Society

Viewsroom: Life from the latest Indian lockdown

29 Apr 2021

Images of vast funeral pyres, overcrowded hospitals and empty streets have been emanating from India as the country grapples with surging Covid-19 infection rates. Una Galani surveys the situation on the ground from Mumbai and discusses the government’s response with Rob Cox.

Italian IPO to square God’s work with capitalism

28 Apr 2021

Automatic door maker FAAC, worth some 2 bln euros, may float in Milan. The Catholic Church, which inherited the business from the owner, can use the proceeds to fund good deeds. The firm’s rapid growth may also convince investors their bet will be more solid than a parish raffle.

The Exchange: Becoming “Richer, Wiser, Happier”

27 Apr 2021

That’s the title of a new book looking at how some of global finance’s top investors, such as Howard Marks, Matthew McLennan, Charlie Munger and Mohnish Pabrai, crushed it. The author, William Green, tells Rob Cox what he learned from writing about these “practical philosophers.”

Capital Calls: Hella/Hueck, Evolution Gaming, 3M

27 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance: A big block trade is good news for investors of German car parts maker Hella if it presages industry consolidation; Swedish gaming group enjoys a double whammy from locked-down punters and states jonesing for casino cash; 3M could use a pruning.

Review: How drug money cost a family its name

23 Apr 2021

Purdue Pharma set in motion an opioid epidemic which killed nearly half a million Americans in 25 years. Patrick Radden Keefe’s “Empire of Pain” shows how the Sacklers repeatedly used the same tactics to harm society and reap over $10 bln. The clan’s only damage is reputational.

Magic mushroom model is more service than pharma

22 Apr 2021

The fungi’s ingredient psilocybin has effectively treated depression and other ills. Startups like Field Trip jumped to develop patentable versions of the naturally occurring drug. Cutting trips from four-plus hours helps, but pricey therapist-shamans remain the key cost driver.

Viewsroom: The Super League’s short, unhappy life

22 Apr 2021

The richest European soccer clubs, including Juventus and Real Madrid, swiftly aborted plans to create a breakaway competition. But as Liam Proud and Peter Thal Larsen explain, the financial appeal of a U.S.-style sporting cartel remains irresistible. Plus, Huarong’s woes.

Capital Calls: Bank of America, WeWork, Kering

20 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance: The bank’s shareholders voted against a deeper dive into its impact on racial inequality; the office landlord is taking bitcoin as payment, for now; the Gucci owner needs to run faster to catch arch-rival LVMH.

The Exchange: Fewer bankers, more engineers needed

20 Apr 2021

That’s one of Jacques Attali’s many prescriptions to enhance the economy of life. The former EBRD boss and French presidential adviser also discusses Big Tech breakups, Europe’s lagging vaccination efforts, Macron’s political prospects and his plan to close the elite ENA.

Viewsroom: Cross-border travel hassles, Alibaba

15 Apr 2021

For businesspeople eager to get back on the road, three lucky Breakingviews editors share their experiences of hopping across the Atlantic, traveling to India and navigating Europe’s arbitrary rules. Asia columnists discuss how Beijing has come down hard on Jack Ma’s tech empire.

Grab’s $40 bln debut comes with twin airbags

13 Apr 2021

The Southeast Asian taxi-to-fintech firm is going public at a sales multiple twice Uber’s. U.S. SPAC sponsor Altimeter is contributing to a $4 bln PIPE and signing a long lockup. It’s a smart way to underwrite an amped-up valuation and sets a template to speed others to market.

Hong Kong-on-Thames lies in not-too-distant future

13 Apr 2021

Real estate tycoons from the former British colony are rushing to build new homes in London. They appeal to Hong Kong residents taking up UK visas, and offer a better return on investment than at home. It’s a bold bet on the capital’s pandemic-afflicted property market.

How to play the post-Covid return to getting it on

12 Apr 2021

Rich-country birth rates fell in 2020 amid economic uncertainty, reduced social life, postponed nuptials and fertility treatments. The patter of tiny feet will return as lockdowns end and economies bounce. Diaper producers and formula makers like P&G and Reckitt stand to benefit.

Review: Tax’s weird past exposes present oddities

9 Apr 2021

State levies propelled historical turning points from Magna Carta to the Boston Tea Party. “Rebellion, Rascals and Revenue” turns these episodes into an elegant tax-theory primer. Current practices, like rules for multinationals, prove no stranger than peculiarities of yesterday.

Capital Calls: Netflix, GameStop

9 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The video-streaming service sprays webs of money to secure movies; GameStop’s “Chewy of Gaming” strategy.

Capital Calls: Cellebrite good times

8 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The Israeli cracker of mobile-phone encryption is going public via a SPAC at a $2.4 billion valuation.

Covid-testing IPO is bet on long hypochondria

7 Apr 2021

German diagnostic tester Synlab is planning to float with a mooted $7 bln valuation. A receding pandemic may mean its 38% revenue growth in 2020 isn’t repeated. But the price reflects that, and consumers may well continue to obsess about other aspects of their health.

Rosier IMF forecasts are riddled with inequalities

6 Apr 2021

The international lender upgraded its global growth forecasts for this year and next. But there is a gulf between haves and have-nots, across countries and within them. Some of the sound advice it is doling out to mitigate the problem may be hard for governments to implement.

Review: Rwanda, Africa’s good-news story gone bad

1 Apr 2021

Under Paul Kagame, the Land of a Thousand Hills has gone from genocidal hellhole to wannabe African Singapore. In feting the ex-guerrilla president, donors and investors ignored autocracy and murder. Michela Wrong’s “Do Not Disturb” may force Davos to rethink its guest list.

Cox: Europe really needs to get its shot together

1 Apr 2021

From Rome to Paris and beyond governments are imposing further travel and other restrictions, many for reasons that look more petty, political and punitive than sanitary. That’s energy better spent on the best way to exit the health and economic crisis: vaccinating people.