Investment Banking

JPMorgan is a rare palace that warrants intrigue

26 Jan 2024

Most whispers about CEO succession amount to idle gossip, but Jamie Dimon’s management shake-ups could lead to a world-changing decision. His swagger has helped expand the $4 trln bank’s clout in the financial system and it’s increasingly doubtful his replacement will sustain it.

Blackstone is calling the bottom, almost

25 Jan 2024

The $1 trln asset manager snapped its year-plus dry spell in new investments, client inflows and earnings. A sturdy economy bolsters boss Steve Schwarzman’s bet that 2023 will be marked as a low point. There’s just one precious piece of the puzzle missing: fee growth.

Commerzbank stake sale would risk M&A impasse

25 Jan 2024

Berlin may consider offloading its 15% stake in the German lender. Deutsche Bank and UniCredit are obvious potential buyers, but higher rates have made a full-blown bank merger less appealing. A market disposal would present prospective suitors with a dilemma.

Overdraft fee reform has a big, small-bank flaw

19 Jan 2024

The US consumer watchdog’s assault against charges levied when accounts go into the red is a win for customers – but only those of the biggest banks. Small lenders are exempt, partly because of their political clout. Trouble is, they often bank the neediest bunch.

Goldman’s new durability message cuts two ways

16 Jan 2024

After failing in consumer finance, the investment bank wants to emphasize the predictability of its existing businesses. Boss David Solomon makes a good case that a chunk of revenue is more reliable than it once was. And yet arch-rival Morgan Stanley generates even more of it.

Barclays alumni’s UK M&A rests on typical optimism

16 Jan 2024

The all-stock deal between loss-making Panmure Gordon and Liberum will create the UK’s top independent investment bank. To succeed, City grandees Rich Ricci, who will run the firm, and Bob Diamond, who will finance it, must hope for a big rebound in the small-cap IPO market.

BlackRock deal buys Larry Fink optionality on exit

12 Jan 2024

The asset manager’s $13 bln purchase of infrastructure firm GIP is a smart bet on private markets. Fink’s relationships give the tie-up an edge and history with GIP’s founder smooths integration. It’s transformational enough that Fink could retire, if only he were less ambitious.

Mega-banks menaced by closing jaws in murky waters

12 Jan 2024

JPMorgan, BofA, Citi and Wells Fargo all unveiled financial results clouded by exceptional items and less predictable outlooks. Bad-debt costs are up and interest rates are probably coming down. Cutting expenses relative to revenue, or “positive jaws,” will be a 2024 fixation.

Bitcoin ETFs only entrench one frivolous use case

10 Jan 2024

The SEC finally greenlit BlackRock, Grayscale and other funds to track the crypto price, with trading due to start this week. It’ll be easier to make – and lose – money in the volatile digital asset, but it’s no closer to being a currency, store of value or network for new apps.

Deflation will help big grocers gobble up minnows

29 Dec 2023

Supermarkets like Walmart and Tesco are expecting goods prices to finally fall. That will help larger chains to cut shoppers’ bills by putting pressure on suppliers such as Unilever. Smaller rivals may find it harder and end up losing customers, making them ripe for takeovers.

Goldman’s partnership is too much of a good thing

28 Dec 2023

The arcane and elite 420-member group bolsters the bank’s cachet, but sometimes exerts power that’s out of sync with other shareholders. Boss David Solomon already answers to his board, clients and 45,000 other employees. He would do well to cut the inner circle down to size.

Mega-bank M&A goes from impossible to imaginable

28 Dec 2023

After 2008, CEOs saw investment-bank deals as risky while regulators saw them as dangerous. UBS will prove otherwise if it safely and profitably absorbs Credit Suisse. Imitators will not get the same sweet deal, but targets like SocGen and Barclays at least come cheap.

Bank CEOs channel movie mobsters in Basel fight

7 Dec 2023

New capital rules are beset by inefficiencies and inconsistencies. Yet eight US bank chiefs appearing before the Senate delivered a more populist warning: water them down, or regular Americans will be impoverished. It’s disingenuous at best; counter-productive at worst.

UAE green fund risks missing its poor-nation mark

1 Dec 2023

The COP28 climate-summit host unveiled a $30 bln vehicle featuring Brookfield, BlackRock and TPG to help cut emissions. If the firepower goes to developing countries, it will plug big financial gaps. If wealthier nations are the main recipients, it’ll be a squandered opportunity.

Everybody could use a Charlie Munger

28 Nov 2023

Warren Buffett’s deputy and self-dubbed cheerful pessimist has died a month shy of his 100th birthday. He was witty, smart and a fixture at Omaha gatherings. But his chief asset, as a sounding board to the one who got fame and fortune, was also his boss’s best value investment.

“Ex-Japan” title may take a final bow with Goldman

21 Nov 2023

The retirement of Japan President Masanori Mochida gives the US firm the option to follow its rivals and have his successor report into the Asia CEO. After a long lull, Japan’s markets are hot. But shape-shifting foreign banks may opt to bring the country into the regional fold.

Carlyle’s next takeover target should be itself

16 Nov 2023

Boss Harvey Schwartz lacks the small-investor firehose or balance-sheet heft of listed rivals that public investors crave. A muddled handover by the firm’s founders slowed progress. They could help now by joining with outside capital to buy the private equity giant out.

For global banks, India could soon be worth it

7 Nov 2023

CEOs have descended on Hong Kong for a summit, but investment bankers based in the city are spending time elsewhere in Asia as revenue from China shrinks. In India, IPOs are on the rise and fees are improving. Buyout firms’ behaviour suggests those trends will continue.

Morgan Stanley’s new CEO inherits rich pickings

2 Nov 2023

Ted Pick has the money and backing of predecessor James Gorman to make acquisitions that will help the $120 bln Wall Street firm service more of the global elite. While many potential targets look cheap, he can take his time. The most enticing prospects aren’t for sale yet.

Apollo deal drought is swamped with success

1 Nov 2023

The $630 bln investment firm delivered disappointing profit and underscored plans to give shareholders less dealmaking lucre. Its market value jumped 8% on the bad news. Increasingly prized fee income helps boss Marc Rowan’s empire overcome higher interest rates squeezing alpha.