Corona Capital: Commercial real estate, IBM 5 Jan 2021 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Commercial office real estate is Zoom’s mirror image; IBM taps former Goldman-exec Gary Cohn.
Tokopedia neatly channels Indonesia’s potential 5 Jan 2021 The online shopping site, valued at $7.5 bln, lags Singapore’s Sea in the country. But the smaller company stands out for its single focus on one of the world’s fastest rebounding and digitalising economies. No wonder everyone from Gojek to Peter Thiel sees it as a hot target.
Viewsroom: Predictions and prescriptions (Part 2) 31 Dec 2020 A Joe Biden-Xi Jinping reset will be unsatisfying; China’s economic revival will frustrate critics; Southeast Asia will be the next tech hot spot; HSBC will retreat from America; and Hong Kong’s exchange will rethink deals. Pete Sweeney, Jennifer Hughes and Robyn Mak discuss.
Landlords’ post-virus refit will leave scars 29 Dec 2020 Remote working and a boom in e-commerce will force property owners to embrace a makeover. If Amazon and co buy defunct malls and offices become flats, asset values in the $33 trln market could recover. But even post-revamp they will be worth less than five years ago.
Xi Jinping dumps coal in Alibaba’s stocking 24 Dec 2020 Investors wiped $60 bln off the e-commerce giant’s market value on Christmas Eve after Beijing launched a formal probe into its suspected monopolistic behaviour. Officials signalled further scrutiny on fintech affiliate Ant too. The empire Jack Ma founded faces a long winter.
Stars align for luxury circular economy 23 Dec 2020 The pandemic and a desire to save the planet will prompt shoppers to buy pre-owned apparel. Luxury items’ lasting charm may unlock a $600 bln market for old Gucci, Hermès and other high-end brands. Even manufacturers could get in on the act, marrying financial and ESG goals.
Corona Capital: Vaccine dibs 21 Dec 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Vaccine prioritization is about to get competitive.
Wish’s cut-price approach fails to extend to IPO 8 Dec 2020 The owner of the cheap-and-cheerful e-commerce site reckons it’s worth up to $14 bln. Wish’s gamification of online shopping is a bit like China’s hugely successful Pinduoduo. The valuation suggests too much optimism that the model will translate for a U.S. audience.
Buy-now-pay-later exposes regulation blind spot 8 Dec 2020 Sweden’s Klarna and Australia’s Afterpay both allow punters to buy goods and defer payment. Opinion is divided over how regulators should treat any loss on the enabling financing. Balancing innovation and stability is hard, but the rules right now aren’t clear enough.
Corona Capital: Movie releases, Ads, Running 4 Dec 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: HBO Max uses its muscle on movie releases; advertising wins some and loses some; Brooks’ beast year.
Pinduoduo rises to China’s grocery challenge 30 Nov 2020 The e-commerce company unveiled plans to raise as much as $6.1 bln to expand in fresh food. Competition is fierce and building out logistics will be costly, but its model of matching farmers to shoppers gives it an edge. And boss Chen Lei has successful experience as an underdog.
Corona Capital: Scotland, EU impasse, Amazon 27 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Scottish independence gets a viral shot in the arm; Poland and Hungary take a united stand on the European Union’s recovery fund; and the online retail giant delivers a modicum of Christmas cheer to workers.
Alibaba and Hong Kong celebrate happy anniversary 26 Nov 2020 Both have been rocked in various ways in the year since the Chinese tech titan completed its landmark $13 bln secondary listing. At the same time, more companies have followed suit and boosted the city’s trading volume. Benefits may keep accruing if indexes retrain their sights too.
Corona Capital: Tiffany, Biden, Vaccines, Cash box 24 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The cut-price jeweller issues less-than-sparkling results; the U.S. president-elect gets to start tackling the pandemic; Russia touts its discount vaccine; and UK firms gorge on shareholder-unfriendly equity issues.
Russia is blessing and curse for e-commerce IPO 19 Nov 2020 Online marketplace Ozon’s New York offering values it at up to $5.6 bln. A big and underpenetrated market is a plus, as are barriers to foreign rivals. But subsidising deliveries in the world’s biggest country means it’s burning cash. The $1 bln fundraising may not be its last.
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.
Hut Group’s long-term pay plan is far too short 19 Nov 2020 The recently listed beauty tech firm’s boss Matthew Moulding is 900 mln pounds richer after meeting bonus targets. But the company’s shares only needed to rise 30% for him to do so, and he can sell his shares in March. It’s a pretty odd way to design a long-term incentive plan.
Corona Capital: Dimon weighs in, Gen Z 18 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: JPMorgan’s chief executive calls for U.S. politicians to “just split the baby” on stimulus; and Generation Z deals a new body blow to the idea that office life will emerge from the pandemic unscathed.
Walmart explores perks of being second best 17 Nov 2020 The retailer’s online sales are soaring, and it has rolled out a membership model akin to Amazon Prime. Jeff Bezos’s firm is miles ahead. But like Disney, whose streaming service is quickly catching up to Netflix, there are benefits for Walmart in riding a rival’s coattails.
Corona Capital: Home Depot 17 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Home Depot will benefit as DIYers move inside.