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Good Morning,
Tesla invested in SpaceX, Fannie and Freddie will accept 'predictive' credit scores, more banks are earning $100M M&A fees, Schonfeld sued a Millennium PM for 'gazumping,' stock indexes hit fresh ATHs, and the US government has now taken $21B in equity stakes under Trump's second presidency.*
*Not including Spirit Airlines, which US might outright own once it emerges from bankruptcy
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Let's dive in.
Before The Bell
As of 4/22/2026 market close.
Learn more about the Litquidity portfolios and subscribe to the strategies on Autopilot.*
Markets
US stocks rallied further yesterday as investors shifted their focus from the US-Iran conflict to Q1 earnings
S&P and Nasdaq closed at fresh ATHs
Japan's Nikkei 225 index hit a fresh ATH
Korea's KOSPI index resumed its daily record-breaking rally spree
Private credit BDCs are trading at the steepest discounts to NAV since Covid
Dollar is down 2.3% from late-March on course for its worst month since August
Earnings
Tesla beat Q1 EPS estimates on surprise $1.4B FCF but missed on revenue as its core automotive business continues to struggle; the firm also projected higher FY capex and revealed a $2B investment in SpaceX (CNBC)
IBM beat Q4 EPS and revenue estimates on robust AI-led software and infrastructure demand, though the firm maintained FY guidance (CNBC)
AT&T beat Q1 EPS and revenue estimates on growth in its advanced connectivity business as it continues to add customers in internet and wireless plans (WSJ)
Texas Instruments beat Q1 EPS and revenue estimates and issued strong guidance amid a boom in data center chip demand (RT)
What we're watching this week:
Today: Intel, Blackstone, American Airlines, American Express
Friday: Procter & Gamble
Full calendar here
Prediction Markets
Due for a 2028 election prediction. Lots has changed since we last highlighted this market
Trade event contracts on Polymarket, the world's largest prediction market
Headline Roundup
Number of senior women bankers edged up to a new record (RT)
US has taken $21B worthy of equity stakes under Trump (BBG)
Gulf and Asian allies requested FX swap lines with US (BBG)
More banks are earning $100M M&A fees (WSJ)
Private credit fundraising targeting HWNIs fell by half in Q1 (RT)
US IPO candidates are being discouraged by risk of lawsuits (BBG)
Junk bond investors are squeezing companies for better terms (BBG)
UK pensions face 'huge' costs to sell private assets (FT)
Switzerland plans to raise UBS' capital requirement by $20B (WSJ)
JPMorgan poached two veteran tech bankers from BofA (RT)
Schonfeld sued Millennium PM Grunfeld for alleged 'gazumping' (BBG)
Google unveiled two new AI chips to take on Nvidia (CNBC)
Nvidia has not yet sold H200 AI chips to China (RT)
Fannie and Freddie will accept 'predictive' credit scores (RT)
Best Buy named insider Jason Bonfig as CEO (CNBC)
lululemon named ex-Nike exec Heidi O'Neill as CEO (CNBC)
Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes quit (BBG)
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Deal Flow
M&A / Strategic
KKR and owners DigitalBridge and La Caisse will invest $1.5B in telecoms-focused Vertical Bridge REIT at a $10B-$15B valuation
UK product testing firm Intertek is reviewing EQT's sweetened $11.2B takeover bid
Volkswagen shortlisted EQT, CVC, and Bain Capital for the next round of bidding for its ~$10B valued heavy diesel engine unit Everllence
A consortium of PE firms CVC and GTCR submitted a LBO offer for $6B-listed medical equipment provider Teleflex
PE firms Permira, New Mountain Capital, and TA Associates, talent agency UTA, and ex-Endeavor chair Patrick Whitesell are bidding for talent agency The·Team (fka Wasserman), which could be valued at $3B
EQT is considering a takeover offer for $2.9B-listed Japanese price comparison website Kakaku.com
KSL Capital Partners agreed to acquire America's largest private golf course operator Invited Clubs in a $2.6B deal
HSBC shortlisted Allianz, Daiichi Life Group, and Sumitomo Life Insurance as bidders for its HSBC Life Singapore insurance unit which could fetch a $2B valuation
Portugal is likely to advance competing bids from Air France-KLM and Lufthansa for a minority stake in carrier TAP at a potential $1.7B valuation
Toronto Stock Exchange-owner TMX Group will to acquire options exchange Cboe's Australian and Canadian units in a $300M deal
ExxonMobil is in talks to sell its Hong Kong gas stations for a few hundred million dollars following a similar $270M move by Chevron
A consortium of CVC and insurer Prudential Financial emerged as the frontrunner for a $1.4B stake in a new pension-risk transfer JV with UK insurer Standard Life
Airbus agreed to buy French cybersecurity company Quarkslab
VC
Tesla invested $2B in SpaceX ahead of its historic IPO
Israeli AI infrastructure company VAST Data raised a $1B Series F at a $30B valuation led by Drive Capital and Access Industries
Robinhood's listed VC fund invested $75M in OpenAI
Goldman Sachs Asset Management took a $50M stake in Swiss financial AI startup BLP Digital in a secondaries sale
Courier Health, a patient experience technology company, raised a $50M Series B led by Oak HC/FT
Fortem Technologies, counter-UAS sensors and software maker, raised a $25M Series B from Lockheed Martin
Lucra Sports, an eSports loyalty platform, raised a $20M Series B led by ARK Invest Venture Fund
Mosaic, an AI-driven deal modeling platform built for private markets, raised an $18M Series A led by Radical Ventures
C-Infinity, an AI platform that automates translation of digital designs into production-ready plans, raised a $16M round led by Canaan Partners
BetHog, a Scottish crypto casino and sports book, raised a $10M Series A co-led by Will Ventures and RockawayX
Ultralight, an AI-native software platform for modern medical practices, raised a $9.3M seed round led by The General Partnership
DOJO AI, an intelligent marketing system built on agentic AI, raised a $6M seed round at a $30M valuation led by Armilar
Access the complete VC deal flow and data on Fundable
IPOs / Listings / Issuances / Block Trades
Brookwood Financial Partners-backed convenience store operator Yesway raised $280M in an upsized IPO priced at the bottom of a marketed range
Quantinuum, the quantum computing unit of industrials conglomerate Honeywell, confidentially filed for an IPO
Debt
Heir Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio reached a preliminary $11.7B loan deal with banks to buy out his two siblings in family-held holding company Delfin that controls $110B-listed Italian eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica
China's $2.3B yuan bond sale in Hong Kong, their biggest since 2023, drew record-low yields with the 2Y at 1.32% and 15Y at 2.08%
TD Bank Group is planning a $1B SRT tied to current and future data center exposure
Blackstone's private credit fund BCRED launched an $850M investment grade bond sale at a 230 bps premium
Blackstone-owned Aussie data center operator AirTrunk is looking to raise $360M in a debut data center-backed ABS deal
Bankruptcy / Restructuring / Distressed
PE firm Thoma Bravo is nearing a deal to wipe out $5.1B of equity and hand over control of software firm Medallia to lenders including Blackstone, KKR, Apollo, and Antares
Blackstone and KKR are leading a $1.4B private credit restructuring for Harvest Partners-backed dental services company Affordable Care
US is weighing a $500M rescue loan for bankrupt Spirit Airlines in exchange for warrants for a 90% equity stake once it emerges from bankruptcy
PE owner Bridgepoint injected $135M of fresh equity into vehicle leasing company Zenith Automotive as part of a recapitalization and restructuring agreement
Bankrupt publisher Callaway Arts & Entertainment is seeking to sell its assets or merge with a larger publishing house in Chapter 11
Funds / Secondaries
OpenAI will commit $1.5B and PE firms TPG, Bain Capital, Advent, Brookfield, and Goanna Capital will invest a combined $4B in a $10B PE JV meant to increase adoption of OpenAI's LLMs at PE-backed businesses
Crypto VC Blockchain Capital is seeking to raise $700M across its seventh early-stage fund and its second growth fund
Mark Cuban's sports PE firm Harbinger Sports Partners raised $450M for a targeted $1B debut flagship fund
EQT-owned secondaries firm Coller Capital is seeking to raise new real assets secondaries and insurance secondaries funds this year
Crypto Sum Snapshot
Justin Sun sued Trump family's World Liberty Financial for 'criminal extortion'
Crypto exchanges prepare to launch perpetual futures ahead of rule change
UK regulators raided eight London offices in illegal crypto trading investigation
Crypto Sum compiles the most important stories on everything crypto. Read it here.
Exec’s Picks
WSJ published a short profile on new Apple CEO John Ternus.
Ben Carlson shared some data to remind investors that new ATHs are not, in and of themselves, any kind of sell signal.
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.