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Good Morning,

A coup started (and ended) in Russia over the weekend, SpaceX is selling insider shares at a $150B valuation, Ozempic-like pills are coming, companies are trying a new strategy called “siloing” to stay in China, the UK wants to tame greedflation, Goldman is cutting 125 MDs, and Litquidity got a front page feature in the Financial Times!

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Let’s dive in.

Before The Bell

Markets

• All three major averages closed lower on Friday in a broad sell-off that marked the end of a recent rally

  • The Dow, S&P and Nasdaq snapped three, five, and eight-week win streaks, respectively

• UK swaps markets now imply BoE rates to peak at 6.25%

• Yen swaps positions suggest BOJ’s negative-rate policy will stay this year

• Bitcoin hit 1-year high amid BlackRock ETF excitement

• On Friday, we’ll receive the PCE index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge

Earnings

• CarMax beat Q1 expectations with reduced SG&A costs driven by proceeds from a legal settlement and active cost management, their stock was up 10% (IBD)

• What we're watching this week:

  • Today: Carnival

  • Tuesday: Walgreens, Manchester United, Jefferies

  • Wednesday: Micron, General Mills, BlackBerry

  • Thursday: Nike, Paychex, Simply Good Foods

  • Friday: Constellation Brands

• Full calendar here

Headline Roundup

• Prigozhin turns forces back in deal with Kremlin to drop charges (BBG)

• US business activity fell to a three-month low (RT)

• Corporate bankruptcies and defaults are surging (CNBC)

• Bond traders are heeding Powell's pledge to stay on Volcker path (BBG)

• World economy at critical juncture in inflation fight, central-bank body warns (RT)

• BOJ member called for early revision to YCC (RT)

• PE exits are slower than during the global financial crisis (PB)

• UK to tame inflation with greedflation and public pay crackdown (BBG)

• Elite law firms flock to dealmaking Saudi Arabia amid global M&A drought (FT)

• Companies try new strategy to stay in China: siloing (WSJ)

• Hong Kong will fine-tune mortgage limits for first-time homebuyers (RT)

• BNY Mellon pushes ahead with diversity funds despite backlash (FT)

• YouTube is testing an online-games offering (WSJ)

• Starbucks workers, citing pride decorations, strike at some stores (WSJ)

• Citi will hold employees 'accountable' for office attendance (RT)

• Goldman Sachs is cutting ~125 MDs globally (BBG)

• JPMorgan cut nearly 40 investment bankers in US (RT)

• BlackRock announced fresh layoffs, impacting < 1%(RT)

• Pill versions of Ozempic-like drugs are coming (WSJ)

• US retailers targeted with bomb threats, seeking bitcoin and gift cards (RT)

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Deal Flow

M&A / Investments

• Japanese semiconductor equipment maker JSR Corp. is considering being acquired by state-backed Japan Investment Corp for ~$7B (RT)

• $5B life sciences firm Abcam is exploring strategic options including a potential sale; it has received multiple takeover offers including some from the largest US suppliers of life-science tools (BBG)

• IBM is nearing a deal to acquire software company Apptio for ~$5B in a push to expand into automation technology (WSJ)

• Italian energy company Eni and Eni-controlled Norwegian producer Var Energi are jointly acquiring explorer Neptune Energy Group for $4.9B (BBG)

• The Qatar Investment Authority is buying a 5% stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the NBA team Washington Wizards and NHL team Washington Capitals, in a deal that values the company at $4.1B (RT)

• Blackstone is considering the sale of an unsecured Spanish loan portfolio worth $2.2B (RT)

• Brookfield Asset Management is in discussions to acquire Swedish real estate company SBB’s remaining 51% stake in its education subsidiary EduCO; Brookfield bought its 49% stake of EduCo for $858M cash (RT)

• Elon Musk’s SpaceX is offering to sell $750M of insider shares at a $150B valuation (BBG)

• Goldman Sachs will likely take a large writedown for fintech lender GreenSky that it acquired for $2.2B in 2021, which it is looking to divest for around $300M-$500M (RT)

• Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group is buying Indonesian automobile lender Mandala Finance for $467M (BBG)

• Troubled French supermarket chain Casino completed the sale of its remaining 11.7% stake in Brazilian retailer Assai, receiving $355M cash after tax (RT)

• PE firm Allegro Funds is buying PwC Australia’s government practice, which has been damaged by a conflict of interest scandal, for 67¢ (RT)

• Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky is interested in acquiring a stake in Thyssenkrupp's steel business, which is also looking for a buyer or co-owner (RT)

• Logistics group Shift agreed to buy the brand and IP of British delivery brand Tuffnells Parcel Express, which collapsed this month (BBG)

• Defense company Anduril Industries is acquiring rocket-engine business Adranos (WSJ)

VC

• Metatime, the creators of a blockchain network called MetaChain, raised a $25M seed round led by Yildiz Tekno Venture Capital Investment Trust, Yildiz Technical University Technopark, and others (BW)

• EvaluAgent, a startup building software to help companies evaluate call center agents, raised a $20M Series A led by PeakSpan (TC)

• Hungry, a DC-based food tech marketplace, raised a $10M Series C-1 at a $270M valuation from Anfernee Simons, Bobby Wagner, Roquon Smith, Laremy Tunsil, and others (FN)

• Duos, a digital health startup focused on the needs of older adults, raised a $10M round led by Primetime Partners, SJF Ventures, and the Castellan Group's Aging Innovation Fund (FN)

• TreaTech, a Swiss engineering company focused on circular waste treatment, raised a $10M Series A led by Engie New Venture and Montrose Environmental Group (FN)

• Hyf, a startup transforming food by processing wastewater into feedstocks for biomanufacturing and clean water, raised $9M in funding led by Synthesis Capital (FN)

• Carbonwave, a developer of ultra-regenerative advanced biomaterials made from seaweed, received a $6M investment from Pegasus Capital Advisors and the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (PRN)

• Hypar, a cloud-based design automation platform for buildings, raised a $5.5M Series A led by Brick & Mortar Ventures (FN)

• AvoMD, a no-code platform enabling clinicians and hospitals to easily make their own apps, raised a $5M seed round led by AlleyCorp (PRN)

IPO / Direct Listings / Issuances / Block Trades

• Thyssenkrupp and Industrie De Nora are looking to raise $617M in a $2.94B IPO of their hydrogen joint venture Nucera, which is below the forecasted $3B+ valuation (RT)

SPAC

• Italian-American restaurant chain with bowling and bocce Pinstripes is merging with Banyan Acquisition Corp at an EV of $520M (BBG)

Debt

• Nasdaq will sell debt worth $5.1B to fund its acquisition of Thoma Bravo-owned software company Adenza (RT)

• Indonesia's state energy company Pertamina is raising $3.1B to upgrade its Balikpapan refinery through a financing deal with South Korean, American, and Italian export credit agencies and 22 commercial banks (RT)

• A group of investors led by Apollo is making a $1B-$2B debt investment into chipmaker Wolfspeed (RT)

• Brazil’s state energy firm Petrobras is expected to offer up to $1.5B in its first dollar bond sale since 2021 (BBG)

• Indian private lender Yes Bank is raising ~$305M through debt securities (RT)

• Chinese real estate firm Leading Holdings Group failed to pay the entire $119.4M of principal plus interest due on a dollar bond issued as part of a debt swap (BBG)

• Central China Real Estate didn’t pay interest on a note before the end of a grace period and will suspend payments on all offshore debt (BBG)

Bankruptcy / Restructuring

• A consortium led by Fortress Investment Group will buy Vice Media after a bankruptcy court approved Fortress’ $350M bid (RT)

• Cargo airline Western Global Airlines is weighing options including filing for bankruptcy as it faces dwindling liquidity (BBG)

• Membership-driven private jet service provider Wheels Up is consulting with restructuring advisors to try to avoid bankruptcy (WSJ)

Fundraising

• French VC firm Frst raised $80M for its second seed fund (TC)

• Planeteer, a pre-seed and seed-stage climate-focused VC firm, raised a $15M fund (TC)

• Madrona Venture Labs, a Seattle-based startup studio, raised $11M for its fifth fund (FN)

Crypto Corner

• Binance has been ordered to halt all digital currency services in Belgium (RT)

• SCOTUS agreed to halt customers’ lawsuits against crypto exchange Coinbase while it pursues appeals to move disputes into private arbitration (RT)

• Fed governor Michelle Bowman called for clear regulatory framework for novel technologies including digital assets, as uncertainty left institutions in a ‘supervisory void’ (CT)

Exec’s Picks

• Madison Darbyshire published a banger profile of Litquidity in the Financial Times.

• Noah Smith pushed back against the idea that “the West is failing” in his latest newsletter.

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We aim to place strong candidates at leading private equity, hedge fund, venture capital, growth equity, and credit funds, as well as investment banks.

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