š Citi Shakeup
Citi's biggest shakeup in 15 years, plus big day for IPOs and D1 hedge fund got burned.
Short Squeez
September 14, 2023
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While stocks continue to dominate headlines, private credit deals offered by Percent can offer yields up to 20% APY while also generating income.
āIf you can get an IPO, donāt buy it. Only buy IPOs you canāt get.ā ā Vahan Janjigianan
Good Morning! Chip designer Arm will make its New York stock exchange debut today. Trading at $51 per share and a $54.5 billion valuation, it's the biggest IPO of the year. Sandals maker Birkenstock is also throwing its hat into the IPO ring, filing papers yesterday.
Inflation rose 3.7% in August thanks to soaring gas prices. And D1, one of the best-performing hedge funds on Wall Street, is feeling dragged down by its venture capital bets. The fund posted a measly 3.8% gain through August (the S&P 500 was up 19.7%). And Blackstone announced it founded a credit and insurance unit, with hopes to become a $1 trillion lender.
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SQUEEZ OF THE DAY
Citi Shakeup
Yesterday, Citi announced its biggest reorganization in 15 years.
The bank will trim down management layers and consolidate to ultimately just five business lines. And job cuts are on the horizon, too.
Citiās already had a few rounds of layoffs this year. But this reshuffle (expected to be complete by Q1 2024) could put a big dent in the bankās 230k workforce.
CEO Jane Fraser says the moves will make some colleagues āvery uncomfortableā. But a shakeup might be necessary to provide direction for Citiās struggling stock.
The bank is struggling with its retail presence, and its stock is trading at the lowest valuation of any major bank (close to 2008 crisis levels).
Takeaway: Jane Fraser is trying to bring back Citiās glory days and an internal shake-up looks like the need of the hour.
However if you work at Citi, you might want to close your eyes for these Jane Fraser comments at a conference yesterday: āWe have taken hard, consequential, tough decisions here.
They are not going to be universally popular within our bank. Itās going to make some of our people very uncomfortable. I am absolutely fine with that.ā
CAPITAL PULSE
Markets Rundown
Stocks closed higher despite inflation data.
Movers & Shakers
(+) Redwire ($RDW) +9%Ā after Roth MKM initiated coverage on the space infrastructure company with a ābuyā.
(+) Adobe ($ADBE) +2% after the company launched a generative AI product.
(ā) American Airlines ($AAL) -6% after cutting outlook on higher fuel costs.
Private Dealmaking
Denodo, a data virtualization solutions provider, raised $336 million
VideoAmp, a media measurement firm, raised $150 million
UBQ Materials, a developer of advanced materials from water, raised $70 million
Mighty Buildings, a 3D-printed homes maker, raised $52 millionĀ
Tarana Wireless, a fixed wireless access company, raised $50 million
Certa, a vendor management startup, raised $35 million
Get access to private deal flow here.
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HEADLINES
Top Reads
Wells Fargo CFO expects more layoffs ahead (Reuters)
CalSTRS sticks with emerging VC funds, bucking industry trend (Axios)
Bill Ackman lays down his investment commandments (YF)
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz to step down from board (CNBC)
Americans have never been wealthier (CNN)
Why Augustās CPI report is glass half-empty/half-full (Axios)
What Goldmanās work-from-home study found (BB)
Hedge fundsā big bet against Treasurys isnāt what you think (WSJ)
Wealthy families pile into bonds, private equity while ditching stocks (Reuters)
BOOK OF THE DAY
Conflicted
For most people, conflict triggers a fight or flight response. Disagreeing productively is a hard skill for which neither evolution or society has equipped us. Itās a skill we urgently need to acquire; otherwise, our increasingly vociferous disagreements are destined to tear us apart. Productive disagreement is a way of thinking, perhaps the best one we have.
It makes us smarter and more creative, and it can even bring us closer together. Itās critical to the success of any shared enterprise, from a marriage, to a business, to a democracy. Isnāt it time we gave more thought to how to do it well?
In an increasingly polarized world, our only chance for coming together and moving forward is to learn from those who have mastered the art and science of disagreement. In this book, weāll learn from experts who are highly skilled at getting the most out of highly charged encounters: interrogators, cops, divorce mediators, therapists, diplomats, psychologists.
These professionals know how to get something valuable ā information, insight, ideasāfrom the toughest, most antagonistic conversations. They are brilliant communicators: masters at shaping the conversation beneath the conversation. They know how to turn the heat of conflict into the light of creativity, connection, and insight.
In this much-needed book, Ian Leslie explores what happens to us when we argue, why disagreement makes us stressed, and why we get angry. He explains why we urgently need to transform the way we think about conflict and how having better disagreements can make us more successful.
By drawing together the lessons he learns from different experts, he proposes a series of clear principles that we can all use to make our most difficult dialogues more productiveāand our increasingly acrimonious world a better place.
āA thoughtful, thought-provoking guide to getting along, even when doing so might seem impossible.ā
ENLIGHTENMENT
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DAILY VISUAL
Annual % Change in Consumer Price Index
Source: Axios
WHAT ELSE TO READ
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DAILY ACUMEN
Looking To Get Lucky?
I'm talking about the kind of luck that could have you stumbling into fortune and opportunity. According to Dr. Richard Wiseman, the dice of life are not necessarily loaded against you; itās all about increasing your "luck surface area." Think of it as your own cosmic lottery ticket, and the more you expand this surface, the more chance numbers you get to play.
Apparently, lucky people are like social butterflies at the cosmic party, taking alternate routes to work to "accidentally" bump into chance opportunities. They're the folks who, if they tripped over a rock, would probably find treasure underneath. On the other hand, unlucky folks probably wouldn't even see the rock; they'd be too busy grumbling about an untied shoelace.
So, how do you become a luck magnet? First, cut out the "anti-luck"āthat's your Negative Nellies and Debbie Downers. Then, add a dollop of "pro-luck," which essentially means putting yourself out there, both literally and metaphorically. Yes, that may include actually leaving the house and, you know, talking to people.
Wisemanās "Luck Razor" advises choosing the path that maximizes your chance for serendipity. Itās like choosing between a boring dinner party and a mysterious masquerade; always pick the masquerade! Unless you hate people, then, well, maybe luck is overrated.
So, the next time you find yourself questioning your luck, remember: You've got as much a shot at good fortune as anyone else. Just don't sit at home waiting for itāunless you believe in the Luck Fairy, in which case, good luck with that.
MEME-A-PALOOZA
Memes of the Day
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