Greek banking reform takes hazy turn 16 Feb 2021 On the eve of Piraeus Bank’s big recap, the head of the country’s bank bailout fund, HFSF, abruptly resigned. He had championed better corporate governance. The move overshadows welcome Greek banking improvements, including a bad debt cleanup plan and new insolvency code.
Kerry Group’s short-seller defence lacks flavour 16 Feb 2021 A sleuth of bears has accused the Irish maker of Wall’s sausages of overstating the value of acquisitions. The 19 bln euro firm dismissed the criticism and powered ahead with its shopping. But to close the valuation gap with rival Givaudan, a more transparent rebuttal is needed.
Capital Calls: Bubble alert 16 Feb 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Bitcoin burst through $50,000, and global fund managers are maximum bullish on the pace of the recovery from the pandemic.
Coal wobble flags Glencore’s green high-wire act 16 Feb 2021 The commodity giant’s EBITDA from the black stuff collapsed in 2020 to just $1.2 bln. Given his increasing climate consciousness, departing CEO Ivan Glasenberg should be happy. But it also shows the risks of a green pivot that requires coal to be used as a financing bridge.
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.
BHP boss gets extended Chinese honeymoon 16 Feb 2021 Covid-19 infected Mike Henry’s first year as the miner’s CEO, but high iron ore prices driven by demand from the People’s Republic just paid for a record $5.1 bln dividend. They also buy him extra time to grapple with a dual listing, potash plans and Beijing’s ban on Aussie coal.
South Korea’s Coupang is less Amazon, more Walmart 16 Feb 2021 The e-commerce group might be worth over $50 bln in its New York IPO valued as the former, or about $10 bln as the latter. Coupang is loss-making in a small retail market. Success in new areas like food delivery could justify a premium but the growth outlook deserves caution.
Coal India is in the pits of climate activism 16 Feb 2021 The commodity’s top pure-play miner is setting up renewable-energy units and looking for partners. It’s a hedge against coal’s decline and a modest bet on a hot field. But it has potential to boost lousy returns at the $11 bln company that’s key to the country’s power needs.
Russian retail IPO offers crowded bet on misery 15 Feb 2021 Fix Price, the country’s biggest discounter, may list in London and Moscow. It’s growing rapidly, thanks to pressured incomes in its home market and resilience to online rivals. That could justify a price tag of $9 billion, so long as investors shrug off rising competition.
Capital Calls: Deloitte castoff, Banks and Brexit 15 Feb 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The UK auditor chooses an unfortunate moment to offload its lucrative restructuring practice; The Bank of England pours cold water on the idea of a regulatory bonfire after Britain leaves the European Union.
Vivendi’s $40 bln music spinoff is Bolloré shuffle 15 Feb 2021 The conglomerate may hand 60% of Taylor Swift’s label to investors. Eliminating a discount on the French group’s shares could unlock 7 bln euros of value. But controlling shareholder Vincent Bolloré benefits most: he gets the upside while retaining his grip on both parts.
Ex-UniCredit CEO rides first class on SPAC train 15 Feb 2021 Jean-Pierre Mustier teamed up with tycoon Bernard Arnault and fund manager Tikehau to launch a blank-cheque vehicle searching for financial services deals. He’s betting European investors will join the SPAC craze. The support of Europe’s richest man offers a good entry ticket.
Capital Calls: Disney+, SPAC romance 12 Feb 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The entertainment giant’s streaming growth comes at a cost; blank-check companies are trashing all records in 2021.
Europe’s airlines may need financial refuelling 12 Feb 2021 Delayed vaccines and mutating virus strains are threatening another peak tourist season, hitting carriers like Lufthansa as well as low-cost rivals such as easyJet. With debt soaring, shareholders, including governments, may need to fork out again. If so, better to beat the rush.
Fed’s jobs push needs any help, including IBM’s 11 Feb 2021 Big Blue is rethinking U.S. employee needs. More than half of its openings no longer require a bachelor’s degree, for example. It's one way to meet the challenge of the post-Covid economy, in which employers can't fill vacancies even as the central bank boss frets over lost jobs.
Bumble gratifies Blackstone’s lust for lucre 11 Feb 2021 After a 75% first-day IPO pop, the dating app is worth quadruple what it was when the private equity firm invested a year ago. Even if Bumble’s valuation settles nearer that of rival Match, Blackstone will have made a big paper profit. Its early flirtation with tech has paid off.
Microsoft Pinterest tilt is craftier than it looks 11 Feb 2021 The $1.8 trln tech giant made a pass at the $50 bln scrapbooking site, per the FT. The potential combination may seem confusing, but Microsoft boss Satya Nadella has regularly sought growing networked assets. Pinterest might also slip past increasingly vigilant regulators.
Viewsroom: Tesla/bitcoin, Hydrogen, French finance 11 Feb 2021 Elon Musk has gone full cryptocurrency. Tesla’s $1.5 bln bitcoin buy is a wink to virtual-investment, anti-establishment fervor, if a challenge to accounting rules, Richard Beales argues. Meantime, Japanese carmakers are going gaga for hydrogen, and Parisian finance is in tumult.
Capital Calls: Third Point, Kraft Heinz/Hormel 11 Feb 2021 Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Dan Loeb’s hedge fund gets a good start in 2021, while Hormel Foods buys peanuts, but pays anything but.
Shell’s new plan tests investors’ green resolve 11 Feb 2021 The Anglo-Dutch group’s decarbonisation strategy will see it stay big in oil longer than BP. European investors now have a choice between Shell’s walking pace and its rival’s handbrake turn into wind and solar. It could become a gauge of how seriously investors take green issues.