Today's Finance Pulse
SpaceX files for record‑size IPO, targeting $50B‑plus raise and $1T valuation
SpaceX confidentially filed for an IPO slated for June 2026, aiming to raise at least $50 billion and push its valuation above $1 trillion. Founder Elon Musk holds roughly 44 percent of the company, giving him a net worth of about $823 billion. The filing positions the rocket and satellite maker among the most valuable public companies ever.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Berkshire Hathaway invests $10B in Alphabet's private placement
British Airways Parent IAG Warns on Profit as War Hikes Fuel Prices
International Airlines Group (IAG), the parent of British Airways, warned that its 2026 profit outlook will be dented by soaring jet‑fuel costs tied to the ongoing war in Europe. The carrier expects demand for travel to remain robust, but higher fuel prices are pushing operating expenses up by roughly 15 percent. IAG also highlighted the backdrop of UK local elections, which have weakened the Labour Party and added political uncertainty to the travel sector. The airline is pursuing fuel‑hedging and cost‑saving initiatives to mitigate the impact.
Stora Enso Spins Off Swedish Forest Estate as Bergslagets Skogar
Stora Enso has named its Swedish forest assets Bergslagets Skogar and announced a dual listing on Nasdaq Stockholm and Nasdaq Helsinki. The new entity will manage more than 1.2 million hectares, positioning it as Europe’s largest pure‑play forest company. The spin‑off...
Cementir Reports 7% Fall in Revenue in 1Q26
Cementir posted a 7.1% revenue decline to €344.1 million (≈$375 million) in Q1 2026, driven by harsh winter weather in Europe and Turkey and lower volumes in ready‑mix concrete and aggregates. EBITDA fell 40.6% to €41.4 million (≈$45 million), but the net cash balance improved...
Airbnb Q1 2026 Earnings: $2.7bn Revenue and Brian Chesky’s Plan
Airbnb posted Q1 2026 revenue of $2.7 billion, an 18% year‑on‑year increase, alongside $1.7 billion in free cash flow and $160 million net income. The cash surplus is funding a push beyond home rentals into services, experiences, boutique hotels, major‑event listings and AI‑driven...
ANELLO Photonics Secures $25M to Scale GPS-Denied Navigation & Autonomy Solutions
Anello Photonics raised $25 million in a Series B-2 round led by MESH, with participation from Washington Harbour Partners and existing investors including Lockheed Martin Ventures. The funding will accelerate production of its silicon‑photonic inertial navigation systems that deliver fiber‑gyro...
Mapping Your Multi-Jurisdiction VAT Obligations: A Compliance Roadmap for UK Firms Going Global
UK firms that expand beyond Britain now confront a fragmented VAT landscape, where the UK’s £90,000 (≈$115,000) registration exemption is an outlier and many EU jurisdictions require registration from €1 (≈$1). Real‑Time Reporting and the EU’s ViDA programme have eliminated...
OSC Fires Off 2026 Risk Questionnaire with a Six-Week Deadline
On May 6, 2026, the Ontario Securities Commission issued a 2026 Risk Assessment Questionnaire (RAQ) to all active registrants, giving them until June 17, 2026 to file. The questionnaire feeds a risk‑ranking system that determines whether firms receive an on‑site or desk compliance review,...
IHH Healthcare Migrating Finance, HR Systems to the Cloud and More Briefs
Private healthcare giant IHH Healthcare announced it will migrate its legacy finance, human resources and supply chain applications to Oracle Fusion Cloud, creating a unified, cloud‑based platform. The move follows earlier cloud migrations of on‑premise databases in its Singapore and...
Sony Records New $560 Million Loss On Bungie Acquisition As Marathon Struggles And Destiny 2 Nosedives
Sony has recorded a $560 million impairment on its 2022 $3.6 million purchase of Bungie, bringing the total 2025 loss on the deal to roughly $765 million after converting the 120.1 billion yen write‑down (≈$775 million). The impairment follows the under‑performance of Bungie's new franchise...
SATO Corporation Interim Report 1 January–31 March 2026: SATO’s Growth Continues
SATO Corporation reported Q1 2026 net sales of €80.1 million (≈ $88 million), up 3.6% year‑on‑year, while profit before tax slipped to €17.1 million (≈ $18.8 million). The Finnish landlord added 602 rental homes, pushing its portfolio to nearly 27,500 apartments and raising economic occupancy to...
AKVA Group ASA: Q1 2026 Financial Reporting
AKVA Group posted Q1 2026 revenue of NOK 1.14 bn (≈$125 m), a 13% rise year‑over‑year, and a record EBITDA of NOK 153 m (≈$17 m). Order intake hit NOK 1.49 bn (≈$164 m) and the backlog climbed to NOK 2.83 bn (≈$311 m), underscoring strong demand across its Sea Based, Land Based...
Brunel Q1 2026 Results: First Signs of Performance Rebound with Return to Organic Growth
Brunel International reported Q1 2026 revenue of €298.9 million (about $326 million), a 4% decline year‑over‑year but a 1% rise on an organic basis. Gross profit slipped to €53.4 million while underlying EBIT fell 5% to €7.9 million, though it grew 5% organically thanks to...
Sage Future 2026: Jon Fasoli
At Sage Future 2026, Jon Fasoli, SVP of Sage Intacct, outlined the platform’s strategic direction, emphasizing AI‑driven analytics, deeper customer integration, and cross‑functional collaboration. He highlighted how innovation and agile governance are essential for enterprises to stay competitive amid rapid...
Dauch Nearly Doubles Q1 Sales on Dowlais Deal
Dauch Corporation reported first‑quarter 2026 sales of $2.38 bn, nearly double the $1.41 bn a year earlier, after completing the Dowlais acquisition and rebranding from American Axle & Manufacturing. The deal added GKN Automotive and GKN Powder Metallurgy, driving the sales surge but also...
Gresham and FundGuard Partner on Total Portfolio Data Solution
Gresham, a leader in enterprise data management, has teamed up with FundGuard, an AI‑enabled cloud‑native investment accounting platform. The partnership merges FundGuard’s multi‑book accounting engine with Gresham’s data‑governance tools, giving institutional investors a single, auditable source of real‑time data across...
Institutional Inflows Surge as U.S. Spot ETFs Near $1B in Two Days:
U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange‑traded funds recorded nearly $1 billion of net inflows over two trading days, with $532 million on Monday and $467 million on Tuesday. The surge represents one of the strongest two‑day inflow periods since the products launched, highlighting renewed institutional...
RBI Clears Kotak Mahindra’s 9.99% Stake in Federal Bank
The RBI has approved Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited to acquire an aggregate holding of up to 9.99% of the paid-up share capital or voting rights of Federal Bank Limited. Federal Bank received the intimation from the RBI on May 06,...
Revenue Rises, Profit Plummets as Wine Tourism Hits 100 Cr
Sula Vineyards reported Q4FY26 revenue of INR 142.56 crore, up 7.1% YoY, with Wine Tourism crossing INR 100 crore annually for the first time. FY26 consolidated net profit fell to INR 25.65 crore from INR 70.20 crore in FY25, impacted...
Sony Announces $3 Billion Buyback as Memory Prices Take Toll
Sony Group Corp. announced a share buyback of up to ¥500 billion ($3.2 billion), while projecting an operating profit of ¥1.6 trillion (about $10.3 billion) for the fiscal year ending March 2027. The forecast represents an 11% increase year‑over‑year and is broadly in line with...
GameStop CEO Appears To Be Auctioning Off Video Game History
GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen announced an ambitious bid to acquire eBay, proposing $20 billion in cash from the retailer and another $20 billion from investors, far short of the roughly $56 billion price tag. In a terse CNBC interview, Cohen offered vague explanations,...
Stories of the Week: Schroders' AoV; The FCA Crackdown and UBS's Fee War
Schroders reported a 5% rise in assets under management, reaching roughly €400 billion (about $430 billion) in the first quarter of 2026. The UK Financial Conduct Authority intensified its oversight, unveiling stricter disclosure rules for ESG‑focused funds and signaling tougher enforcement across...
How SaaS Companies Are Valued: Why the Multiple Is only the Surface Story?
The article debunks the myth that SaaS valuation is a simple ARR‑multiple calculation, arguing that the multiple is merely the output of a deeper analysis. Buyers focus on the quality of recurring revenue, retention rates, growth efficiency, and unit economics...
Affirm Prepares to Raise $548.9 Million From Consumer Loans
Affirm is entering the securitization market with a $548.9 million bond issuance backed by a static pool of unsecured point‑of‑sale consumer loans. The transaction, named Affirm Asset Securitization Trust 2026‑X1, will be sold in four tranches, with Class A comprising $408.8 million and maturing...
Banks to Weather Iran Shocks – BSP
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) says Philippine banks have limited direct exposure to the Iran‑related Middle East conflict, relying on strong capital buffers and ample liquidity to absorb spillovers. Assets rose 8.9% to P29.9 trillion (about $538 billion) in 2025, while...
UK Advisors Urged to Coordinate Ahead of $7 Trillion Intergenerational Wealth Transfer
The Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) says UK financial advisers must act together to handle an estimated £5.5 trillion ($7 trillion) intergenerational wealth transfer by 2050. Only 44% of firms have a strategy for such transfers, prompting a call for coordinated industry action.
Bond Traders Price Over 50% Chance of Fed Hike by April 2026
Bond market participants are rapidly revising their outlook, with swaps indicating a greater than 50% chance the Federal Reserve will raise rates by next April. The shift reflects persistent inflation worries, the Iran conflict, and an upcoming change in Fed...
Starz Q1 Loss Widens to $165 M as Streaming and Linear Revenues Slip
Starz reported a $165 million net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, as total revenue fell 7% to $307 million and streaming and linear earnings declined. The company also announced it is ending its Pay‑2 film licensing deal with Universal, moving...
U.S. Q1 Commercial & Multifamily Loans Jump 52% YoY, UK CRE Lending Hits Decade‑High
U.S. commercial and multifamily mortgage originations surged 52% year‑over‑year in Q1 2026, driven by health‑care, retail and hotel loans, while the United Kingdom recorded a decade‑high £52.7bn ($66bn) of new CRE financing in 2025. The twin spikes highlight a shift...
Hedge Funds Attract $45 Billion in Q1 2026, Highest Inflows Since 2007
Hedge Fund Research reports that hedge funds secured nearly $45 billion of fresh capital in the first quarter of 2026 and $90 billion over the last two quarters, the biggest two‑quarter inflow stretch since 2007. The surge reflects a broader reassessment of...
Aspect Capital Opens $550 Million China Futures Strategy to Global Investors
Aspect Capital, the London‑based systematic hedge fund with $9 billion in assets under management, has opened its China absolute‑return futures program to investors worldwide. The $550 million strategy, previously limited to mainland Chinese clients since 2019, aims to provide uncorrelated returns as...
China Rotation Fuels 19% Gains in Three Ex-China ETFs in 2026
The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ex China (EMXC), Columbia EM Core ex‑China (XCEM) and SPDR MSCI Emerging Markets Strategic Factors (QEMM) each delivered double‑digit year‑to‑date returns, with QEMM up 19% and the other two topping 27%. The rally reflects a...
BMG- Concord Merger Forms $14 Billion Music Giant, Fourth Largest Globally
BMG and Concord announced a merger that creates a $14 billion entity, the fourth‑largest music company worldwide behind Universal, Sony and Warner. The new BMG will unite catalogs spanning more than 4.3 million recordings and expand global reach for artists and songwriters.
MarketAxess Q1 Beats Forecasts, Lifts Energy‑Services Shares
MarketAxess Holdings reported Q1 2026 earnings of $2.25 per share on $233 million revenue, surpassing Wall Street forecasts. The surprise results sent the stock up 2.57% pre‑market and sparked gains in related energy‑services equities.
Blue Owl Technology Finance Posts Q1 Gains, $2B Liquidity Fuels Tech Lending
Blue Owl Technology Finance Corp (OTF) announced Q1 2026 results showing $7.6 billion in net assets, $2 billion of available liquidity and a $0.05 per‑share special dividend. The lender said market volatility widened spreads but its credit performance remained solid, positioning it...
Cliffwater Borrows $8.5M, Shows No Distress
Not only is Cliffwater one of the largest private credit fund providers, it is also a private credit borrower. As of Q1, Cliffwater (the GP) has an $8.5 million first lien loan valued at 99. Despite the recent negative media headlines,...
Strong Free Cash Flow Fundamentals Boost Gold, Silver Miners
Fundamentals for increasing free cash flow so good for gold and silver miners. $gdx $sil https://t.co/zgUAI5BVoi
China Hongqiao Group Issues Rmb10.2bn Convertible Bond
China Hongqiao Group, the HKEX‑listed aluminium giant, issued RMB 10.2 billion (≈US$1.49 billion) of zero‑coupon, US‑dollar‑settled convertible bonds due 2027. The issuance was completed on May 5 alongside a concurrent share‑repurchase program. Hongqiao plans to use the proceeds to stockpile bauxite, refinance existing debt,...
Odyssey Raises More than $300M as Biotech Goes Public
Odyssey Therapeutics completed a Nasdaq debut, raising $279 million by selling 15.5 million shares in its initial public offering. The biotech, focused on autoimmune‑disease therapeutics, priced the offering at $18 per share, above the $16.50 low end of its range. Proceeds will...
Mercado Libre Sacrifices Short-Term Profits to Fuel Growth
Mercado Libre reported a 49% year‑over‑year jump in net revenue to $8.8 billion in Q1 2026, fueled by aggressive investments in free‑shipping, a new credit card, first‑party inventory and cross‑border trade. Despite the revenue surge, net income fell 16% to $417 million...
Kanda Products & Services Ltd Enters Liquidation
Kanda Products & Services Ltd entered liquidation on 6 May 2026, with FRP Advisory Trading Ltd’s Philip Harris and Neville Side appointed as joint liquidators. The FCA‑authorised credit broker previously ran a network of roughly 700 introducer‑appointed representatives (IARs) that linked tradespeople...
The ROIC Engine
The article argues that return on invested capital (ROIC) is the fundamental engine behind sustainable earnings growth. It explains that high ROIC, not just headline earnings, enables companies to generate cash efficiently after the initial capital build‑out. The piece advises...
Moody’s Readies Stablecoin Ratings as Asian Market Takes Shape
Moody’s Ratings is developing a dedicated credit‑rating methodology for stablecoins, responding to growing investor demand as digital assets gain traction in Asia and globally. The agency’s digital‑economy team, led by Fabian Astic, will assess reserve quality, liquidity, cyber risk and...
WA Budget Boosts Manufacturing, Energy Transition and Industrial Investment
The Western Australian 2026‑27 budget earmarks billions of dollars to accelerate manufacturing, renewable‑energy integration and broader industrial diversification. Key allocations include a AUD $1.4 bn Clean Energy Future Fund (≈US $920 m) and AUD $973 m (≈US $642 m) for Western Power’s grid upgrades. The Made in WA...
S3 Capital Closes $1.3 B Multifamily Lending Fund, Boosts Rental Housing Capital
S3 Capital announced the hard‑cap close of its S3 LB RE Credit Fund III at $1.3 billion, giving the lender $850 million in discretionary commitments and $465 million in co‑investments. The fund is designed to originate roughly $4.3 billion of first‑lien construction loans for...
Alfar Capital Partners with Couverture Montreal‑Nord to Consolidate Eastern Canada Re‑roofing Market
Alfar Capital, a Montreal‑based private‑equity fund, has entered a strategic partnership with Couverture Montreal‑Nord to accelerate growth and consolidate the fragmented re‑roofing sector across Eastern Canada. The deal keeps Couverture’s management in place while targeting a roll‑up of best‑in‑class contractors,...
Maersk to Shift $500 Million Monthly Iran War Oil Surge to Shippers
Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc announced the carrier will transfer the $500 million‑per‑month cost increase from the Iran‑driven oil shock to its customers. The move comes as the company posted $1.75 billion EBITDA in Q1, underscoring the pressure on container rates worldwide.
Iren’s Stock Soars as a Major Nvidia Investment Overshadows Revenue Shortfall
Iren’s shares surged after the company disclosed a strategic partnership with Nvidia that includes a five‑year right to purchase 30 million shares at $70 each, valuing the deal at up to $2.1 billion. The collaboration will see Iren deploy 5 gigawatts of infrastructure...
ECI Group and ApexOne Launch $500 Million Multifamily Fund Targeting Sunbelt and Midwest
ECI Group and ApexOne Investment Partners announced a joint venture to raise a $500 million multifamily fund, co‑investing over $100 million and securing up to $350 million from Neuberger Berman’s Almanac Realty Investors. The fund will focus on existing Sunbelt, Midwest and Mountain...
SoundHound’s Stock Falls as Acquisitions Weigh on Earnings Results
SoundHound AI reported Q1 revenue of $44.2 million, up 52% year‑over‑year and ahead of the $42.6 million consensus, but posted an adjusted loss of 6 cents per share, missing the 4‑cent expectation. The earnings miss sent the stock down 12% in after‑hours trading....
Freo Secures Full Ownership of IndiaLends, Targeting 50 Million Users in India
Freo announced it has taken 100% ownership of IndiaLends, pending regulatory clearance, to combine its consumer‑finance platform with IndiaLends' loan marketplace. The deal positions Freo to serve more than 50 million users and marks a major step in India's fintech consolidation.