Good Morning! Wall Street traders are finally wrapping their heads around the Fed’s first rate cuts coming as late as March 2025. But there is still some optimism on Wall Street - bulge bracket banks all reported Q1 jumps in investment banking revenue, and bank execs say it’s for real this time. Tesla asked its shareholders to vote again on Musk’s $56B payout, and banking giants like UBS are planning even more layoffs. Plus the salary a single person needs to live comfortably in every U.S. state, and how to give yourself more hours during the day. 

_{SQUEEZ OF THE DAY}

Banking Breakup Fee

You might be familiar with the concept of a breakup fee - these fees are used all the time in M&A deals to discourage a seller from backing out of a deal.

But bankers are starting to use breakup fees in a novel way. And this time? It’s to prevent each other from backing out of new jobs.

Take Jefferies, for example. The bank is trying to collect $4 million from a banker they hired. They poached Dean Decker from Credit Suisse, a banker specializing in casino and real estate. They offered him $10 million as well as a nine-page offer letter. 

But, in the offer letter, Jefferies included a “damages clause.” If Decker reneged on his offer prior to starting at Jefferies, he’d owe the bank $4 million.

And, that’s exactly what happened. Decker never showed up to his first day of work. Instead, he accepted an offer from Santander. And now Jefferies is looking to recover that $4 million from Decker, despite the fact he never worked for them.

Decker’s lawyers claim a damages provision isn’t legal - they say it’s a ransom.

Takeaway: Y’all are probably familiar with the concept of exploding offers where you get 24-48 hours to accept a position. This situation sheds light on Wall Street's fierce talent wars, where firms use complex contractual clauses to lock in high-value targets. The outcome of this legal dispute could reshape how employers leverage such contracts to deter employees from using job offers as leverage to improve their current positions.

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Don’t miss out–RAD AI’s investment round closes in 2 weeks.

_HEADLINES

Top Reads

• Wall Street pushes out rate-cut expectations, possibly until March 2025 (CNBC)

• Wall Street says a Wall Street revival is finally here (YF)

• Tesla asks shareholders to vote again on Musk’s $56B payout (CNN)

• The salary a single person needs to live comfortably in every U.S. state (CNBC)

• Banking giants continue to trim staff to cut costs (YF)

• UBS plans next round of layoffs in Credit Suisse integration (BB)

• Why the 2024 stock market still looks like 2023 (YF)

• Truist calls investment banking staff into the office 5 days a week (BB)

• What would happen to the U.S. economy if there are no rate cuts this year? (CNN)

• Morgan Stanley, HSBC cutting Asia investment banking jobs in China slowdown (YF)

_{CAPITAL PULSE}

Markets Rundown

Stocks closed lower after mixed tech earnings; $NVDA fell almost 4%.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) United Airlines ($UAL) +17% because the airline posted strong earnings.

• (–) The Travelers Companies ($TRV) -7% after the insurance company missed its profit estimates.

• (–) ASML ($ASML) -7% after the semiconductor company missed on sales.

Private Dealmaking

• Rippling, an onboarding tech startup, raised $200 million 

• Armis bought Silk Security, a cyber risk company, for $150 million

• BeyondTrust bought Entitle, an access management startup, for up to $150 million

• Iceye, a satellite startup, raised $93 million

• Upstage, a document processing AI startup, raised $72 million

• Uni Express, a Canadian delivery startup, raised $50 million 

For more PE, VC & M&A deals, subscribe to our Buysiders newsletter.

_{BOOK OF THE DAY}

Possible

Conflict is increasing everywhere, threatening everything we hold dear—from our families to our democracy, from our workplaces to our world. In nearly every area of society, we are fighting more and collaborating less, especially over crucial problems that demand solutions.

With this groundbreaking book, bestselling author and international negotiator William Ury shares a new “path to possible”—time-tested practices that will help readers unlock their power to constructively engage and transform conflict. Part memoir, part manual, part manifesto, Possible offers stories and sage advice from Ury’s nearly 50 years of experience on the front lines of some of the world’s toughest conflicts.

One of the world’s top experts in the field, Ury has worked on conflicts ranging from boardroom battles to labor strikes, from the US partisan divide to family feuds, from wars in the Middle East, Colombia and Ukraine to helping the US and USSR avoid nuclear disaster. Now, in Possible, he helps us tackle the seemingly intransigent problems facing us. 

In Possible, Ury argues conflict is natural. In fact, we need more conflict, not less—if we are to grow, change, evolve and solve our problems creatively. While we may not be able to end conflict, we can transform it—unleashing new, unexpected possibilities.

Successfully tested at Harvard University with almost a thousand participants from business, government, academia, and the nonprofit sector, Ury’s “Path to Possible” proved so valuable that Harvard’s Program on Negotiation selected it as its inaugural online daylong in April 2022.

“The author of the world’s best-selling book on negotiation draws on his nearly fifty years of experience and knowledge grappling with the world’s toughest conflicts to offer a way out of the seemingly impossible problems of our time.”

_{DAILY VISUAL}

Gold Price on the Rise

Geopolitical risks, central bank purchases, and Fed pivot pushing gold price higher

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_{DAILY ACUMEN}

Your Story

Our life stories are powerful narratives that shape our identity and self-esteem. When facing challenges, it's easy to cling to stories that diminish our sense of self-worth. Consciously rewriting our personal narratives can be transformative.

By recognizing our unique strengths, accepting our flaws, and focusing on our own journey rather than external validation, we can craft an empowering new story.

This takes courage and insight - but small shifts in perspective, like reframing hardships as opportunities for growth, can gradually rebuild confidence from within. Ultimately, authoring our story means taking ownership of our one precious life.

So today, reflect on the story you tell about yourself. Does it limit you or lift you up? Remember, you have the power to edit the script - and write a new chapter filled with self-compassion, resilience and hope.

_{ENLIGHTENMENT}

Short Squeez Picks

• CEO’s 10 rules for creating business documents that create results

• How to give yourself more hours in a day

• Teach this habit to give your kids a significant psychological advantage

• How gamification can boost your engagement

• Your happiness at work might come down to 2 simple choices

_{MEME-A-PALOOZA}

Memes of the Day