€™re watching today: Target, SoFi, AMC, Salesforce, Nordstrom

  • Full calendarĀ here

Headline Roundup

  • Russia hikes rates to highest level since 2003, adds capital controls (BBG)

  • The list of foreign companies pulling out of Russia keeps growing (BBG)

  • New York to drop virus restrictions in city and around state (BBG)

  • US advises citizens to consider leaving Russia immediately (BBG)

  • Worldā€™s biggest plane destroyed in Russian attack on airfield (BBG)

  • India cabinet said to allow 20% foreign direct investment in LIC (BBG)

  • Sanctions sink European arm of Russiaā€™s Sberbank (WSJ)

  • TikTok expands max video length to 10 minutes, up from 3 minutes (TC)

  • Russian planes barred from airspace over Europe, Canada (WSJ)

  • Ukraine hospitals could run out of oxygen supplies in 24 hours as war disrupts health services, WHO says (CNBC)

  • Reface, a viral face-swap app from Ukraine, adds anti-war push notifications (TC)

  • Fedā€™s Bostic says half-point move possible if inflation persists (BBG)

  • IOC recommends banning Russian athletes from international competition as FIFA bars soccer team (WSJ)

  • Derek Jeter exits as Miami Marlinsā€™ chief executive (WSJ)

  • Long lines at Russian ATMs as bank runs begin (CNBC)

  • Pentagon awards $1.8B in contracts to build out its military satellite internet (CNBC)

  • JPMorgan, Danske Bank freeze funds exposed to Russian assets (BBG)

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Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

  • Healthcare Realty Trust agreed to buy Healthcare Trust of America in a ~$17.6B deal (BBG)

  • TD Bank agreed to buy bank First Horizon for $13.4B in their largest acquisition ever (BBG)

  • KPS Capital Partners is nearing a deal to buy building materials company CRHā€™s Oldcastle Building Envelope unit for ~$3.8B (BBG)

  • Biocon Biologics agreed to buy Viatrisā€™ Biosimilars assets for up to $3.3B (BBG)

  • Shell said it would exit its $3B JV with Russian energy giant Gazprom (WSJ)

  • REIT WP Carey agreed to buy self-storage asset manager Corporate Property Associates in a $2.7B deal (RT)

  • British electrical engineering firm Spectris is in talks to buy technology firm Oxford Instruments in a $2.4B deal (RT)

  • Cinven is nearing a deal to buy Bayerā€™s pest control business in a potential $2.3B deal (BBG)

  • Brookfield Asset Management agreed to buy 60% of the payments business of First Abu Dhabi Bank at a $1.15B valuation (BBG)

  • Wallaby Medical, a firm that develops devices to treat strokes, is in advanced talks to buy Germanyā€™s Phenox, which develops technologies to treat neuro vascular diseases, in a potential ~$558M deal (BBG)

  • Seritage Growth Partners, a REIT that emerged from the Sears bankruptcy, is exploring strategic alternatives including a sale (BBG)

  • Universal Music GroupĀ agreed to buy singerĀ Neil Diamondā€™s song catalog and recording rights (WSJ)

VC

  • Ethnic e-grocer Weee! raised a $425M Series E led by Softbank Vision Fund II (PRN)

  • Aurora Solar, a software platform for solarĀ sales and design, raised a $200M Series D co-led by Coatue and Energize Ventures (PRN)

  • Blueprint Equity, a growth equity firm, raised $175M for its second fund (PRN)

  • Qventus, a provider of AI-aided software for healthcare operations, raised $50M in funding from Thomas H.Ā LeeĀ Partners (BW)

  • Supira Medical, a company developing a ā€˜temporary mechanical circulatory supportā€™ solution, raised a $30M Series C led by Cormorant Asset Management and The Capital Partnership (PRN)

  • Flashfood, a mobile marketplace providing customers with access to discounted food nearing its best by date, raised a $12.3M Series A led by S2G Ventures (TC)

  • Appili Therapeutics, a biotech company focused on drug development for infectious diseases, raised $10M in funding from the USĀ Department of Defense (BW)

  • Ex Parte, a startup using AI to predict litigation outcomes, raised a $7.5M Series A led by R8 Capital (BW)

  • HearHere, a startup building an audio entertainment and immersive storytelling app, raised a $3.2M seed round led byĀ Camping WorldĀ (TC)

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

  • Nahdi Medical Co, Saudi Arabia's largest pharmacy retail chain, is seeking to raise as much as ~$1.4B from an IPO (the biggest IPO in the kingdom since Aramco) (BBG)

  • Chinese EV maker Nio will start trading in Hong Kong next week, choosing a path to listing that doesnā€™t involve selling new shares or raising any money (BBG)

  • EQT is preparing skincare business Galderma for one of Europeā€™s largest IPOā€™s this year (BBG)

  • Chinese education platform Fenbi.com is considering filing for a Hong Kong IPO that could raise ~$300M (BBG)

Crypto Corner

  • Coinbase and Binance decline Ukraine request to block Russian crypto users (Decrypt)

    • Ledger, today's sponsor, helps protect crypto holders from having their assets seized with their hardware wallets. Be wary of keeping your crypto in centralized exchanges these days

  • FTX pledges up to $1B for philanthropic fund to improve humanity (Decrypt)

  • KPMGĀ in Canada buys World of Women NFTs (TBC)

  • Ruble-denominated Bitcoin volume surges to 9-month high (CD)

  • Japan's e-commerce giant Rakuten launches NFT marketplace (BW)

Exec's Picks

  • Thanks to social media, Russia's invasion of Ukraine is the first major armed conflict where we are receiving live updates of events as they take place. Trung Phan explains the significance of war in the digital age here.

  • Like yesterday, scroll through the comments on this post if you're looking for ways to donate to Ukrainian charities.

Big Swinging Decks Podcast

šŸšØNEW EPISODE OF BSD DROPPED LAST NIGHTšŸšØ

Today's episode: Lessons Learned in the Bullpen: A Case Study on Working Smarter, Not Harder.

This week, Lit and Mark share their tips of the trade gained through hours and hours of time spent on Microsoft Excel and eating Seamless in a cubicle. So pop your F1 key off, chug a red bull, and enjoy the advice of the bullpenā€™s two most infamous alums.

Check out Big Swinging Decks on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Sponsored by CoinFLEX.US. Sign up for the waitlist of their US launch here.

The Hiring Block

If you're looking to break into finance, lateral, or move out, check out ourĀ job boardĀ on Pallet, where we curate highly relevant roles for you. We've got 40+ jobsĀ spanning IB, S&T, VC, tech, private equity, DeFi, crypto, CorpDevĀ and more. We sift through all the noise on LinkedIn, Indeed, Monster, etc. so you don't have to.

Meme Cleanser

Catch the latest episode of our Big Swinging Decks podcast onĀ SpotifyĀ andĀ Apple MusicĀ šŸ¤

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