Data Center ABS Iskandar and Kaveh Bring to Market, Raising $1.4 Billion
Iskandar Enterprise and Kaveh Enterprise have launched a $1.4 billion asset‑backed security backed by first‑lien mortgages on two Ashburn, Virginia data centers. The issuance consists of five fixed‑rate, interest‑only notes with a five‑year annual repayment date and a final legal maturity in April 2056. Fitch and S&P assigned ratings ranging from AAA to BBB and noted a $16.3 million liquidity reserve, while DSCR triggers at 1.45× and 1.25× provide additional credit protection. The transaction is slated to close on May 1, with Guggenheim Securities as sole structuring advisor.
S&P Goes Negative on DeKalb Co., Ga., Water and Sewer Bonds
S&P Global Ratings lowered the outlook on DeKalb County, Georgia’s water and sewer senior lien bonds to negative while affirming the AA‑minus rating, affecting $1.28 billion of debt. The agency cited weakening debt‑service coverage, projected at 1.2‑1.4× over the next three...
Public Offerings Put GovCon in a New Spotlight as SpaceX's Listing Looms
A rare wave of traditional IPOs has swept the government contracting (GovCon) sector, featuring recent listings such as Voyager Technologies, Firefly Aerospace, York Space Systems, and Merlin Labs. The trend signals growing investor appetite for space‑focused defense firms, and it...
Mark Anthony Group of Companies Announces Plans to Acquire The Finnish Long Drink
Mark Anthony Group of Companies announced plans to acquire The Finnish Long Drink, a fast‑growing ready‑to‑drink (RTD) brand. The deal builds on Mark Anthony’s existing exclusive distribution partnership in Canada and aims to expand the brand across North America. Co‑founders...
Hapag-Zim Deal Could Ignite Another Merger Wave in Container Shipping
Hapag‑Lloyd announced a $4.2 billion acquisition of Israel’s Zim Integrated Shipping Services, marking the latest push for scale in container shipping. The deal follows a wave of pandemic‑driven consolidations but is driven more by strategic positioning than financial distress. MSC now...
M&A: Denarius Targets Emerita in Spain’s Zinc-Copper Belt
Denarius Metals has tabled a non‑binding all‑share offer for Emerita Resources, pricing the deal at a 15% premium to Emerita’s April 10 close. The transaction would value Emerita between $25 million and $29 million, depending on its fully diluted share count, and...
Goldman CEO: Scale Eclipses Geopolitical Concerns in M&A
Goldman Sachs reported a 19% jump in first‑quarter profit to $5.63 billion, driven by a 22% rise in global banking revenue to $12.74 billion and a 48% surge in investment‑banking fees. CEO David Solomon said the urge to scale through mergers and...
M&A Is Still Forging Ahead in Spite of the Iran Conflict, Goldman's CEO Says — for Now
Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon told investors that the Iran‑related conflict has not yet slowed the firm’s deal‑making engine. In Q1 the bank posted roughly $17 billion in revenue, with advisory fees jumping 89% year‑over‑year and equities revenue up 27%. The...
Vertiv Acquires Prefab Enclosure Maker BMarko
Vertiv announced the acquisition of BMarko Structures, a South Carolina‑based maker of prefabricated and containerized data‑center enclosures. While financial terms were not disclosed, BMarko brings more than 500,000 sq ft of custom‑engineered modular structures to Vertiv’s Infrastructure Solutions business. The deal is...
TIM Edges Closer to Sparkle Sale
Telecom Italia’s wholesale unit Sparkle is being sold to Italy’s Ministry of Economy and Finance and infrastructure specialist Retelit for roughly €700 million (about $756 million). The European Commission cleared the transaction, stating it poses limited competition risk in cable landing stations,...
Stryker Agrees to Buy Amplitude Vascular Systems for IVL Tech
Stryker announced a definitive agreement to acquire Amplitude Vascular Systems, a specialist in intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) technology, for roughly $1.5 billion in cash. The deal broadens Stryker’s cardiovascular portfolio by adding a catheter platform designed for treating heavily calcified coronary lesions,...
CLO Market 2026: How Investor Strategies Are Shifting
The 2026 collateralised loan obligation (CLO) market is shifting from reliance on broad macroeconomic cues to a focus on granular, deal‑level analysis. Investors are scrutinising fundamental credit factors such as collateral quality, CCC concentrations and tail‑risk exposure, especially after AI‑related...
Cisco Eyes Astrix Security To Lock Down AI Agents In Potential $350M Deal: Report
Cisco is in advanced talks to acquire Israeli AI‑agent security startup Astrix Security for a price between $250 million and $350 million. Astrix’s platform safeguards non‑human identities across SaaS, IaaS and PaaS environments, addressing emerging threats as AI agents proliferate. The potential...
Goldman CEO Sees Noise Persisting on Retail Private-Credit Funds
Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said retail investors' concerns about private‑credit funds will persist, but Goldman remains comfortable in the space. The bank's $15.7 billion private‑credit fund saw redemptions just under 5 % in Q1, narrowly avoiding a broader outflow. Overall, the...
Mattress Firm Parent Somnigroup to Buy One of Its Suppliers for $2.5B
Somnigroup International, the parent of Mattress Firm, announced an all‑stock acquisition of longtime supplier Leggett & Platt for roughly $2.5 billion. The deal, approved by both boards, will combine two historic companies into a single entity with 175 manufacturing sites in 36 countries...
Vercel CEO Guillermo Rauch Signals IPO Readiness as AI Agents Fuel Revenue Surge
Vercel’s annual recurring revenue surged from $100 million at the start of 2024 to a $340 million run rate by February 2026, driven by a wave of AI‑generated apps. CEO Guillermo Rauch told investors the company operates like a public firm and is...
As Mergers and Acquisitions Soar, Agencies Point to a ‘Fragmented’ Market
Mergers and acquisitions are accelerating across the event‑marketing sector as agencies chase live‑event demand, AI capabilities, and private‑equity backing. Publicis Groupe bought 160over90 to cement a sports‑marketing platform, while Nth Degree merged with INVNT to offer end‑to‑end B2B event services....
Fuel Station Operator Yesway Seeks $321 Million in US IPO
Yesway Inc., a Fort Worth‑based convenience store and fuel station chain, filed to raise up to $321 million by selling roughly 14 million shares at $20‑$23 each. At the top of the range the offering would value the company at about $1.4 billion....
CloudHQ Seeks $1.4 Billion in ABS Funding
Data‑center operator CloudHQ announced a $1.4 billion asset‑backed securities (ABS) offering, the first of its kind for the company. The ABS are secured by two leased, triple‑net facilities in Ashburn, Virginia, delivering a combined 160 MW of power across 403,410 sq ft. Both sites...
MrBeast Acquires Fintech App Step, Targeting 7 Million Young Adult Users
Jimmy Donaldson, known as MrBeast, has purchased the fintech app Step, which serves roughly seven million young adult users. The acquisition integrates Step’s instant payment and budgeting features into MrBeast’s creator ecosystem, enabling fans to tip, buy merch, and earn...
The LCP Group Originates $104.5M Construction Financing for Savannah Ritz-Carlton
The LCP Group originated a $104.5 million construction financing package for the Ritz‑Carlton Savannah, a 168‑key luxury hotel slated to open in the first quarter of 2028. LCP acted as lead arranger with Knighthead Funding and Siguler Guff, combining historic tax‑credit equity,...
Om Power Transmission IPO Subscribed 3.33 Times on Final Day of Bidding
Om Power Transmission Ltd completed a Rs 150‑crore ($18 million) IPO, offering 60.02 lakh shares at Rs 166‑175 ($2.00‑$2.11) each. The issue attracted 1.99 crore bids, resulting in a 3.33‑times overall subscription. Non‑institutional investors led the demand with a 7.06‑times subscription, while qualified institutional buyers...
Saudi Arabia: IPO Magnet
Saudi Arabia cemented its role as the Gulf’s premier IPO hub in 2025, delivering 37 of the region’s 42 listings and raising roughly $4.2 billion. The Saudi Stock Exchange’s Main Market and its Nomu parallel market split the flow, with Nomu...
Commvault Explores Sale Amid Private Equity Interest
Commvault Systems, a $3.5 billion data‑protection software firm, is weighing strategic alternatives, including a sale, after receiving interest from private‑equity players and strategic buyers. The company has hired Goldman Sachs to run the process, with Thoma Bravo reportedly re‑engaging after an...
Big M&A Deals Roar Back to the Forefront
M&A activity surged in Q1 2026, with 12 mega‑deals worth $10 billion or more—a record for a first quarter and the strongest quarter since 2008. The total value of all transactions reached $438 billion, up 155% from a year earlier, while large...
Loan Note: ‘Asset-Light’ Model Under Scrutiny; Square Nine Teams with Liberty Mutual
The private‑equity‑driven “asset‑light” model, popular in private credit, is facing heightened scrutiny over risk concentration and valuation transparency. Meanwhile, debt platform Square Nine announced a strategic partnership with insurer Liberty Mutual to expand its capital‑raising capabilities. In the UK, pension...
Blackstone Files for Its New Data Center Acquisition Vehicle to Go Public
Blackstone has filed with the SEC to launch a new data‑center acquisition vehicle that will go public as a SPAC. The offering includes a sweetener: investors who purchase at least 100 shares will receive an additional 1% of their investment...
Dairy Giant Arla Scraps Planned Danish Merger
Arla Foods announced it is abandoning its planned merger with fellow Danish dairy producer Them Mejeri after facing opposition from competition authorities. The two companies had intended to combine operations to form Denmark's second-largest dairy group, targeting significant cost synergies....
Nordstrom Debt Ratings Outlook Revised to Positive
S&P Global Ratings changed Nordstrom’s credit outlook to positive after the department store exceeded its 2025 operating targets. Same‑store sales grew 5% at the Nordstrom banner and 8.5% at Nordstrom Rack, while the company fully repaid the incremental debt taken...
Ping An to Trim $1bn Software Private Equity Exposure via Secondary Sale
China's Ping An Insurance Group is arranging a secondary sale of roughly $1 bn of software‑focused private‑equity fund stakes, with placement agent Campbell Lutyens advising. The assets include late‑2010s Vista Equity Partners funds and a North America‑focused KKR vehicle. This follows...
Chalice Taps Cutifani’s Firm for WA Palladium Push
Chalice Mining has hired Odin Partnership, led by former Anglo American CEO Mark Cutifani, as a strategic adviser for its Gonneville palladium‑nickel‑copper project in Western Australia. The advisory team, which also includes ex‑Anglo director Tony O’Neill and former Bank of...
Massachusetts Will Bring $1 Billion GO Deal Competitively
Massachusetts is set to launch a $1.08 billion general‑obligation bond sale on April 22, divided into four series ranging from $185 million to $360 million. The competitive offering targets eight to ten banks per series and includes a refundable component that can be withdrawn...
AbbVie Bets on Chinese Biopharma’s Pain Pipeline in $745m Bid
AbbVie has struck a deal worth up to $745 million with Chinese biopharma Haisco, securing development, manufacturing and commercialization rights to several early‑stage pain‑relief compounds outside China, Hong Kong and Macau. The agreement includes a $30 million upfront payment and up to $715 million...
Wise Set to Downgrade London Listing This Quarter
Wise confirmed it will move its primary listing from London to Nasdaq on May 11, completing the transition this quarter. The fintech cites greater U.S. visibility, deeper capital pools, and a more liquid market as key benefits. In Q4, transaction volume...
Radiology Partners Reportedly Eyeing International Expansion
Radiology Partners, the United States' largest radiology group, is reportedly pursuing an acquisition of Australia’s I‑MED Radiology Network, which operates over 240 clinics and generated roughly AU$176 million (about US$116 million) in adjusted earnings last year. The move follows RP’s earlier bid...
WPP Mulls Burson Divestiture
WPP has engaged Goldman Sachs to explore a sale of its Burson PR unit, the flagship of its public‑relations division. The move is part of CEO Cindy Rose’s Elevate28 survival plan, which aims to shed non‑core assets after the PR...
Citi Is Stepping up Its Data Center Financing Push — and Aiming to Close the Gap with Wall Street Rivals
Citi has launched a dedicated AI Infrastructure financing group to capture the $3 trillion data‑center build‑out projected through 2030. Since March 2025 the bank has arranged more than $75 billion of construction financing, supporting roughly 6.1 GW of IT capacity and a high‑profile...
Scaling the Back Office: When to Transition From DIY to Institutional Banking
Venture‑backed startups typically start with spreadsheets and basic checking accounts, but as ARR climbs into the low‑millions and headcount exceeds 30‑50 employees, manual finance becomes a bottleneck. The article argues that moving to a specialized venture‑banking partner provides growth‑capital loans,...
S&P Dow Jones Launches New CDS Index Facilitating Bets Against Private Credit
S&P Dow Jones has launched a credit‑default‑swap (CDS) index that tracks a basket of private‑credit issuers, giving investors a standardized way to hedge or short exposure to the fast‑growing private debt market. The index, which aggregates roughly 30 mid‑market loan...
Kornit Digital Acquires PrintFactory to Accelerate the Industry’s Transition to Digital, On-Demand Production
Kornit Digital announced the acquisition of Netherlands‑based PrintFactory, a cloud‑native workflow and color‑management software provider. The deal integrates PrintFactory’s automation platform with Kornit’s digital printing hardware, creating an end‑to‑end ecosystem that links demand generation, production workflow, and fulfillment. PrintFactory’s technology...
PolyPeptide Draws Takeover Interest From EQT and KKR
Swiss contract development and manufacturing firm PolyPeptide Group AG is drawing acquisition interest from private equity giants EQT and KKR, with Advent International also evaluating a bid. The potential deal could involve billionaire controlling shareholder Frederik Paulsen Jr, easing transaction...
S&P Dow Jones Launches New CDS Index Facilitating Bets Against Private Credit
S&P Dow Jones Indices has introduced a credit‑default‑swap (CDS) index that gives investors direct exposure to the private‑credit market, allowing them to take bearish positions. The index, comprising 25 North American financial entities—including banks, insurers, REITs and business development companies...
WengAI Targets Hong Kong IPO After Confidential Filing
Beijing‑registered Zhongke WengAI filed a confidential prospectus to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, aiming to become the first AI company emerging from the Chinese Academy of Sciences ecosystem to go public. The firm, founded by three CAS scientists,...
EQT Joins Bidding Race for Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Swedish private equity firm EQT has entered the auction for the Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). The firm is competing with existing owners and other suitors, with the sale rumored to exceed $1.5 billion. EQT sees the sports‑entertainment...
WPP Hires Advisors for Potential Burson Sale – Report
WPP has engaged financial advisers to evaluate a possible sale of its public‑relations arm, which includes the Burson communications agency. The move signals the first formal step in a potential divestiture of the PR division, a business segment that contributes...
Malaysia Launches Push to Encourage Local Investors to Buy Stocks
Malaysia's Securities Commission unveiled a five‑year Capital Market Masterplan targeting a market capitalization of $1.4‑$1.6 trillion by 2030, a 35‑47% rise from 2025 levels. The plan tackles weak equity valuations and low retail participation—currently only about a quarter of Malaysians invest...
Hong Kong Issues 53% More IPO Banker Licenses to Ease Shortage
Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) issued 43 new licenses for IPO‑banking advisers in March, a 53 percent increase from February’s low‑volume month. The rise suggests a tentative easing of the licensing bottleneck that followed a regulator‑led crackdown on substandard...
China’s TCL Is Said to Consider Stake Sale in India TV Business
TCL Electronics Holdings Ltd. is exploring a sale of a stake in its Indian TV manufacturing unit, targeting at least $200 million from local investors. The move mirrors a recent transaction by fellow Chinese maker Haier, which sold 49% of its...
People’s Trust Enters Catastrophe Bond Market for Debut $100m GWS Re Named Storm Deal
People’s Trust Insurance Company, a Florida homeowner specialist, has entered the catastrophe bond market with its inaugural $100 million GWS Re Limited Series 2026‑1 issuance. The Bermuda‑based structure will issue a Class A tranche that provides fully‑collateralized named‑storm reinsurance for three years, beginning...
Diverging Paths: How Capital Markets Are Repricing Sports Technology Segments
Over the past five years sports technology has become core infrastructure, but public markets are now valuing its sub‑segments differently. The TSC SPIN 100 shows Technology & Digital Innovation delivering 215% total return and 96% year‑over‑year growth, while Data, Analytics &...