Good Morning! Hedge fund titan Bill Ackman launched his latest investment vehicle and is considering teaming up with Elon Musk and forming a Twitter supergroup. The government narrowly avoided a shutdown… at least for the next 45 days. NYC's housing market is finally starting to lure back international buyers. And you might want to hold off on buying the latest iPhone 15 - they overheat easily, and Apple says they’re figuring out how to fix it.

Quick reminder: Our Wall Street Financial Modeling Course launches on Wednesday, October 4th. Pre-order by tomorrow to get $100 off using code PREORDER.

_{SQUEEZ OF THE DAY}

Private Equity Gets Dumped

If you work in private equity, you know your livelihood is (in part) thanks to pension funds willing to deploy massive capital and invest with your firm.

And it used to be a match made in heaven. Pension funds were more than happy to lock away their money for a decade or so, all in the name of securing those tantalizingly higher returns beyond the grasp of traditional stocks.

But an unintended side effect of JPow's high-interest rate crusade? Pension funds are ditching private equity investments.

So, where exactly is this capital flowing to now? High-yield bonds. The traditional investments are the life of the financial party right now. Not only are they more liquid than private equity, but in a high-interest rate environment, they also present the allure of even greater returns.

Meanwhile, the benchmark private-equity returns? They took a nosedive, turning negative for the year ending March 31. It’s the first time we’ve seen negative returns since the 2008-09 financial crisis.

Takeaway: There are winners and losers when the Fed raises interest rates. And there are lessons from pension funds’ pivot that you can even apply to your own portfolio. After all, most Americans could lock up a 5% APY high-yield savings account if they’re willing to take the time to capitalize on this high interest rate environment.

_{CAPITAL PULSE}

Markets Rundown

Stocks suffered the biggest monthly loss in September after a negative inflation reading.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) Blue Apron ($APRN) +135% after getting acquired by Wonder Group.

• (+) Nike ($NKE) +7% after reporting strong profits.

• (–) Carnival ($CCL) -5% after an earnings miss on higher fuel and currency costs.

Private Dealmaking

• Stonepeak bought a 49% stake in Cellnex Nordics, a wireless telco, for $771 million

• Carl Icahn sold his remaining shares in Xerox back to the company for $542 million

• AlphaSense, a market intelligence and search platform, raised $150 million

• Wonder, a food truck company, bought Blue Apron, a meal kit company, for $103 million

• Perenna, a London-based mortgage lender, raised $52 million

• Albo, a Mexican neobank, raised $40 million

Get access to private deal flow here.

_{SPONSORED BY RYSE}

Your Window Into The $158 Billion Smart Home Market

How are innovators in the smart home industry rewarded? With billion-dollar buyouts, of course.

And if you weren’t an early investor in Ring (acquired by Amazon for $1B) or Nest (purchased by Google for $3.2B), there’s no need to fret. The next smart home trailblazer has arrived 一 RYSE.

RYSE’s patented, automated window-shade tech is doing more than just shading homes and businesses. RYSE users can:

• Automate window shades via voice, smartphone, or schedule

• Cut cooling costs by up to 24%

• Cut lighting costs by up to 74%

Aside from its feature-rich design, RYSE is also dominating its competitors in price point 一 priced at just $169 vs. up to $1,000 per window among competitors. And, they’re about to launch in over 100 Best Buy stores.

You might have missed out on Ring and Nest. Don’t miss out on RYSE.

Learn more and take part in RYSE’s exclusive public offering right here.

_HEADLINES

Top Reads

• Hedge fund D.E. Shaw impeded potential whistleblowers (YF)

• Investors must accept lower returns to unclog private equity deal flow (WSJ)

• The best investments of Q3 2023 (Axios)

• How much money you need to be in the top 1% in every state (CNBC)

• Private equity investors consider NAV loans at 10% for cash access (BB)

• Mark Zuckerberg can’t quit the Metaverse (Verge)

• Fed’s preferred inflation measure shows slowest increase since September 2021 (YF)

• Peloton’s deal with Lululemon seeks to solve each others’ problems (Axios)

• BlackRock joins Goldman in cloning JPMorgan's blockbuster ETF (YF)

• September’s stock slump shows bear market’s staying power (Axios)

_{BOOK OF THE DAY}

Look

Paying attention is a crucial human skill, yet many of us have forgotten how to listen carefully and observe intentionally. Deluged by social media and hobbled by the increasing social isolation it fosters, we need to rediscover the deeply human ways we connect with others.

Christian Madsbjerg, a philosopher and entrepreneur, understands this dilemma. To counteract it, he began a course at The New School in New York City called Human Observation, which lays out the ways that we can learn to pay attention more effectively.

The course has been hugely popular since its inception, with hundreds of students filling waiting lists.

In Look, Madsbjerg sets out the key observational skills needed to show how we can recapture our ability to pay attention. Drawing from philosophy, science, the visual arts, and his own life, he offers both practical insights and a range of tools for experiencing the world with greater richness and texture.

The result is a dynamic approach to rethinking observation that helps all of us to see with more empathy, accuracy, and connection to others.

“A powerful exploration of how we pay attention that will transform the ways we connect with one another – at home, at work, and beyond.”

_{ENLIGHTENMENT}

Short Squeez Picks

• Why ‘fake it ‘till you make it’ is bad advice

• 9 of Bill Ackman’s favorite books on investing

• Which one of McKinsey’s 6 employee archetypes are you?

• How to master the new art of micro-talk

• Why you should divide your life into semesters, even after school

_{DAILY VISUAL}

How the Supreme Court could grant $271 billion in tax relief

Potential tax relief from invalidation of the repatriation tax

_{SPONSORED BY CAPLINKED}

Get a Supercar for the Weekend

The world of M&A is all gas, no breaks.

That’s why CapLinked’s data room is fine-tuned to close deals fast, and to prove it, they’re putting the pedal to the metal with their latest offer:

Now until the end of October, every new Enterprise Plan comes with keys to a sports car of your dreams for the weekend.*

What makes CapLinked’s Enterprise Data Rooms the choice of dealmakers in the fast lane?

• Cutting-edge activity tracking provides the insights you need to craft personalized, hyper-efficient follow-ups with targets

• Advanced Q&A functionality puts the Q&A stage of due diligence on cruise control

• Simple permissioning tools move decision-makers into your data room as quickly as possible

• Turbocharged upload speeds & 99.9 Uptime SLA (no speed limits here)

Ready to claim your ride and close your next deal? Open an Enterprise Plan today.

_{DAILY ACUMEN}

Newton’s Relationship Law

Remember Newton's third law about every action having an equal and opposite reaction? Turns out, it's not just about physics – it's a guide to relationships! Here's the breakdown:

Push someone? They'll push back. Just a universal game of emotional ping-pong.

Four types of relationships: Win/Win, Win/Lose, Lose/Win, Lose/Lose. Aim for Win/Win, or you're setting yourself up for the universe's longest silent treatment.

Positive vibes lead to positive outcomes. It's like karma, but with faster Wi-Fi.

Most people are passive, waiting for the other to make a move. Be the change, or be prepared for the world's most awkward standoff.

Compounding: Relationships’ secret sauce. Think interest, but for feelings.

Always be the bigger person, because the small game isn't worth the long play.

Only Win-Win relationships have that compounding magic. It's the relationship equivalent of a two-for-one deal.

Time is on your side if you play it right. Otherwise, you're just running laps for nothing.

In summary, go positive, be proactive, and always aim for mutual benefit. It’s Newton-approved relationship advice!

Disclaimer: Newton might not have actually approved this.

Source: Farnam Street

_{MEME-A-PALOOZA}

Memes of the Day