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Free Speech in the Metaverse

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Litquidity Capital
January 08, 2025

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Good Morning,

Sam Altman's sister made some wild claims against him, Point72 is entering private credit, AI startups are driving a VC resurgence, Meta removed fact-checking and speech restrictions across its platforms, and deal flow is absolutely booming in the start to 2025.

Take your career to the next step in 2025! Level up your PE skills in Wharton Online–Wall Street Prep's globally acclaimed Private Equity Certificate Program. Early enrollment benefits end soon!

Let's dive in.

Before The Bell

As of 1/7/2025 market close.

Markets

  • US stocks slid yesterday as strong economic data dented rate cut bets

    • Swap markets no longer fully price in a Fed rate cut before July

  • US 10Y yield hit its highest in eight months

    • US auction of 10Y bonds drew the highest yield since 2007 

  • US 30Y yield hit 4.92%, up 60 bps MoM and at a one-year high

  • UK 30Y gilt yield touched 5.25%, the highest since 1998 

  • Korea-US 10Y yield spread sunk to a record low discount of -190 bps 

  • Polish zloty hit its highest versus euro since Covid

  • US stock markets will close tomorrow in honor of Jimmy Carter

Earnings

  • What we're watching this week:  

    • Today: Jefferies, Albertsons  

    • Friday: Delta, Walgreens, Constellation Brands

  • Full calendar here

Prediction Markets

As of 1/7/2025.

  • America just recorded its first bird flu death and markets have taken notice.

  • Trade your predictions on a range of events legally, only on Kalshi. Get a $20 bonus when you deposit $100 with code LIT on signup!

Headline Roundup

  • US job openings unexpectedly rose to a six-month high (BBG)

  • US services sector activity increased more than expected (WSJ) 

  • Stocks are the most overvalued against bonds in over two decades (BBG)

  • Rising Treasury yields risk Liz Truss-style crisis (BBG)

  • US corporate bankruptcies hit a 14-year high as high rates bite (FT)

  • $185B global debt sale frenzy of 2025 draws yield-hungry buyers (BBG)

  • Currency options trading skyrocketed as politics upend bets (BBG)

  • Hedge funds boosted Aussie short bets to a near three-year high (BBG)

  • Tiger Cubs scored second year of gains on soaring tech stocks (BBG)

  • AI startups captured a record 46% of $209B VC funding last year (RT)

  • Foreigners turned net sellers of Asian stocks in 2024 on Trump win (RT)

  • Yuan short sellers squeezed by soaring Hong Kong funding costs (BBG)

  • China pushes officials to deliver on building unified market (BBG)

  • Fitch warned of US debt-ceiling stalemate despite Republican majority (RT)

  • Point72 hired Blackstone exec Todd Hirsch for new private credit effort (BBG)

  • Citadel extended non-compete to 21 months to retain talent (BBG)

  • Tech group urged US to halt rule limiting global access to AI chips (RT)

  • Sam Altman's sister accused Sam Altman of sexual abuse (CNBC)

  • US sued Cushman & Wakefield and others over alleged rent collusion (RT)

  • Meta ended fact-checking and reduced curbs on speech (WSJ)

  • JPMorgan is planning full-time RTO (BBG)

  • US banned medical debt from consumer credit reports (RT)

  • Trump refused to rule out force to take Greenland and Panama Canal (FT)

A Message from Wall Street Prep

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Come join the over 4,000+ graduates who have learned about the world of private equity through the same theory-meets-practice approach utilized by the top private equity firms when training their own associates. 

By enrolling by January 13th, you'll also be able to access exclusive benefits including:

  • $500 discount on tuition by using code LITQUIDITY

  • Immediate access to 15+ hours of foundational training on topics including accounting, Excel, and financial modeling

  • Early access to the cohort's LinkedIn and discussion groups

  • Exclusive invitations to networking events

Don't miss out on this exclusive offer to jumpstart your finance career with Wharton Online and Wall Street Prep. Secure your spot today!

Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

  • Cintas, a maker of workplace products, made a $5.1B cash takeover offer for smaller uniform supplier UniFirst that has been rebuffed multiple times

  • Paychex agreed to acquire rival payroll processor Paycor in a $4.1B cash deal, including debt

  • Getty Images agreed to acquire rival Shutterstock in a cash and stock deal to create a $3.7B stock-photo provider

  • A Blackstone-led consortium will buy a majority stake in US accounting firm Citrin Cooperman from New Mountain Capital at an over $2B valuation, including debt

  • KKR is considering a sale of supermarket chain Seiyu for several billion dollars

  • China's Ping An Insurance offered to acquire the remaining stake it doesn't already own in Ping An Healthcare at a $1.7B valuation

  • Sumitomo Rubber will buy Dunlop from Goodyear for $701M cash

  • Chipmaker NXP Semiconductors agreed to buy Austrian automotive software developer TTTech Auto for $625M cash

  • Insurer Ryan Specialty agreed to acquire Velocity Risk Underwriters from Oaktree for $525M

  • Nuclear energy firm BWX Technologies agreed to acquire nuclear service provider Kinectrics for $525M

  • LatAm's largest investment bank Banco BTG Pactual agreed to acquire Swiss private bank Julius Baer's Brazilian unit for $101M

  • Orange Mills Ventures, the investment vehicle of Dutch businessman Cees Meeuwis, acquired Philips' Xiver computer chip unit

  • Northwestern Mutual will take a ~10% stake in investment firm Sixth Street as part of a deal to manage $13B of Northwestern's assets

  • Spain's Sociedad Textil Lonia agreed to buy French fashion house Christian Lacroix

VC

  • OpenAI rival Anthropic is in advanced talks to raise a $2B round at a $60B valuation led by Lightspeed Venture Partners

  • Husk Power Systems, the world's biggest solar mini-grid operator, is seeking to raise a $400M round for global expansion as it preps for an IPO

  • Investment management software startup Addepar is in talks to raise $250M at a $3.25B valuation from 8VC, Valor Equity Partners, and WestCap

  • Inari, a startup developing seeds for a sustainable food system, raised a $144M round led by ADIA

  • HR software provider Buk raised a $50M Series B at an $850M valuation led by Headline

  • Northern Light, an enterprise knowledge management platform for competitive intelligence and market research, raised a $23M growth round from LoneTree

  • Behavior-based fraud prevention company ThreatMark raised $23M from Octopus Ventures, Riverside Acceleration Capital, and more

  • boon AI, an AI-based workflow platform for commercial fleets, raised a $20.5M Series A led by Marathon and Redpoint Ventures

  • Jones, a startup offering an AI-driven insurance risk management system for real estate and construction, raised a $15M Series B led by NewSpring Capital

  • Fermata, a startup using computer vision to detect diseases in plants, raised a $10M Series A led by Raw Ventures

  • Stablecoin infrastructure firm AlloyX raised a $10M pre-Series A led by Solowin

  • Alta Resource, a startup extracting rare earth metals from e-waste, raised a $5.1M seed round led by DCVC and Voyager Ventures

  • Altilium, a UK-based clean technology startup, raised a $5M Series B from Marubeni Corporation

  • Grove AI, a clinical trial management and intelligence company, raised a $4.9M seed round led by A*

  • Fazeshift, an AI agent for accounts receivable, raised a $4M seed round led by Gradient

  • Mili, an AI-based meeting documentation platform for wealth management firms, raised a $2M seed round led by Chiratae and BoldCap

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

  • TD Bank is reviewing options for its 10.1% stake in Charles Schwab, which has a $132B market cap

  • Chinese drugmaker Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals filed for a second listing in Hong Kong that could raise over $2B

  • Cinven and CPPIB-backed Spanish travel technology firm HBX is planning to launch a ~$1B Spain IPO at a $5.2B valuation as soon as next week

  • Oilfield services provider Flowco is seeking to raise ~$400M at a $2B valuation in its US IPO

  • Saudi hospital operator Almoosa Health rose 15% in its trading debut after its $450M IPO

  • Chinese toy maker Bloks raised $215M in a Hong Kong IPO

  • Biotech firm Maze Therapeutics filed for a US IPO

  • Brookfield-owned car battery maker Clarios withdrew its US IPO plans

Debt

  • Saudi Arabia raised $12B in a bond issuance, while its SWF PIF secured a $7B Islamic loan

  • Belgium's $7.2B debt sale drew record demand

  • Airport Authority of Hong Kong sold $2.4B of bonds in the region's largest-ever local currency issuance

  • Chile raised $3.4B via dollar and euro bond issuances

  • Banks led by Goldman Sachs are preparing a $1.1B loan to back CVC's $1.2B LBO of CompuGroup Medical

  • State-owned Export-Import Bank of India sold a 10Y $1B dollar bond at a 100 bps premium, the tightest ever

  • Indonesia's state-owned Bank Mandiri is marketing its first $1B syndicated loan

  • San Francisco International Airport plans to raise $1B in a munis sale

  • Premier League team Everton is seeking to raise $376M in a private debt placement to support a stadium refinancing

Fundraising

  • Bonaccord Capital Partners, an arm of alternative asset manager P10, raised $1.6B for its latest GP stakes fund

Crypto Sum Snapshot

  • Bitcoin miners aer stockpiling coins to ride out profit squeeze (FT)

  • CFTC chair Rostin Behnam will step down when Trump takes office (RT)

  • 68% of crypto advice on TikTok is misleading (BTC)

Check out our free 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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