Telefonica can play hard to get in fibre sale 6 Oct 2021 The 23 bln euro Spanish telco may flog a chunk of its super-fast domestic broadband network. With the fibre rollout almost done and debt vaguely in check, Telefonica isn’t desperate for the cash. That means it can wait for a buyer ready to top the reported 15 bln euro valuation.
Capital Calls: Facebook, TeamViewer, Audio M&A 6 Oct 2021 Concise views on global finance: Whistleblower Frances Haugen’s polished rollout is a warning for Big Tech; the video software specialist’s 25% share price fall shows the perils of growth stocks; hearing aid group GN snaps up headset maker SteelSeries for $1.3 bln.
French cloud IPO is a bet on EU tech sovereignty 5 Oct 2021 OVHcloud is listing in Paris for up to 3.7 bln euros. Slow growth and the tight grip of founder Octave Klaba justify the IT group’s low valuation. But sales could surge if European businesses and governments push to keep data at home rather than with Amazon, Google or Microsoft.
Best tool to rein in Big Tech is a cap on users 5 Oct 2021 Facebook, Amazon and YouTube can shrug off fines because of their size; public hearings don’t much hurt either. A more effective way to change behavior would be to bar them from signing up new users – a tech-world version of what U.S. regulators did with wayward bank Wells Fargo.
India spotlights Facebook’s ubiquity problem 5 Oct 2021 The social network and its WhatsApp platform are proxies for the internet and phone in the $920 bln company’s biggest market. So their outage had users scrambling. That’s New Delhi’s cue to extend its aggressive effort to curb Facebook’s heft beyond simply policing content.
Facebook outage is dry run for worse web crashes 5 Oct 2021 The $920 bln firm’s eponymous and Instagram social networks, plus messaging platform WhatsApp, just went kaput for hours. People use them for more than cat snaps. But a similar mess at Amazon, say, would have a bigger impact. Some internet services may now be too crucial to fail.
Capital Calls: Pandora, Facebook files pack punch 4 Oct 2021 Concise views on global finance: A leak with rich people’s offshore activities and a Facebook exposé reinforce perceptions with facts; GitLab’s float shows Microsoft’s wise 2018 buy; Volvo IPO aims to supercharge EV plans; BT’s bid to rule UK broadband may face U.S. competition.
Drahi drags satellite M&A into near-earth orbit 4 Oct 2021 France’s Eutelsat rejected the telecom billionaire’s $3.2 bln bid. If a follow-up offer succeeds, Drahi could pursue a cost-saving merger with rival SES, whose TV-signal business is also succumbing to gravity. A chunky spectrum refund from the U.S. government makes a deal easier.
Rivian risks reckless run onto public markets 4 Oct 2021 The electric-vehicle maker backed by Amazon and BlackRock only just started selling its first model. It’s also burning cash fast and Jeff Bezos’s e-commerce empire has the upper hand as a big customer for delivery vans. A mooted $80 bln valuation sounds like a runaway IPO.
Data center holdout needs new class of buyer 1 Oct 2021 The nearly $10 bln CyrusOne is exploring a sale after missing out on previous consolidation. A historical discount to rivals is an opportunity for infrastructure investors keen on the expanding sector. But any suitor will have to overlook challenges that put off others.
Capital Calls: Biodiversity, Email, Gene IPO 30 Sep 2021 Concise views on global finance: Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures gets a nature-based counterpart; Sweden’s Sinch clinches its fourth communication-software deal in seven months; a 40% bounce on Oxford Nanopore's market debut puts some life into London.
Europe’s chip champion can weather tech cold war 30 Sep 2021 ASML, which supplies machines to semiconductor makers, expects sales to grow 11% a year for a decade. That’s key to the Dutch company’s $310 bln market value. Despite restrictions on exports to China, countries seeking to secure chip supplies will provide an extra boost.
Alphawave crash exposes fragility of UK tech hype 30 Sep 2021 The chip designer’s market value halved after a media report raised fears about related party transactions. Its punchy $4 bln IPO in May was a high point of London’s push to attract startups. Even then, a reliance on a handful of customers left a worryingly thin margin for error.
Nordic retail robot IPO carries steep price tag 29 Sep 2021 AutoStore, the SoftBank-backed firm that sells automated warehouses, is listing in Oslo for up to $15 billion. It’s a bet on the boom in online shopping and grocery delivery. Yet the rich valuation relies on breakneck growth in a competitive market and downplays legal risks.
Trucker shortage turbocharges haulage payments IPO 28 Sep 2021 Eurowag has built a lucrative business planning routes and handling payments for haulage firms. A dearth of drivers makes it more important to minimise empty trucks. Even a top-gear 1.7 bln euro valuation leaves mileage for investors in the Czech company’s upcoming London float.
Capital Calls: U.S. debt, Hollywood, Blue Prism 28 Sep 2021 Concise views on global finance: Republicans have blocked additional federal borrowing, bringing a default closer; talent agencies CAA, ICM, and Endeavor take different strategic directions; private equity group Vista seems to be getting UK software group Blue Prism cheaply.
Sony and activist vie for prime Indian TV slot 28 Sep 2021 Broadcaster Zee Entertainment inked an $11 bln merger with the Japanese group’s film unit just days after 18%-owner Invesco called for a new board. Shares are up over 70%. The bad governance drama could result in a good strategic deal but it is an awkward plot.
Capital Calls: American healthcare exceptionalism 27 Sep 2021 Concise views on global finance: American male life expectancy at birth dropped over 2 years in 2020, the worst among 29 nations. That raises the stakes in a healthcare crisis among working-age people that even the mightiest U.S. employers have so far failed to solve.
Huawei deal offers illusion of U.S.-China progress 27 Sep 2021 Washington has walked away from an extradition fight with the telecom giant’s Meng Wanzhou, one in a series of concessions. President Xi Jinping has given nothing substantial in exchange, and is doubling down on aggressive economic policies. Any relief will be short-lived.
Review: Hitting the brakes on tech’s runaway train 24 Sep 2021 Giants like Facebook, Google owner Alphabet and Amazon are reaping outsized benefits from fast and cheap innovation, Azeem Azhar argues in “Exponential”. Legislation and lawsuits show society is fighting back. But it will take more radical ideas to loosen their grip.