Asset management

China’s banks have a nasty case of indigestion

11 Sep 2024

For decades, Beijing leaned on lenders to fuel growth in the $17 trln economy. But it will take years for them to digest problem IOUs from firms and local governments. Officials will have to find new ways to boost GDP, or the financial dyspepsia could turn into something worse.

Blackstone $16 bln AI deal borrows from SPAC boom

5 Sep 2024

A group led by Steve Schwarzman’s firm is paying a large sum to buy data centre operator AirTrunk from Macquarie. By tinkering with EBITDA, the buyer can present a low valuation multiple for a purchase in a hot sector. It's unnecessarily reminiscent of the blank-cheque froth.

How HSBC can heal the scars of its CEO battle

29 Aug 2024

The $160 bln lender’s retail and wealth head Nuno Matos left after losing out on the top job to Georges Elhedery. The bank now has an empty CFO post, and a lack of potential future leaders. Recruiting heavy-hitting outsiders, like Citi’s Jane Fraser has done, would help.

UK wealth buyout requires elbow grease and luck

9 Aug 2024

After an intense courtship, CVC and Abu Dhabi have snapped up investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown for $7 bln. The rich price tag means the new owners will have to slash costs while cranking up sales to make a decent return. That may be tricky if interest rates keep falling.

UK financial watchdog’s H2O thwack has a downside

8 Aug 2024

The fund group will repay 250 mln euros after the FCA said it bought esoteric bonds and didn’t declare conflicts. The deal gets money to investors quicker than if a fine had been levied. But, at just a fraction of what some clients are claiming, the settlement risks looking soft.

China’s mounting bad debts have fewer places to go

7 Aug 2024

StanChart-backed Bohai Bank is selling $4 bln-worth of non-performing assets. It underscores the pressure lenders are under as property-linked loans sour. Yet distressed-asset managers like Cinda are feeling the strain too. Disposing banks' $470 bln bad debt pile will get harder.

Warren Buffett sagely ignores his own advice

6 Aug 2024

The Omaha billionaire once warned that having too much cash is a poor investment. After selling a big Apple stake, his Berkshire Hathaway now sits on some $275 bln of it, towering over other US corporate holdings. As markets wobble, he and his war chest are kings again.

Singapore bourse may yet be upgraded to also-ran

6 Aug 2024

Policymakers want to end its IPO drought and dismal liquidity. Tax breaks, listing government assets like Changi Airport and encouraging state fund GIC to invest locally could help. But the city-state lacks the wherewithal to be a big draw for business from China and beyond.

Buyout barons enter their spray-and-pray era

2 Aug 2024

Private equity firms like KKR and Apollo have ramped up investment – in turn boosting companies like Ares that provide debt for deals. But as some smaller bets underwhelm, investors are being asked to believe that buyout shops’ contrarian view of the future is the right one.

BNP’s AXA deal is a logical use of spare cash

2 Aug 2024

The French bank will buy the insurer’s fund unit for 5.1 bln euros, using money from its BancWest sale. It’s a big deal, but the price looks fair. And while BNP Paribas investors may prefer buybacks, a capital-light target makes more sense than a rash swoop on another lender.

Bill Ackman will never be the next Warren Buffett

1 Aug 2024

The hedge fund boss wanted to replicate his idol’s success, starting by raising money from the investing masses. The message failed to register: he pulled his IPO after originally aiming for $25 bln. There’s far more to the Oracle of Omaha than his returns.

Posh UK wealth group flaunts takeover credentials

30 Jul 2024

St. James’s Place is drawing in new client money and cutting costs. That eases concerns that well-heeled Brits would abandon its high-priced service after a recent fee overhaul. Even after a 25% stock pop, the 3.8 bln pound group is cheap. A takeover or buyout looks plausible.

Two old loves come back to haunt Singapore’s GIC

24 Jul 2024

Taking a long view is a hallmark of the $770 bln sovereign fund. Still, a big exposure to emerging-market equities, including China, and to bonds and cash, is spoiling returns. The city-state has a lot riding on whether that improves in the short term.

UK growth fix can start with pampered rich savers

19 Jul 2024

New Prime Minister Keir Starmer wants to unblock Britain’s dismal economy. One aid would be to raise revenue by cutting superfluous tax perks for wealthy savers. Another is to find a way to deploy UK savings in more growth-enhancing assets than is currently the case.

EQT hit carries warning for buyout-firm investors

18 Jul 2024

The $40 bln private equity group’s shares sank after it missed analysts’ forecasts. The lesson is that predicting profits from selling companies is tough. It also suggests that a recent valuation run-up for listed managers is out of whack with tricky dealmaking conditions.

Sapporo might get half-drunk on efficiency

18 Jul 2024

After the $3 bln beer maker agreed to rejig its property holdings, activist 3D has detailed exactly how the company should go about it. Japan Inc is warming up to the idea of realising gains on real estate. But there's plenty of room for missteps, even in a seller's market.

BlackRock’s Larry Fink won’t be able to sit still

15 Jul 2024

He’s struck two deals this year and restructured his company that manages $10 trln. Organic growth and profit margins are solid to boot. But BlackRock’s stock badly trails Blackstone, where Fink got his start. That’s plenty incentive to find new ways to push onto the same turf.

Li clan take a tiny step to beat China value trap

12 Jul 2024

A plan for an additional listing, possibly in London, for their $15 bln infra company will allow investors shunning Hong Kong to buy the stock. As for CKI's larger parent, its revenue is globally diversified. The family faces a long slog to limit damage from its China roots.

Singapore’s Temasek has a sticky China problem

10 Jul 2024

The sovereign investor's $288 bln portfolio value is on the rise but its one fifth exposure to the world's second-largest economy is a drag. Temasek's private holdings and Singapore's close financial ties with Beijing make it hard for CEO Dilhan Pillay to make a big retreat.

Ukraine bondholders’ haircut is a necessary evil

1 Jul 2024

The stricken country wants holders of $20 bln of private sector debt to take a big hit. In ordinary times, Kyiv’s request would be galling. Yet paying foreign fund managers may annoy Kyiv’s public sector backers. And the stigma of default matters less in wartime.