Together with

Good Morning,

Cocoa emerged as the biggest winner in 2024 commodity markets, CEO departures hit a record high, and while markets are taking a breather for the holidays, SPAC kings are resurrecting with billion dollar raises.

Fintech Mode Mobile is on a mission to turn smartphones into an income-generating asset and after earning venture backing, they're inviting retail investors to help them expand their smartphones disruption. Check out the offering.

Let's dive in.

Before The Bell

Markets

• US stock rebounded on Friday as investors digested positive inflation data

  • Dow notched its third-straight losing week

• Europe's Stoxx 600 posted its biggest weekly decline in three months 

• UK 30Y yield climbed to 5.16%, its highest since 1998

• China 10Y yield pushed record lows further to 1.7%

• China 1Y yield plunged 17 bps to 0.85%, the the lowest since 2003

• Bitcoin posted its first weekly decline since Trump's victory

Earnings

• Full calendar here

Prediction Markets

• The weather gods are teasing an NYC white Christmas just days before the holidays. But what other cities will see snow?

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

Headline Roundup

• Fed-favorite PCE index rose 2.4% (CNBC)

• SPAC kings who delivered 99% losses are raising billions again (BBG)

• CEO departures hit a record high this year (CNBC)

• PE is facing an exit problem in Europe (RT)

• UK business confidence fell to a YTD low (RT)

• Equity funds saw the biggest outflows since 2009 (RT)

• Credit quality shows signs of having peaked (BBG)

• Investors lose interest in EM after decade of underperformance (BBG)

• India is witnessing a roaring 90s-style stock boom (BBG)

• Big Europe stocks are shrinking deeper into US mega caps' shadow (BBG)

• Fed reverse repo balances sink below $100B (BBG)

• Hedge funds boost WTI long bets by most in a year (BBG)

• Cocoa caps 2024 as biggest commodity winner (BBG)

• Egg prices hit a new ATH (BBG)

• Startups like OpenAI and SpaceX are staying private longer (BBG)

• Accounting firms fear discrimination claims under US exam reform plan (FT)

• Intesa Sanpaolo CEO wants Europe to stop interfering in banking M&A (FT)

• SEC accused Silver Point of failing to monitor star restructuring lawyer (FT) 

• Palantir and Anduril are in talks with a dozen firms including OpenAI and SpaceX to form a consortium to jointly bid on Pentagon contracts (TC)

• Spotify execs cash in as stock soars (FT)

• Volkswagen reached a deal with the union (WSJ)

• Amazon and Starbucks workers expanded their strike (AP)

• Stellantis reversed layoffs of 1.1k workers after CEO's abrupt departure (RT)

• Potential TikTok bidder seeks a CEO, prepares business overhaul (RT)

• China battery exports to US jumped to a record $1.9B (BBG)

• CFPB sued major US banks over 'widespread' fraud on Zelle (RT)

• Ex-IMF chief Rodrigo Rato was sentenced to five years for corruption (RT)

A Message from Mode Mobile

This Tech Company Grew 32,481%…

No, it's not Nvidia… It's Mode Mobile, last year's fastest-growing software company according to Deloitte.

Mode’s disruptive $martphone, has already helped consumers earn and save $325M+ through simple, everyday use. That led to 32,481% revenue growth between 2019 and 2022, and presence in 170+ countries. Turning smartphones from an expense into an income stream, Mode is disrupting the $1T smartphone industry, like Uber did with taxis and Airbnb with hotels.

They've just been granted the stock ticker $MODE by the Nasdaq, and you can still invest in their pre-IPO offering at just $0.26/share. Friday is the last day that you can invest and receive your shares this year, don't miss it!

Last chance to invest at $0.26/share before 2025.

Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

• BNP Paribas agreed to acquire French insurer AXA's asset management unit for $5.3B

• Sports streaming platform DAZN agreed to acquire Australian pay-television and streaming service Foxtel from Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. for $2.1B

• Warner Bros. Discovery is exploring a $1B sale of Polish broadcaster TVN

• Northern Oil and Gas offered to acquire $800M-listed smaller peer Granite Ridge Resources

• Sixth Street agreed to acquire Wingstop's UK franchise for over $503M

• Brazilian paper producer Suzano is exploring an offer for $500M-listed US peer Clearwater Paper

• Liberty Mutual  is considering a sale of its Thailand and Vietnam units, which could fetch a few hundred million dollars

• RRD, a provider of marketing and printing solutions, will acquire business support services firm Williams Lea from PE firm Advent International at a valuation of several hundred million dollars

• French cosmetics giant L'Oreal is in advanced talks to acquire South Korean skincare business Gowoonsesang from Mibelle Group, a unit of Swiss retailer Migros

• Credit Agricole will buy back Santander's 30.5% stake in asset servicing bank Caceis to regain 100% control

VC

• German home electrification startup 1KOMMA5° raised a $150M pre-IPO round led by G2 Venture Partners

• Slovak EV battery maker InoBat raised a $107M round from Amara Raja and Rio Tinto

• Bluenote, a GenAI platform for biotech firms, raised a $10M round led by Lux Capital

• AI security startup Mindgard raised an $8M round led by .406 Ventures

• AI-driven leadership development platform Tenor raised a $5.4M seed round led by Base10 Partners

• Habacus, a student-focused fintech, raised a $5.2M round led by P101

• Tetsuwan Scientific, a startup building robots to autonomously run experiments, raised a $2.7M pre-seed round led by 2048 Ventures

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

• Venture Global, one of America's largest LNG suppliers, filed for a US IPO that could raise over $3B

• USDT stablecoin issuer Tether agreed to invest $775M in $3B-listed video platform Rumble

• Xiamen Hithium Energy Storage Technology is considering a Hong Kong IPO that could raise over $500M

SPAC

• US LiDAR technology firm Seyond is set to merge with Hong Kong-listed TechStar Acquisition Corp in a $1.51B deal

Debt

• Italy's Open Fiber secured $3.1B in debt and equity financing from investors including state bank Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and Macquarie

Bankruptcy / Restructuring / Distressed

• Party City filed for its second Chapter 11 bankruptcy in two years and will close all stores

• A group of lenders to Advent-backed Aimbridge Hospitality, including KKR and Capital Research, are in talks to restructure the company's debt

Fundraising

• Apollo is seeking to raise $5B for an investment-grade fund

• Nordic Capital raised $2.1B for its second MM PE fund

• Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners raised an additional $1.5B from SWF QIA and Abu Dhabi investment firm Lunate

Crypto Corner

• UnitedHealth CEO's killer is in the same jail as SBF and Diddy, Tether is on track for an eleven-figure windfall, and crypto miners are flocking to Belarus of all places.

• A generally slow week in crypto, with cryptocurrencies also taking a breather. Get the full stories here. 

Exec’s Picks

• The Chicago Atlantic Digital Mining Fund provides a stable structure for Bitcoin mining investing with real assets, monthly distributions and historical annualized returns of 32.3%. Now open to all accredited investors.

• Bloomberg identified the eleven wildest trades of 2024, illustrating the highs and lows of the year in markets.

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!

Meme Cleanser

🛒 Merch Store: Visit our merch store to shop our latest apparel, shoes, bags, accessories and more. 

💵 Litquidity Ventures: Accredited investors & qualified purchasers within the Litquidity community can gain access to alternative investments such as venture, late-stage growth, and private equity through Litquidity Ventures. Interested? Fill out this form.

☎️ Book a call with Lit: Want to pick Litquidity's brain on business advice, insights, or just chat to say what's up? Buy his time here.

📧 Launch your own newsletter: Have great content ideas and looking to launch your own publication? We highly recommend Beehiiv to get started.