ByteDance’s lukewarm 2021 presages a bleak 2022 21 Jan 2022 TikTok’s owner grew annual sales 70% to $58 bln. That’s slower than the previous year and is mostly from its home market. An advertising slowdown will further bite, while China’s crackdowns in education and video games have foiled nascent bets. Finding new growth will be hard.
Ant will be best among China’s BAD bunch 23 Dec 2021 After a brutal year for tech, ByteDance, Ant and Didi will spearhead the sector’s recovery. A shaky ad market looms for the restructured TikTok owner, however, while the ride-hailing company faces rising driver costs. Jack Ma’s fintech outfit has the clearest path ahead.
Qatar’s World Cup will pay Gulf-wide dividends 22 Dec 2021 After an awful lead-in, expectations for soccer’s showcase event in 2022 are low. Even so, the tiny emirate’s status will likely benefit. Provided Covid-19 is under control, the jamboree should also boost a regional economic recovery that has lagged other parts of the globe.
Private equity will be potent Hollywood antihero 21 Dec 2021 Blackstone’s deal with Reese Witherspoon in 2021 positioned it as a challenger to video streaming services. Buyout firms have the money and talent handling skills to make it in Tinseltown. But to make the math work, their future customers need to remain in good shape too.
China celebrity crackdown is tech’s horror show 21 Dec 2021 "Queen of livestreaming" Viya was fined $210 mln for tax evasion and had her social-media accounts shut. Investors wiped up to 12% off platform providers like Bilibili and Alibaba. The effect on the fast-growing $300 bln influencer market suggests that underestimates the risk.
Reddit float feeds on meme stock craze 16 Dec 2021 The social network, long dwarfed by Facebook, has filed for an IPO. Retail traders have inflated user numbers and advertising revenue. Reddit might seek a $15 bln valuation, five times its worth three years ago. It needs to prove that a midlife resurgence won't become a crisis.
Jack Dorsey’s fintech firm stumbles out of block 9 Dec 2021 Renaming Square to Block should have been bottom on his to-do list. Bigger priorities include integrating its $29 bln purchase of Afterpay, improving profitability and fending off rivals. Dorsey is more of a visionary. When it comes to Square, he’ll have to get his hands dirty.
Prosus runs out of friends at Russia’s Facebook 8 Dec 2021 After a shareholder shimmy, VK is ending up in the arms of the state gas giant and a Putin ally. Delisting it to combine the $4 bln group with the duo’s media empire would unlock savings. It would also be a slap in the face to minorities like the $180 bln Dutch tech investor.
Capital Calls: Securitas 8 Dec 2021 Concise views on global finance: The Swedish security specialist’s acquisition of Stanley Black & Decker’s alarms unit should boost growth and margins.
Capital Calls: Microsoft, AT&T, American Airlines 7 Dec 2021 Concise views on global finance: Microsoft is finally being scrutinized with Europe’s probe of its $16 bln Nuance deal; U.S. lawmakers have antitrust worries about the telecom firm’s Discovery deal; American Airlines’ retiring CEO leaves shareholders short-changed.
Zegna tailors elegant fix for BuzzFeed problem 6 Dec 2021 The Italian suit-maker and the millennial media group are both going public through SPACs. But Zegna has raised extra funds that kick in if investors extract money before the deal closes, as 94% of BuzzFeed’s did. With cash comes confidence; Buzzfeed ended up with less of both.
Capital Calls: Fund services M&A, Mattress mystery 6 Dec 2021 Concise views on global finance: Shareholders of Amsterdam-listed Intertrust dodge a regulatory crackdown with a 1.8 bln euro sale; the western man credited with Chinese retailer DeRucci’s success finally has his identity revealed.
Alibaba’s new CFO signals shifting priorities 6 Dec 2021 The Chinese e-commerce company, whose market value has halved to $300 bln this year, is replacing finance chief Maggie Wu. During her seven-year tenure, Alibaba successfully courted foreign investors. Successor Toby Xu’s experience suggests there will be a greater focus at home.
Alibaba looms larger than Beijing in Weibo IPO 3 Dec 2021 China's $8 bln answer to Twitter is readying a secondary listing in Hong Kong. The company’s sway over public opinion means it is a frequent target of censorship campaigns and regulatory crackdowns. That makes the e-commerce giant's 30% stake a political liability for both.
Viewsroom: Omicron hits, Dorsey quits 2 Dec 2021 As the world gets to grips with a new coronavirus variant, Swaha Pattanaik looks ahead to how Omicron could frustrate attempts to rein in rising prices. Meanwhile, Gina Chon watches Twitter say goodbye to founder Jack Dorsey and usher in a new, still-quirky governance setup.
Jack Dorsey’s exit puts Twitter in play 1 Dec 2021 Dorsey’s departure sets up the social network as an attractive target for his other firm Square in the race to build a super-app. Even PayPal or Salesforce may take another stab. Regulators may get in the way but China’s WeChat shows why the effort may be worth the headache.
UK’s Facebook slap-down raises bar for US watchdog 1 Dec 2021 Britain’s antitrust body told the social media giant now named Meta to sell GIF maker Giphy. Its ruling hinges on a view of how the online ad market will evolve, not what it’s like now. CEO Mark Zuckerberg can appeal but the order still sets a punchy precedent for Big Tech deals.
Capital Calls: Volkswagen, Turkey 1 Dec 2021 Concise views on global finance: The German carmaker may take mining stakes to secure electric-vehicle raw materials, echoing Henry Ford, the U.S. production-line pioneer; the Turkish central bank is resorting to old tricks to prop up the lira but it’s an unsustainable strategy.
Pinduoduo’s strategy sows further seeds of doubt 25 Nov 2021 The Chinese e-commerce company rocketed to relevance by single-mindedly challenging Alibaba. Following policy crackdowns and rising costs, it’s expected to swing back to a quarterly operating loss. New boss Chen Lei would benefit from looking beyond farming for additional growth.
Capital Calls: China’s data centre sale 24 Nov 2021 Concise views on global finance: Global Switch is attracting big-name private equity interest, but its quirky setup might justify suitors asking for a discount.