Private equity ESG hoops are too easy to navigate 16 Feb 2021 Lower-rated companies and those controlled by buyout groups are issuing debt with interest payments linked to environmental, social or governance targets. But they’re too mild to change behaviour much. To have real teeth, their conditions need toughening up.
Amundi governance cloud has M&A silver lining 10 Feb 2021 Europe’s biggest fund manager named Valérie Baudson CEO. The elevation of current boss Yves Perrier to chairman is an eyesore for a company that flaunts its ESG credentials. Yet given the $16 bln group’s need for acquisitions, keeping the seasoned dealmaker around makes sense.
Lazard bucks Aussie investment banking trend 5 Feb 2021 The $5 bln advisory shop is scaling back as financiers from UBS and elsewhere decamp to startups such as Barrenjoey and Jarden. Boss Ken Jacobs has struggled to gain traction Down Under. With an M&A boom potentially on the horizon, though, it’s an odd time to shrink.
Julius Baer can hit M&A trail after light penance 1 Feb 2021 The $13 bln Swiss private bank escaped serious penalties for money laundering sins and boosted net profit by 50%. That gives CEO Philipp Rickenbacher a strong foundation if regulators lift a ban on deals. Rivals EFG International or Edmond de Rothschild may be attractive targets.
Corona Capital: UK’s quarantine, U.S. prisons 27 Jan 2021 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Britain’s new quarantine rules are weak, but will still hurt the travel industry; and for-profit prisons lose business to the U.S. government.
Larry Fink flexes what green muscles he has 26 Jan 2021 The BlackRock boss will require companies to show how they will eliminate carbon emissions by 2050. The $9 trillion asset management giant’s largely passive funds cannot dump climate laggards. But Fink’s latest letter makes clear his active managers will show more strength.
The Exchange: Too much stimulus stores up big risk 26 Jan 2021 That’s the view of Oliver Baete, CEO of Allianz. Markets are pricing in vaccination perfection, as they’ve grown dependent on central bank and government largesse, he tells Rob Cox. But for the $97 billion German insurer, there’s still opportunity to be had in the year ahead.
Naturgy offers cut-price route to green transition 26 Jan 2021 IFM is spending 5 bln euros on 23% of the Spanish utility. Naturgy’s depressed shares and the Australian fund’s use of debt will juice its returns. Moreover, it’s a cheaper way of surfing the renewable energy wave than boarding rivals like Iberdrola.
UBS strength risks stifling new CEO’s reform zeal 26 Jan 2021 Ralph Hamers inherits a bank with a respectable valuation, tons of capital and healthy returns. Such performance could make him less likely to effect major changes at the $54 bln lender. That could be a problem given long-term weaknesses like slow growth and high costs.
EQT puts runaway share price to good use 26 Jan 2021 The $28 bln Swedish private equity firm linked to the Wallenbergs is issuing $800 mln of equity to the founders of Exeter, an American property investor. The deal expands its U.S. presence and helps diversify away from lumpy buyouts. While risky and expensive, it may just work.
Hedge fund backers must pick winners twice over 25 Jan 2021 Equity-heavy hedge funds did well in 2020. Industry-wide, though, the top 20 managers made half the $127 bln of gains in the 8,000-strong industry. Stock pickers may thrive again this year, but there is no guarantee. Investors’ double bet is choosing both the game and the player.
Corona Capital: M&A boost, Purell 22 Jan 2021 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and other banks collectively reaped billions in fees related to advice on transactions with the expectation the money will keep rolling in; hand sanitizer makers hope good habits linger.
Corona Capital: ESG investing, U.S. moves, P&G 20 Jan 2021 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: ESG opens up investing opportunities; home values in U.S. resort towns rise faster than rural areas; and Procter & Gamble cleans up.
Corona Capital: Inflation, Poshmark 14 Jan 2021 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Breakingviews panel predicts the end of the free-money era; and Poshmark’s IPO looks overdressed.
Corona Capital: Icahn, Productivity, Natixis 4 Jan 2021 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Carl Icahn sells half his Herbalife Nutrition stake; an ECB survey suggests Covid-19 will make big firms more productive, but that may not be all good news; and Natixis fast-tracks its overhaul.
Green investing’s killer app faces growing pains 7 Dec 2020 Sustainable finance types long for a single metric showing how well companies are aligned with net zero emission targets. The Holy Grail exists, but there are many different versions. A harmonised methodology ahead of next year’s Glasgow climate summit looks ambitious.
Fund firm merger-SPAC deal has hairy outline 4 Dec 2020 Dyal Capital, which buys stakes in asset managers, and Owl Rock, a direct lender, may merge and go public through a blank-check vehicle. It’s a complex triangular plan even without the parties' circular relationships. One question is whether there’s a sensible idea at the center.
Credit Suisse wins latest bank boss musical chairs 1 Dec 2020 The group hired Lloyds’ António Horta-Osório as its next chairman. Perennial CEO contender Jean Pierre Mustier will soon be up for grabs after leaving UniCredit. Passing around talent works for those who woo top names, but smacks of an industry struggling to bring in fresh blood.
The Exchange: Post-Covid, post-Trump mega-trends 24 Nov 2020 Supply chains may become more diverse or shorter, tech companies with few hard assets will continue to thrive, and the transition away from fossil fuels will present opportunities. Taimur Hyat, COO of $1.4 trln asset manager PGIM, looks to the future with Richard Beales.
Corona Capital: Brexit curveball, Sonos 19 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: a Covid-19 scare for European Brexit negotiators puts an already-optimistic deadline to the test; and wireless-speaker maker Sonos joins the list of companies profiting from consumers being stuck indoors.