Together with
Good Morning,
US and Iran began negotiations to end the war, retail traders are selling stocks for the first time since 2023, OpenAI shut down its Sora video generation model, Blackstone made its first-ever sports investment, and Tim Cook shut down retirement rumors despite growing pressure to confirm Apple's succession plans.
If AI is killing software, it can kill some of your late-night grinds as well. F2's AI platform for private markets helps automate key DD tasks including complex financial modeling to cut work by 75%. Leading deal teams already use F2. Try a demo.
Let's dive in.
Before The Bell
As of 3/24/2026 market close.
Learn more about the Litquidity portfolios and subscribe to the strategies on Autopilot.*
Markets
US stocks slipped yesterday as US and Iran began negotiations to end the war
US yields are rising by the most since 2024
US 2Y surged 9 bps past 3.9% following weak auction demand
Gold snapped a nine-day losing streak
California diesel hit a record-high $7/gal
Earnings
Prediction Markets
Tim Cook shut down retirement rumors in a recent interview but markets are pricing in an Apple CEO succession sooner than later
Trade event contracts on Polymarket, the world's largest prediction market
Sent from my iPhone
Headline Roundup
US and Iran began negotiations to end the war (CNBC)
Iran said 'non-hostile' ships can transit Strait of Hormuz (FT)
US business activity slipped to an 11-month low (RT)
China positions itself as a stable economic force amid global uncertainty (RT)
China's $1.6T SWF rekindles ties with US PE firms (BBG)
Soaring stocks boosted Canada's Maple 8 amid PE rut (BBG)
Gulf SWF ride China AI euphoria to world-beating IPO gains (BBG)
Saudi firms press ahead with IPO plans despite Iran war (BBG)
15% of all Middle East real estate debt is now in distressed territory (BBG)
Big banks are playing both sides of the private credit meltdown (WSJ)
PIMCO takes contrarian view as market bets on global rate hikes (BBG)
Withdrawal limits and debt downgrades add to private credit woes (NYT)
SEC raises questions over rating agency behind private credit boom (FT)
Retail traders are selling stocks for the first time since 2023 (BBG)
CitSec made a record $12.2B in trading revenue last year (BBG)
Millennium explores shifting Dubai staff to Jersey (FT)
OpenAI shut down Sora video generation model (CNBC)
California risks fuel crisis unless Iran war eases (BBG)
VW is in talks with Israel to shift production from cars to missile defense (FT)
Rothschild's France offices were raided in Epstein probe (WSJ)
A Message from F2
Claude this, Claw that…How 'bout you claw back your weekends?
Virtually everyday there's an LLM development that absolutely nerfs sector stocks. And while Claude and ChatGPT are going at it in innovation, very few are successfully converting that to useful applications.
F2.ai is one of them. F2 is hyper-focused on private markets workflows, turning the latest AI advances into applications that actually meet the demands of deal teams.
Their platform is specifically tailored around the rigor of buy side work and incorporates industry-grade structure, accuracy, and auditability to help automate key DD workflows up to 75% faster.
Some of their best features?
An integrated financial modeling environment
The ability to preview and define assumptions and workflows upfront, so outputs aren't a black box
A dedicated 'Databook' to track structured, Excel-native analyses that are fully source-linked, editable, traceable, and actually defensible in IC
Leading deal teams already use F2 to save hours on diligence workflows. It's time you check it out.
Deal Flow
M&A / Strategic
Victory Capital withdrew its ~$9B bid for asset manager Janus Henderson after Trian and General Catalyst raised their offer to $8B, ending a brief bidding war
Japanese lender SMFG is reportedly working on plans to takeover $8.4B-listed Jefferies
Canadian renewable power company Boralex is exploring a sale in a deal that could fetch a $6.3B valuation
Apollo agreed to acquire Japanese glass manufacturer Nippon Sheet Glass at a $3.7B valuation
A consortium of Indian conglomerate Aditya Birla Group, media company The Times of India Group, Blackstone-linked family office Bolt Ventures, and Blackstone acquired Indian cricket team Royal Challengers Bengaluru from global beverage giant Diageo for $1.8B
VC
Cambridge Mobile Telematics, an AI-driven telematics and road safety solutions developer, raised $350M in strategic funding led by TPG
NoTraffic, an AI-powered mobility platform for traffic management, raised a $90M Series C led by PSG Equity
Mirage (formerly Captions), a video-editing and AI model company, raised a $75M growth round led by General Catalyst
Doctronic, an AI system legally authorized to practice medicine in US, raised $40M in a Series B led by Abstract and Lightspeed
Highlight AI, an intelligent OS for teams and AI agents, raised a $40M Series A led by Khosla Ventures
Spade, a data and AI platform for transaction enrichment, raised a $40M Series B led by Oak HC/FT
Worth AI, a fintech using AI in financial services, raised a $30M Series A from Florida Funders and others
Hanover Park, an AI-native fund administrator for PE and VC, raised a $27M Series A led by Emergence Capital
Pro Padel League, the world's top professional padel league, raised a $15M Series A led by CD&R president and NBA team investor Rick Schnall
Littlebird, a full-context AI assistant for Mac, raised an $11M seed round led by Lotus Studio
Get real-time updates on any startup, VC, or sector on Fundable
IPOs / Listings / Issuances / Block Trades
SpaceX is set to file for an IPO to raise $75B at a $1.75T valuation
South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix is seeking to raise $10B is a US listing
Electrical equipment company Forgent Power Solutions and owner Neos Partners are offering to sell $1.1B worth of shares
TPG and Temasek-backed Indian hospital operator Manipal Health is seeking to raise $1B at a $13B valuation in an India IPO
CVC and Silver Lake-backed UK roadside assistance firm RAC is sounding out investors for a London IPO that could value the firm at $6.7B
Nvidia-backed Australian AI startup Firmus appointed three new directors ahead of an expected IPO; the firm was valued at $4.2B last year
Quadria Capital-backed contract drug manufacturer Encube is weighing raising $400M in an India IPO
Indian sauce and condiments maker Veeba is preparing to raise $200M in an India IPO
Debt
French lender BNP Paribas sold SRTs tied to $5.8B of corporate loans
Dutch AI infrastructure firm Nebius Group is planning a $3.75B convertible debt sale to fund data center expansion
Angola raised $2.5B in a dollar bond sale
Turkcell signed a $1B syndicated loan financing deal with 14 banks to fund 5G investments
Bankruptcy / Restructuring / Distressed
Canadian subprime lender goeasy secured covenant waivers from lenders after loan losses at its LendCare auto unit briefly pushed the firm out of compliance
Funds / Secondaries
Ares became latest to cap withdrawals at its flagship $11B private credit fund after redemption requests surged
Kleiner Perkins raised $3.5B across two fund to go all in on AI
Overmatch Ventures raised $250M for its second fund to continue investing in deep tech, defense, and space
Japanese secondaries firm Regrowth Capital Management raised $63M for its debut fund
BlackRock's bond CIO Rick Rieder is seeking to raise cash for TriaXial, his first in-house hedge fund in years
Crypto Sum Snapshot
Crypto stocks tumbled as investors weigh changes to stablecoin regulation
NYSE partnered with Securitize to develop tokenized securities platform
BMO will launch a tokenized cash platform with CME and Google Cloud
Crypto Sum compiles the most important stories on everything crypto. Read it here.
Lit's Picks
Bloomberg published a highly insightful deep dive on the succession drama at Apple, with investors and insiders preparing for a new era but Tim Cook remaining keen on staying.
Ally Jane Ayers wrote a great essay on why many investors chase complexity. Hint: it's more psychological than logical.
"In California, Silicon Valley is where they make the computers. In South Carolina, Silicon Valley is the space between Nancy Mace's tits." -US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent
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.
*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.