Gaming

Capital Calls: LVMH succession, Swedish Match

22 Jul 2022

Concise views on global finance: Bernard Arnault insures the luxury group against future family feuds; the oral tobacco company’s results will embolden deal resisters.

Video game deal shows late-cycle identity crisis

13 Jul 2022

Graphics-maker Unity is buying Israeli ad-tech firm IronSource for $4.4 bln, a 94% premium. That suggests optimism. But insider Silver Lake will make a $1 bln convertible investment while Unity buys back stock, buffering dilution. Classically, smart investors protect themselves.

Deal odds in the face of market pain

19 May 2022

Market pain is changing the math for arbitrageurs, as targets' shares may drop further if mergers fail. A Breakingviews calculator shows the odds of a deal going through. Run the numbers here.

Market rout throws off math for open deals

18 May 2022

Unlike Twitter, whose shares dived on Elon Musk’s waning enthusiasm for his $44 bln offer, other stocks pending a deal are down on little news. Market pain changes the math for arbitrageurs as target shares may drop further if mergers fail. A Breakingviews calculator shows how.

Tech unicorns become zombies

13 May 2022

Companies like Peloton, Carvana and DraftKings hit up investors for cheap capital to bolster balance sheets over the past years. But they haven’t used the cash to sort out business models – and they continue to burn through it. They have varying cushion but may already be dead.

Capital Calls: Turkey, Nintendo/Sony, India IPO

10 May 2022

Concise views on global finance: President Erdogan makes another ham-fisted monetary intervention; the Switch maker weathers supply chain ructions better than its larger rival; New Delhi needs to be even more generous in its landmark listing of Life Insurance Corp of India.

Capital Calls: Dubai listings, Epic Games

12 Apr 2022

Concise views on global finance: State-owned utility DEWA defies the global IPO gloom as its shares jump 20% on their debut; Sony is pumping another $1 bln into privately held metaverse evangelist Epic Games at an epic $32 bln valuation.

Capital Calls: Buffett’s HP bet, Gambling M&A

7 Apr 2022

Concise views on global finance: Berkshire Hathaway takes a hefty stake in the computer and printer maker; Betting group 888 negotiates a better price for buying UK bookie William Hill.

Capital Calls: Microsoft’s Activision deal

31 Mar 2022

Concise views on global finance: The software giant’s $69 bln acquisition of the “Call of Duty” publisher comes with a ton of baggage. That could be why Activision shares are trading at a wide discount to the deal price.

Hackers turn crypto’s strength into Achilles heel

30 Mar 2022

Attackers stole $540 mln from a blockchain linked to an online game. Theft is growing as developers roll out untested new blockchain products with shaky security. So-called decentralised finance makes it easy to create new crypto services, but criminals are mopping up the spoils.

Capital Calls: Ford’s private equity playbook

2 Mar 2022

Concise views on global finance: The Detroit automaker’s reorganization plan makes explicit the goal of squeezing its traditional car business for cash to fund its electric future.

Capital Calls: Albertsons, Target

1 Mar 2022

Concise views on global finance: Supermarket chain Albertsons considers repackaging itself – again. Meanwhile, rival U.S. retailer Target beats earnings expectations, but with a performance at odds with its cut-price valuation.

Roblox metaverse premium gets real-world downgrade

16 Feb 2022

The gaming platform attracted more users in January, but nearly flat bookings of virtual currency knocked 25% off its shares. Video games can be faddish, and kids’ obsessions even more so. Doubt about Roblox’s ability to turn attention into cash merits a more mundane valuation.

Capital Calls: Theme park M&A, Energy IPO

16 Feb 2022

Concise views on global finance: Cedar Fair rebuffed a takeover offer from rival amusement park operator SeaWorld, but other buyers may be reluctant to join the ride; The $8 bln Vaar Energi, majority owned by Italy’s Eni, sees its shares dip on their first day of trading.

India ramps up the cost of Chinese cash

16 Feb 2022

New Delhi is determined to curb Beijing’s influence in its tech sector. For local startups like Paytm and Zomato, unwinding Chinese investment is a pain. Foreigners like Singapore’s Sea may face a starker choice: cash from the People’s Republic or access to India’s growth market.

Capital Calls: EVs run over ethanol and gas

15 Feb 2022

Concise views on global finance: Farmers and oil barons are set for more fights after a recent study showed the biofuel is likely at least 24% more carbon-intensive than gasoline. They are missing the bigger threat.

Super Bowl gambling bonanza is a DraftKings bust

11 Feb 2022

The number of people who bet online on America’s football mega-match is set to surge. That ought to mean a jackpot for the wager app. But its losses are growing due to promotions that the $18 bln company is using to attract users. Justifying such costs requires defying the odds.

Capital Calls: New York Times buys Wordle

1 Feb 2022

Concise views on global finance: The news organization’s purchase of the popular word puzzle fits its subscription strategy.

Microsoft’s scale and M&A invite scrutiny

25 Jan 2022

The $2.2 trln software giant's quarterly sales jumped 20% last quarter. Boss Satya Nadella has outperformed many Big Tech peers of late. After last week's deal to buy Activision for $69 bln, Microsoft's uncanny ability to avoid regulators' crosshairs may be running out.

Capital Calls: GE’s Larry Culp learns to say “no”

25 Jan 2022

Concise views on global finance: It will be a while before the industrial conglomerate’s markets normalize, and its planned breakup takes place. In the meantime GE is trying to cut costs and be more selective. That means less revenue, at least at first.