Social Media

Capital Calls: Chubb/Hartford, Son of Kozmo

23 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Insurer Hartford rebuffs an offer from rival Chubb without breaking a sweat; snack-delivery outfit GoPuff raises capital at an $8.9 billion valuation, giving new life to an old Silicon Valley idea.

China’s Quora haunted by own existential question

23 Mar 2021

Zhihu, the country’s largest online Q&A platform, seeks a $6.4 bln valuation in a New York IPO. It narrowed losses and doubled sales last year thanks to a membership drive, but the business plan has holes. The price also looks extremely rich given peers’ struggles.

Capital Calls: Netflix, ECB, Glass Lewis, Zalando

16 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The streaming service’s password-sharing crackdown twists the knife; the central bank worries about identifying bad loans; the proxy adviser’s sale underscores its place on Wall Street; the online fashion giant’s bold targets.

Twitter’s future looks like its underwhelming past

2 Mar 2021

Boss Jack Dorsey is aping features from Snapchat and Clubhouse, and making acquisitions in an attempt to double sales by 2023. Twitter isn’t the only tech firm with that kind of strategy. But the social network lags rivals, and past attempts to borrow and buy have flopped.

Capital Calls: Soho House, Aston Martin

25 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The private members’ club shrugs off lockdowns to plan a New York IPO; The loss-making luxury carmaker’s shareholders need to buckle up.

Twitter is an M&A target – Snap, not so much

24 Feb 2021

Microsoft and other older tech firms are sniffing around social networks not only because of growth but also access to users and their data. Price matters, though, as does entrenched management. Twitter’s valuation and its ownership structure make it a prime candidate.

Capital Calls: Petrobras

19 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Brazil's president becomes Petrobras' activist.

Microsoft Pinterest tilt is craftier than it looks

11 Feb 2021

The $1.8 trln tech giant made a pass at the $50 bln scrapbooking site, per the FT. The potential combination may seem confusing, but Microsoft boss Satya Nadella has regularly sought growing networked assets. Pinterest might also slip past increasingly vigilant regulators.

Retail frenzy is dubious gift for market middlemen

11 Feb 2021

High-frequency traders like $6 bln Virtu Financial seemed like the main winners as Reddit-using punters poured cash into shorted stocks like GameStop. Yet its investors are sceptical that the party will last. A regulatory backlash could also upend the dealers’ business model.

Capital Calls: Jay vs. Larry

10 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Jerome Powell takes on Larry Summers in the inflation debate.

Reddit gets high on its own supply

10 Feb 2021

The message board that helped push GameStop stock into the stratosphere snagged a lofty $6 bln valuation in its own fundraising. Ad revenue is growing, aided by hordes of amateur traders. But like peers, Reddit faces regulatory threats. The greater the hype, the bigger the risk.

Facebook has little to fear but itself

27 Jan 2021

Everything was thrown at the $800 bln social network in the last year, from an ad boycott to antitrust lawsuits. Mark Zuckerberg’s business still posted a 33% jump in quarterly revenue. Regulatory pressure is rising, but the greatest danger for Facebook may be getting distracted.

ByteDance casts shadow over rival Kuaishou’s IPO

25 Jan 2021

The Chinese video app is eyeing a valuation of up to $62 bln, over 30 times forecast EBITDA. Top sovereign funds have backed the premium multiple, about three times that of smaller peers. But a costly battle with TikTok-owner ByteDance looms large over its future prospects.

Google threat demands that Australia find allies

22 Jan 2021

The tech titan says it’ll disable search Down Under if Canberra enacts a law forcing it to pay media companies for news. It goes to show how much clout $1.3 trln parent Alphabet thinks it has. Such corporate dominance suggests global regulators may have to put up a united front.

Donald Trump administers tech oligopoly test

12 Jan 2021

The U.S. president said he was considering building a social media platform after his Twitter account was banned. If someone with around 88 million followers can’t find an alternative outlet, digital clout may be too concentrated. For Facebook and peers, it’s a no-win situation.

The Exchange: Sheryl Sandberg on banning Trump

12 Jan 2021

The Facebook COO sat down with Breakingviews’ Gina Chon as part of Reuters Next on Monday to explain why the social network has indefinitely blocked the U.S. president after he incited violence at the Capitol - and why it took so long for the company to come to this decision.

Facebook’s four-point defense just about holds up

11 Jan 2021

COO Sheryl Sandberg laid out why the $730 bln social network is on the right side of history, from taking down bad actors to keeping small businesses alive. There are flaws in her argument, but Facebook has probably deflected the worst of the political fury.

Big Tech needs a dose of Wall Street’s medicine

23 Dec 2020

Companies like Amazon and Facebook are so big that fines for bad behavior hold little sting. In that way, tech is becoming like finance. Bank regulators have found other ways to promote good behavior, from clawbacks to curbs on buybacks. Those would work in Silicon Valley too.

Corona Capital: Tesla’s Apple snub

23 Dec 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Tesla boss Elon Musk asked to meet with Apple back in the day, and got rebuffed. Musk’s company has been the better investment recently, especially during the Covid-19 period. That doesn’t mean Tim Cook missed out.

Big Tech pile-on could block future moon shots

18 Dec 2020

Google is now deluged by three U.S. lawsuits, claiming it’s abusing market power. Facebook faces its own challenges against government prosecutors. The duo may beat back the charges but, like Microsoft in the 1990s, too much distraction could make them miss the next big thing.