Today's Investment Banking Pulse
Blackstone commits up to $1.3bn to Apogee’s skin‑drug program
Blackstone is providing up to $1.3 billion in structured financing to Apogee Therapeutics, split between $800 million of equity and $500 million of debt with royalty‑linked returns. The capital will accelerate development of the atopic‑dermatitis candidate that recently met its Phase II primary endpoint.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Credit Agricole raises $670M via Samurai bond
AES to Go Private in $15‑Per‑Share Leveraged Buyout Led by GIP and EQT
AES Corp agreed to a $15‑per‑share cash acquisition by a consortium controlled by GIP and EQT. The deal, valued at roughly $15 billion, includes a 35.5% premium to the July 2025 closing price and up to $10.69 billion of debt financing, underscoring private‑equity appetite for large‑scale utility buyouts.
Pretium Hits $3 B Milestone in Homebuilder and Multifamily Financing
Pretium announced that its residential debt platform has deployed more than $3 billion in financing to homebuilders and multifamily developers since December 2024. The capital has funded the construction of over 13,000 housing units, highlighting the firm’s role as a leading...
Cisco to Acquire Israeli AI‑Security Startup Astrix for Up to $400 Million
Cisco Systems will purchase Israeli cybersecurity firm Astrix Security in a transaction valued between $300 million and $400 million. The deal adds Astrix’s platform for discovering, governing and securing AI agents and non‑human identities to Cisco’s security suite, addressing a growing blind...
Bregal Milestone Takes Majority Stake in Meteoviva, Boosting AI Energy Management
Bregal Milestone announced a majority growth investment in meteoviva, the AI‑powered building energy‑management platform, to fund rapid European expansion. The deal gives meteoviva access to capital and operational support while the private‑equity firm taps a market where AI and decarbonisation...
Aspire Prepares to Sell $450.6 Million in ABS
Aspire Sponsor and CCS Structured Credit Investment Fund is preparing a $450 million residential mortgage‑backed securities (RMBS) issuance, SPIRE 2026‑2, backed largely by non‑prime mortgages. The pool of 829 loans averages $543,604 with a 69.4% loan‑to‑value and only 9.2% of balances are...
Lazard to Acquire Campbell Lutyens for $575 Million, Launching Lazard CL
Lazard has agreed to purchase private‑equity advisory firm Campbell Lutyens for an upfront $575 million, with a possible $85 million performance‑based payout. The deal creates Lazard CL, a new global private‑capital advisory unit that will sit alongside Lazard’s existing businesses.
Can This Deal Actually Happen? Find Out
We dig into whether this deal is possible on today's episode of @profgmarkets — check it out here: http://bit.ly/4tm3Xzz
Ionic Digital Names Chris Hickman CFO as It Gears Up for Public Market
Ionic Digital announced the appointment of Chris Hickman as chief financial officer and Richard Carson as general counsel. The hires bring more than 50 years of combined finance and legal experience, positioning the high‑performance computing and AI infrastructure firm for...
Top Ten Lenders To Datacentre Companies
The latest TMT Finance ranking identifies the ten biggest lenders to datacentre companies for the prior year. Japanese banks Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp (SMBC), Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) and Mizuho top the list, followed by U.S. powerhouses J.P. Morgan...
Municipalities Planning Large Bond Issues Await Clarity on End-Use Guidelines
The Indian government’s FY27 budget unveiled a ₹100 crore (~$12 million) incentive for municipal bonds larger than ₹1,000 crore (~$120 million), but it has not yet issued detailed end‑use guidelines. Four municipalities—Ahmedabad, Thane, Panvel and Navi Mumbai—are preparing bond issues, while Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation is...
Ryerson Holding Corp (RYZ) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
Ryerson Holding completed its merger with Olympic Steel, creating a combined entity of over 6,000 employees at roughly 160 locations. Management highlighted a $120 million annual run‑rate synergy target to be achieved within two years and outlined a Q4 net loss...
Vernal Capital Acquisition Corp. (VECA.U) Prices $100M IPO
Vernal Capital Acquisition Corp. (VECA.U) priced a $100 million IPO and will begin trading on the NYSE on May 6, 2026. The SPAC, led by CEO Du Jun and CFO Yi Binghan, plans a generalist search for private companies in Asia with strong economics. The...
Amex Exploration Announces up to C$43.5 Million Private Placement of Common Shares
Amex Exploration Inc. announced a best‑efforts private placement of up to 9,661,000 common shares at C$4.50 per share, targeting gross proceeds of C$43.5 million (≈US$32 million). The syndicate, led by National Bank Financial and MDCP Securities, also holds an option to sell...
MiniMed IPO Points to Smarter Diabetes Devices
Medtronic spun off its diabetes technology unit MiniMed in a March IPO, offering 28 million shares at $20 each and raising roughly $538 million. Post‑offering Medtronic retains about 90 % of MiniMed’s common stock, preserving strategic control. Shortly after the listing, MiniMed secured...
Apollo Global Management Raises $6.5 B for Hybrid Value Fund III
Apollo Global Management announced the final close of its Hybrid Value Fund III, securing roughly $6.5 billion from a global pool of institutional investors. The fund expands Apollo’s hybrid platform that bridges credit and private‑equity, a segment that has seen heightened...
Commercial Real Estate Capital Markets Enter a Transitional Phase
At NAIOP Utah’s capital‑markets briefing, Will McIntosh warned that commercial real estate is entering a transitional phase. Liquidity is returning as banks resume lending, transaction volumes are rising and valuations are beginning to stabilize, yet the market remains highly sensitive...
Lattice Semiconductor's $1.65 B AMI Deal Hits Earnings Call, Shares React
Lattice Semiconductor disclosed a $1.65 billion acquisition of firmware specialist AMI in its Q1 2026 earnings call, citing immediate gross‑margin accretion. The deal, split $1 billion in cash and $650 million in stock, is positioned to deepen Lattice’s AI and cloud infrastructure footprint.
Dynex Capital, Inc. (DX) An Undervalued REIT Stock to Buy On Shareholders’ Returns
Dynex Capital (DX) expanded its at‑the‑market equity distribution agreement on April 28, adding Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley as sales agents, boosting its capacity for future Rule 415 equity raises. The board also approved a $300 million common‑stock and $50 million preferred‑stock repurchase...
Meta's $13 B Data‑Center SPV Sends CDS Spread to Record High
Meta is assembling a $13 billion special purpose vehicle, dubbed Sopaipilla, to finance a gigawatt‑scale data center in El Paso, Texas. The move has pushed the company's credit‑default‑swap spread to a record level, underscoring investor anxiety over the tech giant's off‑balance‑sheet debt...
ADP Prices $1 Billion 5% Senior Notes Due 2036 in Public Offering
Automatic Data Processing (ADP) priced a $1 billion public offering of 5.000% senior notes due 2036 on May 4, 2026. The company expects net proceeds by May 7 to support general corporate purposes, including share repurchases under its existing program. The issuance adds...
LakeFusion Secures $7.5M Seed Funding to Launch Databricks‑Native MDM Platform
LakeFusion announced a $7.5 million seed round led by Silverton Partners, with participation from Carbide Ventures, to accelerate its AI‑driven master data management (MDM) solution built natively on Databricks. The funding targets product expansion and enterprise sales as companies seek trustworthy,...
SpaceX’s $60 B Cursor Deal Sparks NASA Artemis Concerns
SpaceX announced a $60 billion acquisition of AI‑code startup Cursor, a sum that dwarfs NASA’s annual budget and coincides with delays to its Starship rocket. Experts warn the deal could distract the firm from delivering the Human Landing System for Artemis...
What Amazon’s Globalstar Acquisition Means for MSS Spectrum and D2D Market: Analyst Roundtable
Amazon agreed to buy Globalstar for roughly $10.8 billion, securing the satellite operator’s mobile‑satellite‑services (MSS) spectrum licenses and an active network. The deal includes a continuation of Apple’s satellite service partnership, giving Amazon immediate access to millions of iPhone users. By...
Texas City Seeks Court Validation for Bonds
McKinney, Texas is asking a state court to validate $30 million of sales‑tax‑backed bonds that refinance a low‑interest TIFIA loan for the city’s airport expansion. The loan is projected to save roughly $15 million over 30 years. A conservation group sued, claiming the...
Spanx Loan Devaluation Signals Trouble for Blackstone Stake
It appears that shapewear company Spanx is now in distress, as its private credit loan was just marked down to 70 cents on the dollar. As a reminder, Blackstone acquired a majority stake in the company in 2021 at a...
How AmSurg Went From Bankruptcy to a $3.9B Ascension Deal
AmSurg, once the nation’s largest ambulatory surgery center (ASC) operator, survived a cascade of ownership changes, a leveraged‑buyout by KKR and Envision’s 2023 Chapter 11 filing. After splitting from Envision and rebuilding its platform under new creditor Pacific Investment Management, the...
A Sirius Rise In Value For iHeartMedia Stock
iHeartMedia shares surged to $6.39 on March 20, the highest level since February 2023, after media reports hinted at merger discussions with SiriusXM. The rally follows a sharp rebound from a low of $2.49 earlier in the day and precedes...
Homerun Resources Inc. Announces Commencement of Trading of Sponsored BDR’s on the Brazil B3 Stock Exchange
Homerun Resources Inc. (TSXV:HMR) announced that its sponsored Brazilian Depositary Receipts (BDRs) began trading on Brazil’s B3 exchange under ticker HMRN31 with a 1:1 ratio to common shares. The BDRs are issued by Banco B3 and represent shares held outside...
StoneX Not to Make Offer for CAB Payments
StoneX Group Inc announced it will not submit a formal offer for CAB Payments Holdings plc. The decision follows the Helios Consortium’s refusal to provide an irrevocable undertaking, which was required for StoneX to gain 100% control. Earlier, the independent...
Skechers’ Debt Ratings Upgraded on Loan Term Repricing
S&P Global Ratings upgraded the first‑lien debt of Beach Acquisition Co. Parent LLC, the entity behind Skechers U.S.A., from BB‑ to BB following a proposed repricing of its 2032 term loans. The repricing trims the interest rate by 25‑50 basis...
Nueva Pescanova Planning EUR 283 Million Capital Increase
Nueva Pescanova announced a €283 million (≈$331 million) capital increase, with its principal shareholder ABANCA committing €279 million. The infusion is designed to cut the group’s leverage below 4 times and lower financing costs, paving the way for new investments. The raise follows a...
Castore Secures £90M Credit Facility to Support Growth
Castore, the Manchester‑based sportswear label, secured a £90 million ($122 million) credit facility from HSBC UK, BNP Paribas and Lloyds to fund its next phase of growth. The financing will back the opening of additional UK stores and accelerate expansion into key Middle...
QRA's Pause Fuels Asset Rallies, Inflates Debt
The last time the QRA mattered we pivoted from short to long when Janet decided to stop increasing coupon issuance. Every QRA since has left issuance unchanged. Tomorrow will be no different. It's suppressed bond yields from going...
Gamestop CEO's Unsolicited Bid for eBay Looks DOA
GameStop founder Ryan Cohen has lodged an unsolicited $56 billion offer to acquire eBay, prompting the marketplace’s board to schedule a review this week. Cohen’s recent CNBC interview, aimed at his retail‑investor base, failed to explain the deal’s economics and left...
New SPAC: Keystone Acquisition Corp. (KEYYU) Files for $250M IPO
Keystone Acquisition Corp., ticker KEYYU, has filed an S‑1 to launch a $250 million special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) IPO. The offering targets a cash pool that will be used for future acquisitions in technology or industrial sectors. The board includes...
‘I’m the IPO Guy’: Serial Entrepreneur Marc Lore on His Plan to Take Wonder Public
Serial entrepreneur Marc Lore, famed for selling Diapers.com to Amazon and Jet.com to Walmart, is now focused on taking his $7 billion food‑delivery platform Wonder public by 2028, with an 11‑month readiness target. Wonder, which owns Grubhub and Blue Apron, currently...
ADT Plunges 6.5% as Apollo Exits via $744.6 M Secondary Offering
ADT Inc. tumbled 6.49% to $7.06 after Apollo Global Management announced a 102‑million‑share secondary offering valued at roughly $744.6 million, fully exiting its position. The sell‑off triggered record trading volume and raised questions about the effectiveness of ADT’s ongoing share‑buyback program.
MFM Forum To Address Deal ‘Do’s and Don’ts’
The FEI & MFM Financial Leaders Forum, freshly rebranded, is spotlighting a new panel on deal strategy for broadcast assets. Scheduled for May 19 in San Antonio, the session—titled “Let’s Make a Deal…or Not!”—will examine transaction values, FCC outlook, and potential...
UMB Financial Reaffirms M&A Plans; Blue Owl Declines Offer
In Play Today: UMB Financial $UMBF reiterates future M&A requirements; Blue Owl rejects buyout offer | S&P Global Market Intelligence https://t.co/qDTqHhJTSr
InGovern Urges Tata Group Firms to Push for Tata Sons IPO, Citing $4 Bn Dividend Reliance
Corporate governance adviser InGovern has written to the boards of seven listed Tata Group companies, pressing them to demand a public listing of Tata Sons. The letter points to a 12% group stake, roughly $4 bn in FY25 dividends, and over...
Dangote Petroleum IPO Targets $40‑50 Bn Valuation in First Multi‑Exchange African Listing
Dangote Group’s petroleum arm will list on several African exchanges, seeking a $40‑50 bn valuation that would make it the biggest IPO in Africa’s history. The move is positioned as a test case for cross‑border capital formation and a catalyst for...
Shell to Acquire ARC Resources, Targeting $1.5 B Annual Free Cash Flow and LNG Upside
Shell announced a deal to buy Canadian shale producer ARC Resources, projecting $1.5 billion of annual free cash flow and $250 million of synergies. The transaction, valued at a 20% premium, adds 390,000 barrels of oil‑equivalent per day and positions Shell as...
Panthalassa Raises $140 Million Series B to Deploy Ocean‑Based AI Compute Nodes
Panthalassa announced a $140 million Series B round led by Peter Thiel, aimed at completing a pilot factory near Portland and launching its Ocean‑3 AI inference nodes at sea. The financing brings together a roster of high‑profile investors and targets the...
Loomis to Acquire Hermes Transportes Blindados for $440M, Entering Peru
Loomis AB announced a tender‑offer acquisition of Hermes Transportes Blindados valued at roughly SEK 4 billion ($440 million). The deal, financed by a bridge loan, will give Loomis a foothold in Peru’s security‑logistics sector and is expected to be immediately accretive to earnings.
Half‑stock, Half‑cash Acquisition Offer
“So, is this 1/2 stock and 1/2 cash acquisition offer in the room with us right now?” https://t.co/H1JATPZDZp
Cambridge Savings Bank Expands Into NH in $80.9M Deal
Cambridge Savings Bank announced an $80.9 million cash acquisition of First Seacoast Bank, adding five branches and its first presence in New Hampshire. The deal, slated to close in Q3 2026, brings roughly $600 million in assets, $489 million in deposits and $416 million in...
Saudi Arabia Opens Main Market Access to All Foreign Investors While Retaining Key Ownership Controls
Saudi Arabia’s Capital Market Authority eliminated the Qualified Foreign Investor regime and the swap framework, allowing all foreign investors to invest directly in Main Market shares and convertible debt. The reforms, announced on Jan 6 2026 and effective Feb 1 2026, require investors to...
Mega IPOs Push New Billionaires Toward US Asset Purchases
the equity supply/demand picture could definitely be complicated by the behemoth IPOs this year. but then i ask, what do newly minted multimillionaires and billionaires do with a flood of liquidity? marginal propensity to consume nearly topped out… i think they...
UK Equity Capital Markets Insights — May 2026
The FCA has launched Consultation Paper CP26/14 proposing to remove the seven‑day waiting period that currently separates the publication of an FCA‑approved prospectus from connected analyst research on UK IPOs, and to lift the ban on pre‑mandate analyst‑issuer communications. The...
QuantWare Raises €152 Million in the Largest Private Round for a Dedicated Quantum Processor Company
QuantWare, the Delft‑based quantum processor maker, closed a €152 million ($178 million) Series B round, the biggest private financing for a dedicated quantum chip company. The funding backs its VIO‑40K architecture, designed to deliver 10,000‑qubit superconducting processors—about 100 times today’s leading devices. New backers...