Asset management

EQT makes hay while clouds begin to gather

22 Jul 2021

The $46 bln buyout group’s shares rose 11% after first-half earnings soared. CEO Christian Sinding is selling companies in frothy markets while return-hungry investors pile into his funds. Higher interest rates would undermine both trends, as well as EQT’s richly priced equity.

UBS’s Ralph Hamers is a CEO in search of a problem

20 Jul 2021

The $50 bln Swiss bank is one of the few in Europe trading at book value and earning its keep. The Dutch boss could cut more expenses, but it won’t get him anywhere near U.S. rivals’ profitability levels. The path of least resistance is to change little and talk a lot about ESG.

Capital Calls: U.S. jobs, Fitness IPO

7 Jul 2021

Concise views on global finance: U.S. employment vacancies tip scales towards workers; Mark Wahlberg-backed F45’s IPO values it at twice what an attempted SPAC deal did last year, justifiably.

Private equity offers test for IPO market hunger

29 Jun 2021

British group Bridgepoint is listing in London to expand beyond buyouts into real estate or infrastructure. Shares in bigger rivals like EQT are soaring, implying a $6 bln-$7 bln valuation. Yet its niche core business and limited diversification call for a discount.

Capital Calls: Genetic gold rush

28 Jun 2021

Concise views on global finance: A company has shown biotechnology called CRISPR can precisely edit defective genes in humans, fueling investment and squabbles.

The Exchange: Hiro Mizuno

17 Jun 2021

The former chief investment officer of Japan’s $1.6 trillion Government Pension Investment Fund is now a board member at Tesla and Danone. In an interview as part of last week’s Ethical Finance 2021 summit, he tells George Hay how ESG has changed since he championed it at GPIF.

Capital Calls: JPMorgan, French SPAC, Jessica Alba

17 Jun 2021

Concise views on global finance: Jamie Dimon bulks up his nascent UK digital banking offer by buying Nutmeg; France boosts its lowly SPAC league-table position with two blank-cheque vehicles; the Hollywood star’s consumer packaged goods company Honest encounters growing pains.

Capital Calls: Turkish gas, Generali, Garuda

4 Jun 2021

Concise views on global finance: President Erdogan’s “good news” on hydrocarbons smells off; the Italian insurer’s 1.5 bln euro bid for NN Group’s asset management unit may trigger a shootout; the Indonesian flag carrier’s long struggle to avoid bankruptcy is coming to a head.

Chancellor: This time isn’t different, but scarier

3 Jun 2021

By any number of proven valuation measures American stocks are poised to deliver negative returns in future years. To believe otherwise is to suggest that “this time is different” – four of the most dangerous words in investing parlance. Active managers will have their day.

BlackRock’s green activism fires on some cylinders

2 Jun 2021

The $9 trln asset manager voted with a hedge fund against Exxon Mobil and for tougher emissions targets at Chevron. That’s progress. Still, its voting record with other oil majors like Royal Dutch Shell suggests it sometimes gives polluters a pat rather than the required shove.

Capital Calls: Klarna, Dan Loeb, Fashion IPO

28 May 2021

Concise views on global finance: The Swedish “buy now, pay later” group’s possible $50 bln price tag may leapfrog rivals Afterpay and Affirm; the corporate agitator deserves a taste of his own medicine; About You’s mooted 3 bln euro valuation implies a discount to rivals.

The Exchange: South Africa’s prospects

25 May 2021

Johannesburg Stock Exchange CEO Leila Fourie tells Swaha Pattanaik how South Africa’s economy has coped with Covid-19. In an interview recorded for the International Economic Forum of the Americas, she also flags sectors that will rebound fastest and discusses ESG investing.

Capital Calls: Apollo, Microsoft

20 May 2021

Concise views on global finance: The second of the asset manager’s three founders moves on; the software firm is pulling the plug on Internet Explorer.

Credit Suisse best bet is hardball over Greensill

18 May 2021

The bank’s clients want it to cover up to $2.3 bln of possible fund losses related to the collapsed financier. Doing so might stop them from pulling business, but it may also complicate legal wrangling and force CEO Thomas Gottstein to raise capital. Better to weather their ire.

Capital Calls: AT&T’s bankers, Blackstone in Italy

17 May 2021

Concise views on global finance: The U.S. telecom giant’s unwinding of its purchase of Time Warner is a gift for advisers on Wall Street; a court rules that the U.S. private equity firm’s 2013 purchase of Corriere della Sera’s HQ was valid.

UK’s LBO rush risks a buyout baron faceplant

14 May 2021

Britain has drawn two-thirds of Europe’s $21 bln of take-private deals this year. That will rise if KKR and Cinven clinch John Laing and Sanne. A fast recovery helps, but many takeovers look pricey. The problem is that cash-rich buyout barons have little choice but to spend.

The Exchange: Finance far away from Wall Street

11 May 2021

It’s not often we hear from the boss of a finance business based in Milwaukee. Even more unusual is to find one that is owned by its customers. Rob Cox chats with Northwestern Mutual CEO John Schlifske about investing, interest rates, ESG and the benefits of mutual ownership.

The Exchange: The green transition’s financing gap

5 May 2021

Plenty of capital is focused on creating the next Tesla. Less is directed towards medium-sized players doing vital but less flashy stuff like insulating buildings. Tikehau Capital co-founder Mathieu Chabran tells George Hay how some asset managers are stepping into the breach.

Capital Calls: Endeavor’s Hollywood ending

29 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance: The entertainment conglomerate’s IPO flipped the script on opening day.

Capital Calls: Betway, U.S. banks, Vaccine feud

26 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance: Another online betting group goes public by merging with a special-purpose acquisition company; some financial firms are racing to capture nearly-free funding from American depositors; Europe faces a long and costly fight for AstraZeneca vaccines.