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☆ SPACs Delivered Easy Money, but Now Companies Are Running Out
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Amrith Ramkumar | Shane Shifflett | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Illustration: Ali LarkinThe SPAC boom took hundreds of risky companies to the stock market. The next stop for many is bankruptcy court. Dozens of companies that merged with SPACs are running out of cash, joining at least 12 that have already gone bankrupt after combining with special-purpose acquisition companies.

☆ Crypto is either dead in the water or about to notch new records as soon as next year - it depends on who you ask
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Max Adams | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

You can scroll a bit further down for the market's reaction to the stunning Tucker Carlson announcement, but for today, we're turning our attention to crypto. If you ask Chamath Palihapitiya, that's because crypto crossed the wrong people and now it's dead, at least in the US. While crypto may be "dead in America," bitcoin is still going to $100,000. The housing market is close to bottoming and that could stave off a bad recession. That's according to Morgan Stanley, which wrote in a research note that housing is linked to broader business cycles.

☆ 'Crypto is dead in America' as US regulators target the sector for threatening the establishment, Chamath Palihapitiya says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Crypto is paying the price for challenging the establishment, Chamath Palihapitiya said. "Crypto is dead in America," the so-called SPAC King said recently on the All-In podcast. "Crypto is dead in America," Palihapitiya said. Recent examples of the SEC's enforcement efforts include a February proposal to stop investment advisors from trading in crypto, and the threat of legal action against a number of Coinbase products. Meanwhile, Palihapitiya also lamented the SEC's enforcement rationale, claiming that it is excessively targeting a company that has a history of being regulation-friendly.

☆ BuzzFeed is shutting down its news arm and parting with 2 top executives
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

BuzzFeed News is shutting down as part of broader cuts at BuzzFeed that sent its stock price tumbling. The digital media company has struggled financially since its 2021 IPO. BuzzFeed is shutting down BuzzFeed News along with making layoffs of 15% in divisions across the organization, according to a memo shared with Insider. Two top BuzzFeed execs, Christian Baesler, COO, and Edgar Hernandez, CRO, are leaving the company as well. A handful of top execs from BuzzFeed's Complex Networks left as part of that round, including Complex's president, Justin Killion.

BuzzFeed wasn't the only digital media company to announce layoffs Thursday. Miller added that going public is probably not the best strategy for digital media companies like Buzzfeed. The news comes during a tough period for digital media companies as publishers are cutting staff as advertisers reduce spending. BuzzFeed will lay off 15% of staff and shut down its news unit, BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti wrote in an email to staff Thursday. The digital media company scaled back its news operation in an attempt to make BuzzFeed News profitable, resulting in the departure of several editors.

☆ Clover Health, which bet its technology would disrupt health insurance, will outsource health-plan operations and cut jobs to help it turn a profit
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Clover Health bet its technology would disrupt health insurance, but it's struggled with losses. Now it's cutting jobs and it plans to outsource some health-plan operations to lower its costs. Clover Health, an insurance upstart that bet its technology could transform healthcare for seniors, now plans to outsource basic functions like paying medical claims. The Tennessee-based health insurer said Monday that it will shift the responsibility of its core operations to UST HealthProof, a company that handles administrative operations for health plans. It's not unusual for small health insurers to outsource some health-plan operations.

☆ Trump-backed SPAC Digital World names new CFO
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 13 (Reuters) - Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC.O), a blank-check firm that is set to merge with former U.S. President Donald Trump's media and technology company, on Thursday named Katherine Chiles as its chief financial officer. The development comes after Digital World in March ousted Chief Executive Patrick Orlando, saying that due to "unprecedented headwinds faced by the company" the board had agreed to select a new management team. The company also named Alexander Cano as president and secretary on March 11, according to a filing on Thursday. In October 2021, Trump's newly formed media company, Trump Media & Technology Group, announced a deal to go public by merging with Digital World. Late last year Digital World's Chief Financial Officer Luiz Braganza left the company.

☆ Electric cars get a reality check
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, April 11 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Regulators want to encourage electric vehicles by flattering them less. The U.S. Department of Energy has proposed tweaking a decades-old formula for calculating EVs’ fuel efficiency. The overhaul will lower electric mileage ratings – but could encourage automakers to ditch fossil fuels more quickly. Automakers must meet a minimum overall CAFE mileage; falling short results in penalties. GM and rivals already want to catch up to electric leader Tesla – and its $600 billion valuation.

☆ UAE telco super app punt uses Indian playbook
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, April 11 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The United Arab Emirates is finding more strategic places to park its cash. The telecoms giant’s purchase follows a $4.4 billion investment in Vodafone (VOD.L) in May last year. It’s a way to advance an ambition, revealed last June, to be a technology and investment powerhouse. In a way, e& is following an investor playbook akin to that of India’s Reliance Industries (RELI.NS). The $192 billion Indian conglomerate has spent years acquiring music apps and other services in an attempt to cross-sell to its mobile customers.

☆ IMF dashes hopes of growth rebound
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, April 11 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The International Monetary Fund may have just hammered the final nail in the coffin of a complete economic rebound. With downside risks dominating its outlook, the IMF’s estimates dash any remaining hopes of a full recovery from recent years’ shocks. The shortfall between actual growth and expected growth reached 1 percentage point in 2022. Put simply, the world economy will probably never regain the growth trajectory it had before the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. That’s a harsh reversal from recent hopes of a V-shaped recovery and a soft landing.

☆ Gold miner’s mega $20 bln deal is not quite over
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The boss of $40 billion U.S.-based gold miner Newmont (NEM.N) has sweetened his bid for Australian rival Newcrest (NCM.AX) after the latter rejected its two prior approaches. The latest $19.5 billion offer looks shinier but still faces some challenges. Under the revised proposal, Newcrest shareholders will receive 0.4 of a Newmont share for each one they hold, plus up to $1.10 via a franked special dividend. Newcrest shares closed nearly 10% below the offer price on Tuesday. Newcrest shareholders, who will own 31% of the merged company, also need to approve the deal.

☆ Tupperware Brands boxes itself into a corner
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TORONTO, April 10 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Tupperware Brands’ (TUP.N) options are looking less airtight. As with other direct selling companies, it casts doubt over its business model, as well as how speedily it can remake itself as consumer habits shift. An earnings misstatement, which has left it late in filing its annual report, could cause creditors to declare Tupperware has violated its debt covenants. Even if Tupperware can appease its creditors or find new investors, the rise of e-commerce has dented the fortunes of companies that lean on direct selling. Compared with the company’s heyday, customers have more options for food storage, more places to buy from, and less time for Tupperware parties.

☆ Breakingviews: EV double-SPAC provides only weak recharge
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Electric-van developer Arrival just unveiled a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company, valuing it at $524 million. The twist: It already went public via a blank-check deal in 2021, at a valuation some 10 times higher. Arrival’s fall mirrors other EV hopefuls like Canoo (GOEV.O), Faraday Future Intelligent Electric (FFIE.O) and Lordstown Motors (RIDE.O). Arrival’s latest merger promises $283 million of it from Kensington Capital Acquisition Corp. V’s (KCGI.N) trust account. British startup Wejo (WEJO.O)tried a similar second-SPAC gambit, though it anticipates backing its transaction with private investment.

☆ Chamath Palihapitiya was supposed to be the next Warren Buffett. Then interest rates spiked.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Chamath Palihapitiya was dubbed the "next Warren Buffett" after a series of successful bets in 2019 and 2020. Palihapitiya even compared his returns to Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway in his annual letters. The dealmaking prowess of Palihapitiya sparked comparisons that his Social Capital investment vehicle was essentially a baby Berkshire Hathaway. Even Palihapitiya himself, who has called Buffett an inspiration, compared his investment returns to the early returns of Berkshire Hathaway in his annual shareholder letters. Palihapitiya addressed the destruction in value seen across technology companies in Social Capital's 2022 investment letter.

☆ Companies That Went Public via SPACs Log Billions of Dollars in Goodwill Write-Downs
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Mark Maurer | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Cryptocurrency platform Bakkt Holdings, which listed on the New York Stock Exchange in October 2021 after merging with a special-purpose acquisition company, recorded a $1.51 billion pretax goodwill impairment for the following year. Companies that went public through mergers with special-purpose acquisition companies in recent years booked billions of dollars in goodwill write-downs in 2022, reflecting in part a reckoning of the heady premiums paid to secure deals during the SPAC boom. Some of the biggest goodwill impairments in 2022 came from SPAC-backed companies like cryptocurrency platform Bakkt Holdings Inc., business-services provider Advantage Solutions Inc., 3-D printing firm Fathom Digital Manufacturing Corp., self-driving vehicle startup Aurora Innovation Inc. and now-bankrupt bitcoin miner Core Scientific Inc., according to financial and risk advisory firm Kroll LLC. Each of these five companies’ pretax impairments exceeded $1 billion last year.

Credit Suisse's investment bankers are not waiting around to find out if UBS will give them jobs. UBS executives have pulled no punches when discussing the future of Credit Suisse's investment banking teams and trading desks. Jeff CohenA two-decade Credit Suisse veteran, Cohen heads up Credit Suisse's leveraged and acquisition finance business from New York. Previously, Cohen was Credit Suisse's head of global credit products and global head of leveraged finance capital markets. Marco SuperinaA Credit Suisse veteran since 1997, Superina heads Credit Suisse's M&A efforts in the firm's native Switzerland.

Of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes, seven declined, led lower by industrials (.SPLRCI), down 2.25%, followed by a 1.72% loss in energy (.SPNY). The S&P 500 declined 0.58% to end the session at 4,100.68 points, closing lower for the first time in a week. The Nasdaq declined 0.52% to 12,126.33 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.59% to 33,403.04 points. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidHealthcare (.SPXHC) and utilities (.SPLRCU), which many investors expect to hold up better during an economic slowdown, were among the few S&P 500 sector indexes gaining on Tuesday. The S&P 500 posted 14 new highs and one new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 64 new highs and 238 new lows.

☆ Shares of a SPAC linked to Trump's Truth Social — which had risen sharply last week — are down 8% after the former president's arrest
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Shares of Digital World Acquisition Corp, a SPAC, closed 8% lower at $14.03 on Tuesday. The SPAC has plans to merge with Trump Media and Technology Group, which owns Truth Social. The stock slumped just as former President Trump was being arraigned, and subsequently arrested. Digital World expects to report a loss of at least $10 million for the year, per the filing. The Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, hasn't approved Digital World's merger with Truth Social.

☆ What went wrong at Virgin Orbit? 4 red flags signaled trouble for Richard Branson's satellite launch firm.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit struggled to make a comeback after a failed launch in January. Unlike SpaceX, Virgin Orbit blasts its LauncherOne rocket into space with the help of a modified Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 called Cosmic Girl. This funding "was not enough to counter the strong headwinds and liquidity challenges Virgin Orbit continues to face," the spokesperson added. Ultimately, Virgin Orbit has been unable to reach the rate of launches needed to meet the required revenue, per CNBC. Funding issuesSince the failed UK launch, Virgin Orbit has attempted to rake in funding from investors, per reports.

☆ Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit rocket firm files for bankruptcy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit rocket firm has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Virgin Investments, another of Branson's firms, provided $31.6 million in fresh funds to Virgin Orbit while it seeks a new buyer, according to the company statement. Branson and the Virgin Group have supported Virgin Orbit over the long term, investing more than $1 billion in the Company — including $60 million since November 2022, according to a company spokesperson. "However, this significant funding was not enough to counter the strong headwinds and liquidity challenges Virgin Orbit continues to face," the spokesperson added. Founded by Branson in 2017, Virgin Orbit went public in a SPAC merger in 2021.

☆ Boxed bankruptcy could be blamed on Silicon Valley Bank's collapse, but its problems extend far beyond the bank run
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Lower demand for grocery delivery hurt sales long before the bank's collapse. But since then, the pandemic-fueled demand for grocery delivery has dissipated. Consultancy Brick Meets Click forecasted in January that grocery e-commerce sales will grow at a rate of 12% through 2027. That's a tremendous slowdown from early in the pandemic when e-commerce grocery jumped an average of 300% each month. Other startups in the grocery delivery space have faced issues.

☆ The SPAC tied to Trump's Truth Social surges 11% after the former president is formally indicted
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Digital World Acquisition stock surged 11% after former President Donald Trump was indicted. Digital World is a SPAC that plans to merge with Trump's social media company, Truth Social. After the indictment on Thursday, Trump posted to his Truth Social account more than 45 times. That misspelled post was liked more than 40,000 times, which is about double the typical engagement Trump receives on his Truth Social posts. Trump plans to turn himself in early next week, which could drive more activity to Truth Social.

☆ Virgin Orbit's failure: What it means across the space sector
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailVirgin Orbit's failure: What it means across the space sectorRon Epstein, Bank of America senior equity analyst, joins 'Closing Bell Overtime' to discuss Virgin Orbit ceasing operations, the space sector post-SPAC boom, and more.

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Bed Bath & Beyond, Nikola, Virgin Orbit and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Bed Bath & Beyond – Bed Bath & Beyond shares dipped 2% before the bell, building on a more than 26% loss from Thursday's session. Virgin Orbit — Virgin Orbit shed nearly 43% after announcing that it would halt operations "for the foreseeable future" as it fails to secure funding. Virgin Orbit also said it will eliminate about 90% of its workforce. BlackBerry — Shares fell about 2% after the software company posted fourth-quarter revenue that fell slightly short of consensus estimates. Regional bank stocks — Some regional bank stocks that have been volatile in recent weeks rose Friday.

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Bed Bath & Beyond, Digital World Acquisition, Nikola and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

An exterior view of a Bed Bath & Beyond store on February 7, 2023 in Clifton, New Jersey. Digital World Acquisition — Shares of the SPAC linked to former President Donald Trump advanced 6.3%. Nikola — Nikola shares sank 11% after the electric-truck maker announced plans for a $100 million secondary stock offering priced 20% below Thursday's close. Regional banks — Shares of closely followed regional bank stocks advanced, with the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) up 0.8%. elf Beauty — The cosmetic company's stock gained 5.2%, reaching a 52-week high.

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