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Bill Ackman's hedge fund is raising a $25B vehicle expected to attract retail investor interest, a technical glitch caused some stocks to show 99% losses, 'Roaring Kitty' re-re-ignited the GameStop rally, and US students face recruitment challenges after college campus protests.

Let’s dive in.

Before The Bell

Markets

• US stocks closed mixed after US manufacturing data raised concerns about the economy's strength 

• India’s Nifty 50 hit an ATH on an apparent Modi reelection before falling ~5% to lead Asia markets lower on manufacturing data (and further election volatility)

• US yields fell to a two-week low 

• US dollar sunk to a three-week low 

• Investors are looking to BoC and ECB for crucial rate decisions due this week 

Earnings

• What we're watching this week:  

  • Today: CrowdStrike

  • Wednesday: Victoria's Secret, lululemon, Dollar Tree

  • Thursday: DocuSign, Nio

• Full calendar here

Headline Roundup

• US manufacturing sector shows signs of contraction (RT)

• Exec pay surged even more last year (AP)

• Meta AI chief takes Elon Musk beef to LinkedIn (LI)

• Logistics operators are looking to break sector’s IPO logjam (WSJ)

• Hedge fund short sellers burnt by flurry of UK takeover bids (FT)

• Technical glitch caused ~50 stocks including Berkshire to show 99% loss (CNBC)

• GameStop surged up to 75% as 'Roaring Kitty' reveals mega position (RT)

• Nvidia led global large caps in May with 25% MoM gain (RT)

• Spotify increased US prices again as demand proves inelastic (TV)

• New hot spot for Russia trade starts to emerge in Middle East (BBG)

• TikTok-parent ByteDance hire new general counsel amid US legal battles (BBG)

• JPMorgan payments chief Georgakopoulos will depart (RT)

• Toyota, Honda get caught in Japan's widening testing scandal (FT)

• Demand for private healthcare hits record high in UK (FT)

• HF Dymon Asia Capital expands in  Hong Kong to bucking trend (BBG)

• Epoch Times CFO charged in $67M global money laundering scheme (CNBC)

• US students face recruitment challenges after college campus protests (FT)

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Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

• $8.9B media giant Paramount Global and Skydance Media agreed to merger terms (CNBC) 

• Saudi Arabian telecom STC Group is considering an offer for BC Partners-owned mass-media firm United Group at an $8.7B valuation, including debt (RT) 

• Waste recycling giant Waste Management will acquire medical-waste disposal company Stericycle for ~$5.8B in cash (BBG) 

• Medical device company Becton Dickinson will acquire the critical care unit of Edwards Lifesciences for $4.2B in cash (BBG) 

• Boat dealership OneWater Marine is in talks to acquire larger rival MarineMax to create a combined entity valued at ~$2.5B, including debt (BBG) 

• Blackstone is considering a sale of Japanese consumer health-care firm Alinamin Pharmaceutical that could fetch a ~$1.9B valuation (BBG) 

• Bill Ackman sold a 10% stake in is hedge fund Pershing Square for $1.05B (FT)

• Steel products manufacturer Nucor agreed to acquire doormaker Rytec in a $565M cash deal (PRN) 

• An investor consortium led by Blackstone partner David Blitzer is assessing interest for a potential sale of German football club FC Augsburg at a potential $163M+ valuation (BBG) 

• PE firm Consortium Brand Partners will acquire distressed athleisure brand Outdoor Voices, staving off bankruptcy (AX) 

• Cofco International, the trading arm of China’s largest food company, is exploring options including a sale for its Chicago grain terminal (BBG)

VC

• Frore Systems, a thermal technology startup for electronics, raised an $80M Series C led by Fidelity(FN)

• Recruiting platform Ashby raised a $30M Series C led by Lachy Groom (PRN)

• French EV charging startup Gireve raised a $21.9M round led by Partech (EU)

• Workbox, a coworking space operator, raised a $17.5M Series A led by Chicago Atlantic (PRN)

• Iyris, a Saudi agri-climate technology startup, raised a $16M Series A led by the Ecosystem Integrity Fund (FN)

• Forward, a payments integration and monetization platform for SaaS firms, raised a $16M seed round led by Commerce Ventures, Elefund, and Fiserv (FN)

• Moroccan agritech startup YoLa Fresh raised a $7M pre-Series A led by Al Mada Ventures (FN)

• Italian payments platform Sibill raised a $6.8M round led by Keen Venture Partners, Founders, and Exor Ventures (EU)

• Aperture Finance, a DeFi platform, raised a $6.7M Series A led by Skyland Ventures, Blockchain Founders Fund, and Krypital Group (VC)

• Vegapay, an Indian fintech startup, raised a $5.5M seed round led by Elevation Capital (FN)

• Caju AI, a startup using GenAI to improve customer engagement, raised a $3M seed round led by Grotech Ventures and Felton Group (PRN)

• Seqana, a SaaS platform that measures the climate impact of carbon farming projects, raised a $2.3M seed round led by HTGF and Counteract (FN)

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

• Germany is selling a $2.7B stake in Deutsche Telekom (BBG) 

• French optical component maker Exosens is seeking to raise up to $327M at a $1.1B valuation in a Paris IPO (RT) 

• Ajax Engineering, an Indian concrete equipment maker, is planning a $240M Mumbai IPO at a $1.2B valuation (BBG) 

• UK PC maker Raspberry Pi is looking to raise $200M via a London IPO (BBG) 

• J&J-backed Rapport Therapeutics is seeking to raise up to $144M at a ~$637M valuation in a US IPO (RT)  

Debt

• Coastal GasLink, a pipeline project in Western Canada, is selling $5.2B of notes in what is set to be the largest loonie-denominated corporate bond deal ever (BBG) 

• Chinese developer Poly is considering raising as much as $1.7B through a convertible bond sale (BBG) 

• Struggling Pennsylvania hospital chain Tower Health is preparing a $992M debt swap and plans to raise additional funds as it pursues a turnaround (BBG) 

• Gym chain Planet Fitness kicked off an $800M ABS bond sale (BBG) 

• Financial services company MoneyGram completed a $398M leveraged loan repricing after sweetening offer terms last week (BBG) 

• Saudi Arabia’s PIF is eyeing a rare sterling-denominated bond sale (BBG) 

Bankruptcy / Restructuring

• Vehicle-tracking software business CalAmp filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with a proposed deal that will allow lender Lynrock Laketo to swap its $229M debt to equity (WSJ) 

• Nursing home operator LaVie Care Centers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (BBG) 

• Defunct cargo hauler Yellow may place its remaining cargo terminals and other vacant properties into a REIT to raise money for creditors (BBG) 

• Common, once the largest co-living company in North America, filed for Chapter 7 protection and will liquidate (BBG)

Fundraising

• Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square aims to raise $25B for a new closed-end fund Pershing Square USA that will list on the NYSE (BBG) 

• Ex-Millennium trader Diego Megia’s hedge fund Taula Capital Management debuted at $5B (BBG)

• European private debt manager Pemberton Asset Management is raising at least $1B along with SWF ADIA to lend to PE firms (BBG) 

• Swedish VC Creandum raised $545M for a seventh fund targeting early-stage startups (AX)

Crypto Corner

• Global X slashed European crypto ETP fees to zero (FT)

• Coinbase donated another $25M to the crypto Fairshake SuperPAC (BBG) 

Exec’s Picks

• FT detailed the dilemmas facing Peter Orszag, Lazard's CEO who wants to reimagine the bank but faces sticky insider politics.

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