Capital Calls: GameStop is a SPAC now 22 Jun 2021 Concise views on global finance: The meme-stock video-game retailer has raised more cash, making it look like an overvalued cash shell.
Capital Calls: Netflix, Flackless SPAC 21 Jun 2021 Concise views on global finance: The streaming service strikes an agreement with Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners; Helicopter-taxi company Blade’s phony spokesperson speaks poorly to investors.
Airport security fast-tracker jumps the IPO line 18 Jun 2021 Clear, the U.S. firm that allows people to cut security lines for $179 a year, wants to go public. With vaccine checks on the horizon and the U.S. government as a new client, it has a promising path to fly as a public company, so long as its valuation stays in the $2 bln range.
Capital Calls: HSBC, MRNA scramble, Cable project 18 Jun 2021 Concise views on global finance: The UK bank’s France sale disappoints; Danaher snaps up Moderna supplier for $9.6 bln; geopolitics sinks internet cable.
UK sends mixed message with London IPO veto 26 May 2021 Chancellor Rishi Sunak is seeking powers to block stock market offerings that threaten national security. Even if used rarely, the move is at odds with his drive to lure firms to list in London after Brexit. It’s another sign of the government’s ideological inconsistency.
Belarus plays airspace poker with a weak hand 25 May 2021 Irate western powers have banned flights over the Russian ally’s territory after it forced a Ryanair jet to land. Engaging in “air piracy” is easier for countries that can afford to lose overflight fees or are too big to fly around. Neither is obviously the case for Belarus.
EU boxes smart in bout with Chinese behemoths 5 May 2021 Competition tsar Margrethe Vestager wants to stop state-sponsored foreign firms from buying European rivals. It’s a good way to protect industries while resisting mergers like Siemens-Alstom. But ensuring a level playing field isn’t enough to develop high-tech sectors like chips.
Hostile buyer lets G4S escape its grasp 22 Feb 2021 Five months after revealing its pursuit of the UK security group, GardaWorld has abandoned the chase. Rival Allied Universal’s 3.8 bln pound bid should capture a solid return while creating a more global firm. The Canadian loser will struggle to trap another transformative deal.
Europe’s chip M&A invaders merit partial knockback 9 Feb 2021 Germany and Britain must decide whether to allow foreign takeovers of $6 bln Dialog Semiconductor, $5 bln Siltronic and $40 bln Arm. The risk lies in yielding control of scarce, technologically critical assets. In that respect, only the latter two deals are worth blocking.
Ericsson’s China gains heighten blowback risks 29 Jan 2021 The $41 bln Swedish telecoms kit maker’s prospects are soaring due to Western bans on Chinese rival Huawei. But the Middle Kingdom is also its hottest 5G equipment market. The risk of reprisals should its own government ban Huawei are increasing.
Chip deal price bump shifts spotlight to Berlin 25 Jan 2021 Taiwan’s GlobalWafers raised its offer for Siltronic to $5.3 bln and cut the acceptance threshold to 50%. It’s probably enough to get the bid over the line. The next question is whether Germany will give up control of a semiconductor supplier. Investors may be too sanguine.
Corona Capital: Bank of America, Halliburton, NBA 19 Jan 2021 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Bank of America’s animalistic analogies; Halliburton sees a recovery that can’t come soon enough; The New York Knicks’ valuation has its top spot to lose.
France’s Carrefour defence targets wrong enemy 14 Jan 2021 Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire opposes a possible $20 bln takeover of the grocer by Canada’s Alimentation Couche-Tard. He’s right to worry about jobs and supply chains after Covid-19. But a new owner would still need French cashiers, while suppliers are better protected by law.
Corona Capital: Vaccine dibs 21 Dec 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Vaccine prioritization is about to get competitive.
Governments are new activist investor on the block 21 Dec 2020 The pandemic has freed states to roll back decades of reduced investment in business. Bailouts have bequeathed stakes in distressed companies, while security concerns are encouraging politicians to inject capital into startups. Good governance needs to be on the agenda in 2021.
Sensitive U.S. hack is one more problem for Biden 14 Dec 2020 Network software used by America’s armed forces and big companies was compromised for months, possibly by Russia. The maker, Texas-based SolarWinds, has egg on its face. For users in D.C. and elsewhere, it’s a reminder that cybersecurity can’t be ignored, even in a pandemic.
UK security M&A battle will get bloodier 9 Dec 2020 Allied Universal agreed to pay 3.8 bln pounds for prison operator G4S. Canadian rival GardaWorld now faces getting drawn into a lengthy bidding war. Yet the U.S. group’s 245 pence per share price offers a high 10% return. That means the target’s shareholders can hope for more.
GardaWorld opens door for G4S escape 2 Dec 2020 The Canadian security firm raised its bid for the UK group to 3.7 bln pounds, having argued much less was fair on Monday. The new price is hardly a knockout either. CEO Stephan Cretier’s erratic handling of the offer and a possible counterbid give investors reason to hold out.
Taiwan chip takeover tests German tech defences 30 Nov 2020 Silicon wafer maker GlobalWafers wants to buy Munich-based Siltronic for 3.8 bln euros. The deal will consolidate an oversupplied industry and shore up the German group at a decent price. But it ultimately runs counter to Berlin’s drive to keep research and manufacturing at home.
New UK takeover rules thicken the global M&A fog 11 Nov 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson is making it mandatory to seek approval for deals in some sectors, and expanding the government’s powers to cover intellectual property. The rules are no worse than in America or Europe. But they’re vague enough to give bankers and lawyers headaches.