🍽️ Buffet Closed at Steerage

All the lobster went upstairs again.

A Free Lunch newsletter archive of 1 October 2026

🌍 All editions 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 🇺🇸 United States

Good morning!

Apollo, Oaktree and a squad of fellow bondholders sued Patrick Drahi in New York at the end of September, demanding he answer personally for Optimum Communications, the American cable group once called Altice USA. In instalments since late last year, Cablevision, which wires much of greater New York, has been shifted into an "unrestricted" holding company that the group's $21B of debt cannot touch, taking more than $2B of annual earnings with it by the creditors' count. They want it all reversed. More than $6B of that debt falls due in 2027. The company says every step respected the contracts. Probably true, and precisely the scandal.

Altice USA floated in 2017 at $30 a share, a year after paying the Dolans of Madison Square Garden $17.7B, debt included, for Cablevision. The same share is now priced at $2.50, a twelfth of its debut, in the lifeboat's seating plan. Outside investors bought $300M of preferred units. Drahi's own holding swapped $200M of common stock at that price for preferred units, climbing from steerage to the upper deck. Public shareholders were offered cash. Bondholders were offered a conversation. The old rule said women and children first. The new one says preferred units first, lenders into the Atlantic. Drahi told a Goldman Sachs audience in 2015 that he did not like paying salaries and paid as little as he could. He is, at least, a man of his word.

The plaintiffs' fury would sound less rehearsed if firms their size had never pulled the same levers as owners. Their lawyers now argue that creditor-on-creditor violence harms American capital markets, a discovery made roughly when they landed on the receiving end. JPMorgan plays both parts with admirable flexibility: its asset managers sue, its bank lent the $3B that fitted out the lifeboat. None of this makes Drahi a victim. Carving a fief from under the overlord was already a racket in 1290, when England's Edward I banned subinfeudation. Drahi runs the modern version on two continents: Portugal and the Dominican Republic lifted out of Altice International's collateral, a default notice this summer, and SFR, his French network, promised to three rivals for €20.35B, not the €30B he wanted.

Behind the plaintiffs sit pension funds and the retirees who bought annuities from Athene, Apollo's insurer. Behind the defendant sit millions of households whose monthly bills are the only real money in the case. Optimum shed another 40K broadband customers in the second quarter, revenue slid 5.8%, and the margin still hit a record, which settles who is being squeezed. In a war between the man who borrowed too much and the funds that lent him too much, one party cannot be moved into an unrestricted entity. It pays every month, and nobody in this case has asked what it is owed.

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🗞️ Top Story

🇬🇧 Spy Hard. MI5 has warned UK universities to cut ties with a Chinese conglomerate accused of stealing sensitive research, putting cash-strapped institutions on high alert for espionage risks. (The Guardian)
🇬🇧 Blame Game. Andy Burnham points the finger at Iran for the RAF Fairford scare, but offers no evidence as the probe drags on and suspects walk free on bail. (New York Times)
🇬🇧 Polling Station. Senior Downing Street aides are canvassing experts and pollsters to see if rejoining the EU could fly with the public, hinting at a possible Labour pivot. (The Guardian)
🇷🇴 Majority Report. Romania’s parliament has rejected a second prime ministerial nominee, Siegfried Muresan, intensifying the political deadlock and raising the prospect of early elections. (Le Monde)
🇺🇦 Time Out. Ukraine loses nearly €40M for every hour work halts due to missile alerts, as Russian strikes force the economy into repeated standstills. (Libé)
🇷🇺 Broken Record. Alexander Kynev, known for denouncing Russia’s rigged elections, was beaten during detention and charged with drug possession in a move critics say is pure retaliation. (El Pais)
🇺🇸 Deal or No Deal. Trump insists no sanctions relief was offered to Iran, even as Tehran reviews a fresh proposal following discussions in Qatar. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Hot Take. Los Angeles and much of Southern California face a summer-style heat wave in October, with power demand and fire danger both set to spike. (Bloomberg)
🇧🇴 Law and Disorder. Bolivia’s attorney general Roger Mariaca was arrested after the US revoked his visa and accused him of cartel ties, bringing the country’s justice system into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. (Le Figaro)
🇰🇵 Weight Watcher. Kim Jong Un is reportedly "extremely obese" at more than 140 kg, yet South Korean officials say he remains physically active and medically monitored. (Le Parisien)
🇲🇦 Prime Time. Fatima Zahra El Mansouri becomes Morocco’s first female prime minister after her party’s election win, breaking a historic gender barrier in the country’s top office. (Washington Post)
🌍 Current Affairs. A new Green IT study warns that AI could emit six times more CO₂ in 2030 than in 2025, making its environmental footprint impossible to ignore. (Le Monde)

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇬🇧 Hit Parade. Labour’s conference crowd is swept up by Andy Burnham’s heartfelt pitch, with ministers declaring themselves persuaded and the party basking in a rare moment of unity. (The Guardian)

🇺🇸 United States

🇺🇸 Red Alert. Trump’s midterm campaign schedule skips swing states in favor of Republican strongholds, signaling even MAGA country needs a morale boost this year. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 PAC to the Future. OpenAI president Greg Brockman has quietly withdrawn a promised $25M donation to the Leading the Future super PAC, as AI lobbying faces mounting backlash. (New York Times)

🏛️ Economy

🇬🇧 Mind the Gap. The UK economy slowed less than expected in Q2 2026, with GDP up 0.5% and household incomes finally moving in the right direction. (Boursier)
🇬🇧 Test Drive. Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey says regulating AI is premature, insisting rigorous testing should come first to expose risks before lawmakers jump in. (BBC)
🇬🇧 Coal Comfort. A new report shows UK banks have pumped $8.3B into coal projects since Cop26, making Barclays 🇬🇧 and HSBC 🇬🇧 Europe’s most generous fossil backers. (The Guardian)
🇫🇷 OAT of Control. France's 10-year bond yield is set for its biggest quarterly jump since 1987, as surging rates and a ballooning deficit spook investors. (Boursier)
🇪🇺 Access All Areas. US tech giants like Google, Apple, and Amazon meet more often with policymakers than any European rival, buying themselves a front-row seat in Brussels’ rulemaking. (Financial Times)
🇪🇺 Trusted Issues. The UK wants “trusted partner” status for its industries under the EU’s new industrial rules, but Brussels is not buying the label just yet. (Les Echos)
🇺🇸 Core Values. The Fed’s preferred inflation gauge showed core inflation at 3.0% in August, coming in much lighter than economists had predicted and giving markets a rare sigh of relief. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Brain Drain. Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton calls "super intelligence" a national security issue but sidesteps questions about appointing an AI czar to oversee the risks. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 User Unfriendly. OpenAI and Anthropic face an FTC inquiry over alleged deceptive practices and consumer harm, as regulators finally ask who is really in control of these AI tools. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Leaving So Soon. Howard Lutnick’s annual filing shows $250M in income after joining the Trump administration, with most proceeds tied to businesses he was meant to exit. (CNBC)
🇰🇷 Chip Happens. South Korea’s monthly exports smashed the $120B mark in September, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix cashing in on global AI demand. (Wall Street Journal)
🇮🇷 Tanker Games. Oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz are rising thanks to shuttle tankers, even as US-Iran tensions keep the route far from stable. (Bloomberg)

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇬🇧 Growth Spurt. The UK’s GDP and household income figures for the first half of the year have been revised upward, giving John Healey a timely boost before the budget and prompting markets to celebrate the economy’s unexpected resilience. (The Guardian)

🇺🇸 United States

🇺🇸 Fee to Believe. The SEC proposes letting retail funds charge performance fees as it pushes to open private markets to everyday investors, promising access with a price tag. (Financial Times)
🇺🇸 Audit and Peace. Scott Bessent, now Treasury Secretary, has settled with the IRS after years of using a hedge fund maneuver to dodge nearly $1M in Medicare taxes. The Senate can officially stop clutching its pearls. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Insider Farce. The Senate killed a Republican bill to curb congressional stock trading, with Democrats labeling it a hollow gesture that dodges the real ban voters want. (New York Times)

🏢 Real Estate

🇵🇹 Eviction Notice. Portugal’s parliament backs a bill to make it easier for landlords to evict tenants after two months of unpaid rent, lowering the threshold and scrapping deposit caps in the name of market flexibility. (Le Parisien)
🇸🇬 House Rules. Singapore's private home prices jumped 1.4% in Q3, the fastest pace since 2024, even as sales lost steam and buyers hesitated. (Bloomberg)
🇳🇿 Home Alone. New Zealand house prices have dropped to their lowest level since early 2021, extending a slump that is now dragging on the country’s economic recovery. (Bloomberg)

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇬🇧 Current Affairs. The Environment Agency warns that 6M homes in England face flood risks this winter, but a third of residents have no idea. (The Guardian)

🇺🇸 United States

🇺🇸 Fixed Anxiety. mortgage rates have climbed for the sixth week in a row, putting the brakes on both refinancing and homebuyer demand as affordability shrinks again. (CNBC)

🔗 On-chain

🇪🇺 Licence to Bill. regulators are grilling Binance 🇨🇳 for continuing to serve European customers despite being ordered to wind down its business after failing to secure a licence. (Financial Times)
🇺🇸 Liquidity Theater. Observers suspect that Kalshi 🇺🇸 and Polymarket 🇺🇸 are showcasing impressive trading volumes that may mask inorganic activity, sparking debate over market integrity. (CNBC)

💱 Listed Markets

🇫🇷 Quantum Leap. French quantum company Pasqal reports a 14% jump in revenue after its US listing, now sitting on €313M in cash to fuel expansion. (Siliconrepublic)
🇩🇪 Driving Local. BMW announces it will end its globalized production strategy and focus on regionalized manufacturing, blaming the new world order for putting up roadblocks. (Les Echos)
🇨🇭 Block Party. Banks led by Bank of America and Deutsche Bank added a rare "omniblocker" clause to the $3.2B Nestle Waters debt deal, shielding lenders from being sidelined by rival creditor groups. (Bloomberg)
🇺🇸 Patch Perfect. Google unveils Gemini 4 Argon, its most advanced AI yet, claiming it can autonomously find and fix critical software flaws better than any rival. (TechCrunch)
🇺🇸 Memory Lane. Micron 🇺🇸 posts soaring profit and revenue for Q4 as the global shortage of memory chips promises to keep cash flowing through 2028. (Wall Street Journal)
🇺🇸 Call of Duty. Options traders piled into Alphabet and Microsoft calls, betting $600M that the tech giants will break out to new highs soon. (CNBC)

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇬🇧 Climate of Evasion. The FCA has dropped plans for compulsory climate disclosures, allowing UK-listed firms to skip detailed reporting if they provide an explanation, giving business lobbyists exactly what they asked for. (Financial Times)
🇯🇵 Red Flagged. Nidec 🇯🇵 posted a massive loss driven by a $4B write-down and a scandal that left auditors unimpressed and leadership scrambling for cover. (Wall Street Journal)

🇺🇸 United States

🇯🇵 Red Flagged. Nidec 🇯🇵 posted a massive loss driven by a $4B write-down and a scandal that left auditors unimpressed and leadership scrambling for cover. (Wall Street Journal)

🛎️ Big Deals (M&A)

AstraZeneca 🇬🇧 is investing $2B in Summit Therapeutics 🇺🇸 to collaborate on a cancer medicine.
Shine 🇫🇷 acquires French fintech Libeo 🇫🇷, a supplier-invoice management and payment specialist, for an undisclosed amount.
Niji 🇫🇷 has completed its acquisition of AI specialist WITH Madrid 🇪🇸, effective September 1.
Credit Agricole 🇫🇷 is studying the acquisition of Banco BPM 🇮🇹, valued at $28B, after building a 30% stake.
Germany 🇩🇪 will block the sale of logistics firm Zippel 🇩🇪 to COSCO 🇨🇳.
EMERAM 🇩🇪 invests a double-digit €M amount in hello again 🇦🇹.
UniCredit 🇮🇹 is preparing to seize control of and overhaul the board of listed German lender Commerzbank 🇩🇪, valued at $50B, by January.
Asterion Industrial Partners 🇪🇸 and Teras Capital 🇪🇸 are exploring strategic options for their Olin Telecom joint venture.
RHI Magnesita 🇦🇹 has made a cash-and-stock takeover offer for Vesuvius 🇬🇧, valued at $1.5B and backed by activist investor Cevian Capital 🇸🇪.
Novo Nordisk 🇩🇰 acquired rights to an experimental obesity pill from Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals 🇨🇳 for $2.6B.
H. Lundbeck 🇩🇰 expressed interest in acquiring Xeris Biopharma 🇺🇸, a commercial-stage drugmaker valued at $1.8B.
UiPath 🇷🇴🇺🇸 has completed the acquisition of AI startup WorkFusion 🇺🇸 for nearly $190M, including $160M upfront and up to $30M in additional payments.
Pistachio 🇳🇴 acquires Hugin.io 🇳🇴 to add compliance management capabilities.
Stokke Industri 🇳🇴 is weighing a sale of Jets 🇳🇴 at a $530M valuation.
A U.S. federal judge 🇺🇸 approves the settlement between Paramount Skydance 🇺🇸 and twelve U.S. states over its $110B acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery 🇺🇸, including $300M in additional annual production spending commitments.
Salesforce 🇺🇸 has agreed to acquire AI consumer-interview company Listen Labs 🇺🇸. Financial terms were not disclosed.
H.I.G. Capital 🇺🇸 has completed the acquisition of UK safety equipment distributor Arco 🇬🇧.
Hormel Foods 🇺🇸 has agreed to acquire Brakebush Brothers 🇺🇸, a chicken products processor, for $1.055B.
Piper Sandler 🇺🇸 is in talks to merge with Perella Weinberg Partners 🇺🇸 in a $4.75B-$1.6B deal.
Ancora Holdings 🇺🇸 raised its cash bid for H.B. Fuller 🇺🇸's building adhesives unit to $1.4B.
Bain Capital 🇺🇸 will acquire a 25% stake in AI construction platform Kahua 🇺🇸 at a valuation above $1B.
Flashlight Capital Partners 🇺🇸 urges Secom 🇯🇵 to double its stakes in S-1 Corp. 🇰🇷 and Taiwan Secom 🇹🇼 after its earlier bid for an S-1 stake was rejected.
Exus Renewables 🇺🇸 acquired four large-scale solar projects from ibV Energy Partners 🇺🇸 in Louisiana and Wisconsin.
Trump Media & Technology Group 🇺🇸 has agreed to merge with TAE Technologies 🇺🇸. The deal is awaiting regulatory approval and is expected to close this year.
MGM Resorts International 🇺🇸 is exploring an offer for People Inc. 🇺🇸, which owns a 27% stake in MGM.
Shopify 🇨🇦 acquires the Shop.com domain from Market America 🇺🇸.
HCLSoftware 🇮🇳 intends to acquire 100% of Zagreb-based RPA company Robotiq.ai 🇭🇷 for €9M, with closing expected by November 2026.
Lynas Rare Earths 🇦🇺 has agreed to acquire Meteoric Resources 🇦🇺 for $672M.
Israel 🇮🇱 objected to Hapag-Lloyd 🇩🇪's $4.2B acquisition of ZIM Integrated Shipping Services 🇮🇱.

🇺🇸 United States

Evolution Equity Partners 🇺🇸 announces a strategic growth investment in Aurachain 🇨🇭.

🧳 Private Markets & VC

🇬🇧 Pound for Pound. UK venture capital funds have equaled US long-term returns for the first time, while the latest generation of British funds outpaces both US and European peers. (EU-Startups)
🇳🇱 Fund and Games. Lux Capital is negotiating to lead a €200M round for Dutch defense startup Onodrim, aiming for a €1B unicorn valuation before the first missile is even built. (Bloomberg)
🇺🇸 Spy vs. Spy. Matan Grinberg alleges board adviser Chris Degnan shared confidential Factory info with competitor Cognition just before Degnan took a top job there, prompting a public war of words. (TechCrunch)
🇺🇸 Flavor of the Week. TypeSafe, the latest AI darling, is reportedly seeking $1B in new funding at a $10B valuation after its launch video went viral across Silicon Valley. (Les Echos)
🇺🇸 Terms of Enragement. OpenAI lands in court after its AI models are blamed for hacking Hugging Face, opening a new front in the battle over tech accountability. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Cash Out Loud. Employees at ElevenLabs 🇺🇸 can now sell shares at a $22B valuation, as the company doubles its price tag in just months. (TechCrunch)
🇸🇬 Fund and Games. Hao Dong, ex-GIC trader, is launching Windrise Capital and seeking up to $300M for a new hedge fund focused on commodities. The real play begins in 2027. (Bloomberg)

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇬🇧 Blue Chip Slip. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham says he would be "really concerned" if Manchester City's owners sold the club after being found guilty of Premier League financial rule breaches, praising their investment in Manchester even as the fallout threatens to shake the club's future. (BBC)

🇺🇸 United States

🇺🇸 Heavy Metal. The Pentagon puts $65M into Hertha Metals, betting the startup can break China’s grip on high-purity iron for critical defense magnets. (Wall Street Journal)

Fundraising

OpenAI 🇺🇸 (AI): $30B
Kalshi 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $1B (Tiger Global, Dragoneer)
Helix Digital Infrastructure 🇺🇸 (Infrastructure): $1B (Samsung and affiliates)
Modal Labs 🇺🇸 (AI): $750M (Accel)
Neko Health 🇸🇪 (Healthcare): $700M (Preface Ventures)
TXSE Group 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $430M (BlackRock, Charles Schwab, Citadel Securities, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America)
Kahua 🇺🇸 (AI): $250M (Bain Capital)
Varda Space 🇺🇸 (Space): $250M (Lux Capital, Natural Capital)
Onodrim 🇳🇱 (Defense): $230M (Lux Capital)
Reverion 🇩🇪 (Energy): $175M (Kembara, Allianz, KfW Capital, aurum Impact, Carbon Equity)
CScale 🇺🇸 (AI): $145M (Atreides Management, Valor Equity Partners, Premji Invest, Sutter Hill Ventures, Maverick Silicon, NVIDIA, Intel Capital)
Hertha Metals 🇺🇸 (Steel): $133M (Khosla Ventures, Doerr Capital)
Onomondo 🇩🇰 (IoT): Over €100M (Aspirity Partners, EIFO)
Jeeves 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $110M (CoinFund)
Efficient Computer 🇺🇸 (Semiconductors): $97M (TQ Ventures)
R1 Therapeutics 🇺🇸 (Biotech): $80.5M (Samsara BioCapital, Abingworth, DaVita Venture Group, F-Prime, Curie.Bio, SNMA Capital, U.S. Renal Care)
Metaview 🇺🇸 (AI): $60M (Insight Partners, GV, Intrepid Growth Partners, Seedcamp, Vertex Ventures US, Plural, Garuda Ventures)
Flow Engineering 🇺🇸 (Hardware): $50M (Antonio Gracias, Gavin Baker, Sequoia Capital, Human Capital, Evantic, SV Angel, Odyssey, EQT, Thomas Wolf, Jonas von Malottki, Nico Rosberg, Roelof Botha)
Aptadir Therapeutics 🇮🇹 (Biotech): €40M (4BIO Capital, EXTEND, CDP Venture Capital, Indaco Venture Partners, XGEN Venture, CE-Ventures, Kerna Ventures, Angelini Ventures, Italian Angels for Biotech, Club degli Investitori)
Miter 🇺🇸 (Construction): $40M (Battery Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, Coatue)
Relay 🇺🇸 (Industrial tech): $36M (International Paper, Cerity Partners, Harmonic Growth Partners, Thayer Investment Partners, G2 Venture Partners, Wind River Ventures)
OuterSignal 🇺🇸 (AI): $22M (Long Journey Ventures, Abstract Ventures, BAM Ventures, Top Shelf Ventures, SuperAngel.Fund, AME Cloud Ventures)
Restate 🇩🇪 (AI): $20M (Singular, Redpoint Ventures, Capital One Ventures)
Ascerta 🇺🇸 (AI): $18M (Dell Technologies Capital)
LUPIN DENTAL 🇫🇷 (Healthcare): €15M
IPercept 🇸🇪 (Industrial tech): $16.5M (Isogon Ventures, 2150)
Inbolt 🇫🇷 (Robotics): €11M (Shift4Good, Bridges Climate Transition Partners, BNP Paribas Développement, Ora Global)
Atomic 🇺🇸 (Supply chain): $12.5M (Klass Capital, Madrona)
Rig Security 🇮🇱 (Cybersecurity): $12M (Ten Eleven Ventures, Brightmind Partners)
Kanu AI 🇺🇸 (AI): $11.7M (Trilogy Equity Partners, a16z speedrun, BMW i Ventures, Accel)
Zenithon AI 🇬🇧 (AI): $10M (Backed VC, Lunar Ventures, Seraphim Space, MMC Ventures, SOSV)
AlgoX2 🇺🇸 (Data): $10M (Bessemer Venture Partners, Fin Capital, Alumni Ventures, Somersault Ventures, Octave, Motivate VC, AAL VC)
Astrocyte Pharmaceuticals 🇺🇸 (Biotech): $9.5M (DeepWork Capital, MintPharma Capital, Waterstar Capital, Dynagrow Capital, Angel Star Ventures)
MARBLE 🇫🇷 (Fintech): €6.5M (SMARTFIN, ADNEXUS, PASSION CAPITAL, 42CAPITAL)
Beltic 🇺🇸 (AI): $7.3M (Norwest, Restive Ventures, Oxford Seed Fund, Collide Capital)
HiringCafe (AI): $6.8M
Kানurra 🇺🇸 (Healthcare): $6.5M (Necessary Ventures, Asylum Ventures, Daybreak Ventures, Virtue VC, Ford Street Ventures, Browder Capital)
Charter Space 🇺🇸 (Insurtech): $5M (Crystal Venture Partners, QED, Blank Ventures, Hustle Fund, Gaingels)
Tangent Robotics 🇺🇸 (Robotics): $4.5M (Fly Ventures, Toyota Ventures, Logos Fund, Sparked Ventures)
52North 🇬🇧 (Healthcare): £3.2M (Macmillan Ventures, Hargreave Hale AIM VCT, Cedars Sinai Intellectual Property Company, Cancer Research Horizons, University of Cambridge, OKG Capital, Innovate UK)
Arkivia 🇸🇪 (Legal tech): SEK 40M (Tobii founder, Sven Hagströmer)
mPay 🇵🇱 (Fintech): PLN 15M
Kontext 🇩🇪 (Cybersecurity): $4M (42CAP, a16z CSX, HTGF)
Quotr 🇺🇸 (Proptech): $4M (Llama Ventures, strategic angel investors)
Blue Health Intelligence 🇳🇱 (HealthTech): €3.4M (Knop Investments, Jeroen Tas, Anna Nooshin)
NOX Energy 🇧🇪 (Energy): €3M
Unknown 🇸🇪: €3M
IOPOLE 🇫🇷 (Fintech): €3M (IRDI Capital Investissement, SOFILARO)
Blackswan Space 🇱🇹 (Space): €2.5M (Iron Wolf Capital, Lemonade Stand, Linas Sargautis, NGL Ventures, Tomas Žalandauskas)
froots 🇦🇹 (WealthTech): €2.25M (Andreas Treichl, Reinhold Baudisch, Paul Fattinger)
Ahron 🇩🇪 (HR tech): €2.2M (Cusp Capital, superangels, business angels)
KHOY 🇫🇮 (Furniture): €2M (Virta Equity, Innovestor, angel investors)
ANote Music 🇱🇺 (Music): €2M (Seventure Partners, ScaleFund)
Tryp.com 🇩🇰 (Traveltech): €1.9M (Point Capital Partners, Iberis Capital, angel investors)
Unnamed startup 🇪🇪🇺🇦 (Defensetech): $2.1M
DOD Solution 🇪🇪 (DefenceTech): €1.8M (Angel One Fund, Better Angle, Defence Builder Fund, Network VC, Newfund, UAID Fund, WildField Ventures)
Tenoro 🇪🇸 (AI): €1.7M (Plus Partners, Bynd, Soldiers Field, business angels)
WheelMove 🇫🇷 (Healthcare): €1.5M (Rives Croissance, Bpifrance)
Edison IA 🇫🇷 (AI): €1M (Go Capital, CIC Ouest, Bpifrance)
Sovera Security 🇩🇰 (Cybersecurity): €535K (EIFO)
Kyndred 🇷🇴 (AI): €500K (Early Game Ventures)

Fund Watch

Bessemer Venture Partners 🇺🇸: $5.75B ($1.75B early-stage fund and $4B growth fund, closed)
Cheyne Capital 🇬🇧: $4B (9th European real estate credit strategy)
Siguler Guff 🇺🇸: $3B (US small buyout strategy)
Carlyle 🇺🇸: $2.3B (2nd infrastructure credit fund)
Schroders Capital 🇬🇧: $1.3B (4th flagship PE co-investment fund)
Princeton Equity Group 🇺🇸: $1.3B (Fund III, private equity fund focused on franchisors and multi-location businesses)
Clearlake Capital 🇺🇸: $1B (backed by private market fund stakes after collateral mix revamp)
Volition Capital 🇺🇸: $950M (6th growth equity fund)
DTCP 🇩🇪: €455M (new fund, backing Norwegian defense tech and expanding across the Nordics)
Crane Venture Partners 🇬🇧: $485M (four seed funds, building a global investment platform)
Fidelity Investments 🇺🇸: $450M (2nd real estate credit opportunities fund)
Rising Point 🇺🇸: $330M (debut fund, lower-middle-market private equity)
Friends & Family 🇺🇸: $300M (4th venture capital fund)
Zero Infinity Partners 🇺🇸: $156M (2nd infrastructure-tech VC fund)
Protego Ventures 🇮🇱: $125M (debut defense tech VC fund)
IronWave 🇫🇷: €105M (first close, growth fund for mature startups)
Dig Ventures 🇬🇧: $120M (3rd fund for early-stage European AI infrastructure startups)
Final Frontier 🇫🇮 & Myriad Defence 🇸🇪: €100M (Nordic defence tech fund, being built)
Sofinnova Partners 🇫🇷: €82M (Sofinnova MD Start IV, medtech venture fund, closed above target)
Lockheed Martin 🇺🇸: $25M (lead investor in Fortem Technologies’ $50M Series B)
BAG Ventures 🇺🇸: $11.3M (inaugural Fund I for enterprise AI startups, closed)
OWOW Venture Studio 🇳🇱: €2.65M (venture studio capital for B2B startups in traditional industries)

🔔IPO

ElevenLabs 🇬🇧 (AI): doubled its valuation to $22B through a $300M employee tender offer.
PayPo 🇵🇱 (Fintech): considering a Warsaw IPO at a valuation potentially exceeding PLN 2B.
Oura 🇸🇪 (Wearables): delayed its $2.2B US IPO despite being 4x oversubscribed.
RSM 🇺🇸 (Accounting): exploring a potential IPO to fund acquisitions and counter private equity-backed rivals.
Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing 🇨🇳 (Electronics): targeting a $2B-$3B Hong Kong IPO as soon as next month.
Dongshan Precision Manufacturing 🇨🇳 (Electronics): seeking to raise $2B-$3B in a Hong Kong listing.
RoboTechnik Intelligent Technology 🇨🇳 (Robotics): raised part of a combined $1.8B in Hong Kong listings.
Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages 🇮🇳 (Beverages): considering a December filing for a $1B IPO.
Ace Designers 🇮🇳 (Machinery): beginning talks for a $400M India IPO.
Standard Bank Angola 🇦🇴 (Banking): raised $225M from a 34% stake sale as Standard Bank increased its ownership to 75%.

🧳 Debt

Bulgaria 🇧🇬: sold $2.5B of bonds to plug its budget deficit.
SES 🇱🇺: raised €500M in senior unsecured notes due 2031.
Paramount Skydance 🇺🇸: agreed to issue $41.4B and €885M in senior secured notes and priced $8.5B and €850M in term loans.
Tesla 🇺🇸: lined up $30B in new credit facilities.
Citigroup 🇺🇸: led a $7.5B loan sale that drew $11.5B in demand.
Laos 🇱🇦: seeking a five-year senior unsecured dollar bond.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries 🇮🇳: plans to raise $1B local bonds to partly repay a bridge loan for its $12B acquisition of Organon.
Gujarat Themis Biosyn 🇮🇳: raised $60M private credit from Orion Capital Asia to acquire MicroBiopharm Japan.
Angola 🇦🇴: raised $224M from selling a 34% stake in Standard Bank Angola.

🇺🇸 United States

Phoenix Tower International 🇺🇸: secured a $2B debt facility from Ares.
Trinity Capital 🇺🇸: priced $350M of 7.50% notes due 2032.
Skylight 🇺🇸: expanded its credit facility to $75M.

❌ Failures

Girondins de Bordeaux 🇫🇷: agreed to a €1 sale to Park Bench, with the buyer assuming its debts and avoiding liquidation.
PHL Variable Insurance 🇺🇸: policyholders sued its owner for mismanagement amid a $2.2B shortfall and possible liquidation.
Brightline 🇺🇸: the bankrupt high-speed rail company, which owes creditors $1B, agreed to a balance-sheet restructuring deal.

🇺🇸 United States

Greggs 🇬🇧: plans to close four manufacturing sites, putting 740 jobs at risk.

🎯 For a Few More Minutes…

🇩🇪 Hell’s Assets. Authorities in Germany and neighboring countries seized €48.6M in property and issued multiple arrests in a crackdown on a Hells Angels-linked money laundering ring. (Die Zeit)
🇮🇹 Orange Is the New Black. Campari 🇮🇹 turned Aperol Spritz from a regional drink into a $900M global juggernaut, proving that marketing can outshine tradition every time. (Les Echos)
🇺🇸 Game of Nerves. The looming launch of Grand Theft Auto VI on November 19 has rival publishers scrambling to move their major releases up, hoping to avoid being steamrolled by Rockstar’s blockbuster. (Le Monde)
🇮🇩 Island Time. Anak Krakatau's latest eruption has added fresh islands to Indonesia's map, with nature doing the zoning and the building in one go. (Bloomberg)

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇺🇸 Shifting Blame. After a Cornell sophomore accused seven fraternity brothers of sexual assault, newly revealed Title IX documents show her struggle to be believed and her eventual decision to pursue justice in court. (New York Times)

🇺🇸 United States

🇺🇸 Shifting Blame. After a Cornell sophomore accused seven fraternity brothers of sexual assault, newly revealed Title IX documents show her struggle to be believed and her eventual decision to pursue justice in court. (New York Times)

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🗞️ Top Story

🇬🇧 Spy Hard. MI5 has warned UK universities to cut ties with a Chinese conglomerate accused of stealing sensitive research, putting cash-strapped institutions on high alert for espionage risks. (The Guardian)
🇬🇧 Blame Game. Andy Burnham points the finger at Iran for the RAF Fairford scare, but offers no evidence as the probe drags on and suspects walk free on bail. (New York Times)
🇬🇧 Polling Station. Senior Downing Street aides are canvassing experts and pollsters to see if rejoining the EU could fly with the public, hinting at a possible Labour pivot. (The Guardian)
🇬🇧 Hit Parade. Labour’s conference crowd is swept up by Andy Burnham’s heartfelt pitch, with ministers declaring themselves persuaded and the party basking in a rare moment of unity. (The Guardian)
🇷🇴 Majority Report. Romania’s parliament has rejected a second prime ministerial nominee, Siegfried Muresan, intensifying the political deadlock and raising the prospect of early elections. (Le Monde)
🇺🇦 Time Out. Ukraine loses nearly €40M for every hour work halts due to missile alerts, as Russian strikes force the economy into repeated standstills. (Libé)
🇷🇺 Broken Record. Alexander Kynev, known for denouncing Russia’s rigged elections, was beaten during detention and charged with drug possession in a move critics say is pure retaliation. (El Pais)
🇺🇸 Deal or No Deal. Trump insists no sanctions relief was offered to Iran, even as Tehran reviews a fresh proposal following discussions in Qatar. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Hot Take. Los Angeles and much of Southern California face a summer-style heat wave in October, with power demand and fire danger both set to spike. (Bloomberg)
🇧🇴 Law and Disorder. Bolivia’s attorney general Roger Mariaca was arrested after the US revoked his visa and accused him of cartel ties, bringing the country’s justice system into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. (Le Figaro)
🇰🇵 Weight Watcher. Kim Jong Un is reportedly "extremely obese" at more than 140 kg, yet South Korean officials say he remains physically active and medically monitored. (Le Parisien)
🇲🇦 Prime Time. Fatima Zahra El Mansouri becomes Morocco’s first female prime minister after her party’s election win, breaking a historic gender barrier in the country’s top office. (Washington Post)
🌍 Current Affairs. A new Green IT study warns that AI could emit six times more CO₂ in 2030 than in 2025, making its environmental footprint impossible to ignore. (Le Monde)

🏛️ Economy

🇬🇧 Mind the Gap. The UK economy slowed less than expected in Q2 2026, with GDP up 0.5% and household incomes finally moving in the right direction. (Boursier)
🇬🇧 Test Drive. Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey says regulating AI is premature, insisting rigorous testing should come first to expose risks before lawmakers jump in. (BBC)
🇬🇧 Growth Spurt. The UK’s GDP and household income figures for the first half of the year have been revised upward, giving John Healey a timely boost before the budget and prompting markets to celebrate the economy’s unexpected resilience. (The Guardian)
🇬🇧 Coal Comfort. A new report shows UK banks have pumped $8.3B into coal projects since Cop26, making Barclays 🇬🇧 and HSBC 🇬🇧 Europe’s most generous fossil backers. (The Guardian)
🇫🇷 OAT of Control. France's 10-year bond yield is set for its biggest quarterly jump since 1987, as surging rates and a ballooning deficit spook investors. (Boursier)
🇪🇺 Access All Areas. US tech giants like Google, Apple, and Amazon meet more often with policymakers than any European rival, buying themselves a front-row seat in Brussels’ rulemaking. (Financial Times)
🇪🇺 Trusted Issues. The UK wants “trusted partner” status for its industries under the EU’s new industrial rules, but Brussels is not buying the label just yet. (Les Echos)
🇺🇸 Core Values. The Fed’s preferred inflation gauge showed core inflation at 3.0% in August, coming in much lighter than economists had predicted and giving markets a rare sigh of relief. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Brain Drain. Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton calls "super intelligence" a national security issue but sidesteps questions about appointing an AI czar to oversee the risks. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 User Unfriendly. OpenAI and Anthropic face an FTC inquiry over alleged deceptive practices and consumer harm, as regulators finally ask who is really in control of these AI tools. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Leaving So Soon. Howard Lutnick’s annual filing shows $250M in income after joining the Trump administration, with most proceeds tied to businesses he was meant to exit. (CNBC)
🇰🇷 Chip Happens. South Korea’s monthly exports smashed the $120B mark in September, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix cashing in on global AI demand. (Wall Street Journal)
🇮🇷 Tanker Games. Oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz are rising thanks to shuttle tankers, even as US-Iran tensions keep the route far from stable. (Bloomberg)

🏢 Real Estate

🇬🇧 Current Affairs. The Environment Agency warns that 6M homes in England face flood risks this winter, but a third of residents have no idea. (The Guardian)
🇵🇹 Eviction Notice. Portugal’s parliament backs a bill to make it easier for landlords to evict tenants after two months of unpaid rent, lowering the threshold and scrapping deposit caps in the name of market flexibility. (Le Parisien)
🇸🇬 House Rules. Singapore's private home prices jumped 1.4% in Q3, the fastest pace since 2024, even as sales lost steam and buyers hesitated. (Bloomberg)
🇳🇿 Home Alone. New Zealand house prices have dropped to their lowest level since early 2021, extending a slump that is now dragging on the country’s economic recovery. (Bloomberg)

🔗 On-chain

🇪🇺 Licence to Bill. regulators are grilling Binance 🇨🇳 for continuing to serve European customers despite being ordered to wind down its business after failing to secure a licence. (Financial Times)
🇺🇸 Liquidity Theater. Observers suspect that Kalshi 🇺🇸 and Polymarket 🇺🇸 are showcasing impressive trading volumes that may mask inorganic activity, sparking debate over market integrity. (CNBC)

💱 Listed Markets

🇬🇧 Climate of Evasion. The FCA has dropped plans for compulsory climate disclosures, allowing UK-listed firms to skip detailed reporting if they provide an explanation, giving business lobbyists exactly what they asked for. (Financial Times)
🇫🇷 Quantum Leap. French quantum company Pasqal reports a 14% jump in revenue after its US listing, now sitting on €313M in cash to fuel expansion. (Siliconrepublic)
🇩🇪 Driving Local. BMW announces it will end its globalized production strategy and focus on regionalized manufacturing, blaming the new world order for putting up roadblocks. (Les Echos)
🇨🇭 Block Party. Banks led by Bank of America and Deutsche Bank added a rare "omniblocker" clause to the $3.2B Nestle Waters debt deal, shielding lenders from being sidelined by rival creditor groups. (Bloomberg)
🇺🇸 Patch Perfect. Google unveils Gemini 4 Argon, its most advanced AI yet, claiming it can autonomously find and fix critical software flaws better than any rival. (TechCrunch)
🇺🇸 Memory Lane. Micron 🇺🇸 posts soaring profit and revenue for Q4 as the global shortage of memory chips promises to keep cash flowing through 2028. (Wall Street Journal)
🇺🇸 Call of Duty. Options traders piled into Alphabet and Microsoft calls, betting $600M that the tech giants will break out to new highs soon. (CNBC)
🇯🇵 Red Flagged. Nidec 🇯🇵 posted a massive loss driven by a $4B write-down and a scandal that left auditors unimpressed and leadership scrambling for cover. (Wall Street Journal)

🛎️ Big Deals (M&A)

AstraZeneca 🇬🇧 is investing $2B in Summit Therapeutics 🇺🇸 to collaborate on a cancer medicine.
Shine 🇫🇷 acquires French fintech Libeo 🇫🇷, a supplier-invoice management and payment specialist, for an undisclosed amount.
Niji 🇫🇷 has completed its acquisition of AI specialist WITH Madrid 🇪🇸, effective September 1.
Credit Agricole 🇫🇷 is studying the acquisition of Banco BPM 🇮🇹, valued at $28B, after building a 30% stake.
Germany 🇩🇪 will block the sale of logistics firm Zippel 🇩🇪 to COSCO 🇨🇳.
EMERAM 🇩🇪 invests a double-digit €M amount in hello again 🇦🇹.
UniCredit 🇮🇹 is preparing to seize control of and overhaul the board of listed German lender Commerzbank 🇩🇪, valued at $50B, by January.
Asterion Industrial Partners 🇪🇸 and Teras Capital 🇪🇸 are exploring strategic options for their Olin Telecom joint venture.
RHI Magnesita 🇦🇹 has made a cash-and-stock takeover offer for Vesuvius 🇬🇧, valued at $1.5B and backed by activist investor Cevian Capital 🇸🇪.
Novo Nordisk 🇩🇰 acquired rights to an experimental obesity pill from Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals 🇨🇳 for $2.6B.
H. Lundbeck 🇩🇰 expressed interest in acquiring Xeris Biopharma 🇺🇸, a commercial-stage drugmaker valued at $1.8B.
UiPath 🇷🇴🇺🇸 has completed the acquisition of AI startup WorkFusion 🇺🇸 for nearly $190M, including $160M upfront and up to $30M in additional payments.
Pistachio 🇳🇴 acquires Hugin.io 🇳🇴 to add compliance management capabilities.
Stokke Industri 🇳🇴 is weighing a sale of Jets 🇳🇴 at a $530M valuation.
A U.S. federal judge 🇺🇸 approves the settlement between Paramount Skydance 🇺🇸 and twelve U.S. states over its $110B acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery 🇺🇸, including $300M in additional annual production spending commitments.
Salesforce 🇺🇸 has agreed to acquire AI consumer-interview company Listen Labs 🇺🇸. Financial terms were not disclosed.
H.I.G. Capital 🇺🇸 has completed the acquisition of UK safety equipment distributor Arco 🇬🇧.
Hormel Foods 🇺🇸 has agreed to acquire Brakebush Brothers 🇺🇸, a chicken products processor, for $1.055B.
Piper Sandler 🇺🇸 is in talks to merge with Perella Weinberg Partners 🇺🇸 in a $4.75B-$1.6B deal.
Ancora Holdings 🇺🇸 raised its cash bid for H.B. Fuller 🇺🇸's building adhesives unit to $1.4B.
Bain Capital 🇺🇸 will acquire a 25% stake in AI construction platform Kahua 🇺🇸 at a valuation above $1B.
Flashlight Capital Partners 🇺🇸 urges Secom 🇯🇵 to double its stakes in S-1 Corp. 🇰🇷 and Taiwan Secom 🇹🇼 after its earlier bid for an S-1 stake was rejected.
Exus Renewables 🇺🇸 acquired four large-scale solar projects from ibV Energy Partners 🇺🇸 in Louisiana and Wisconsin.
Trump Media & Technology Group 🇺🇸 has agreed to merge with TAE Technologies 🇺🇸. The deal is awaiting regulatory approval and is expected to close this year.
MGM Resorts International 🇺🇸 is exploring an offer for People Inc. 🇺🇸, which owns a 27% stake in MGM.
Shopify 🇨🇦 acquires the Shop.com domain from Market America 🇺🇸.
HCLSoftware 🇮🇳 intends to acquire 100% of Zagreb-based RPA company Robotiq.ai 🇭🇷 for €9M, with closing expected by November 2026.
Lynas Rare Earths 🇦🇺 has agreed to acquire Meteoric Resources 🇦🇺 for $672M.
Israel 🇮🇱 objected to Hapag-Lloyd 🇩🇪's $4.2B acquisition of ZIM Integrated Shipping Services 🇮🇱.

🧳 Private Markets & VC

🇬🇧 Pound for Pound. UK venture capital funds have equaled US long-term returns for the first time, while the latest generation of British funds outpaces both US and European peers. (EU-Startups)
🇬🇧 Blue Chip Slip. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham says he would be "really concerned" if Manchester City's owners sold the club after being found guilty of Premier League financial rule breaches, praising their investment in Manchester even as the fallout threatens to shake the club's future. (BBC)
🇳🇱 Fund and Games. Lux Capital is negotiating to lead a €200M round for Dutch defense startup Onodrim, aiming for a €1B unicorn valuation before the first missile is even built. (Bloomberg)
🇺🇸 Spy vs. Spy. Matan Grinberg alleges board adviser Chris Degnan shared confidential Factory info with competitor Cognition just before Degnan took a top job there, prompting a public war of words. (TechCrunch)
🇺🇸 Flavor of the Week. TypeSafe, the latest AI darling, is reportedly seeking $1B in new funding at a $10B valuation after its launch video went viral across Silicon Valley. (Les Echos)
🇺🇸 Terms of Enragement. OpenAI lands in court after its AI models are blamed for hacking Hugging Face, opening a new front in the battle over tech accountability. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Cash Out Loud. Employees at ElevenLabs 🇺🇸 can now sell shares at a $22B valuation, as the company doubles its price tag in just months. (TechCrunch)
🇸🇬 Fund and Games. Hao Dong, ex-GIC trader, is launching Windrise Capital and seeking up to $300M for a new hedge fund focused on commodities. The real play begins in 2027. (Bloomberg)

Fundraising

OpenAI 🇺🇸 (AI): $30B
Kalshi 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $1B (Tiger Global, Dragoneer)
Helix Digital Infrastructure 🇺🇸 (Infrastructure): $1B (Samsung and affiliates)
Modal Labs 🇺🇸 (AI): $750M (Accel)
Neko Health 🇸🇪 (Healthcare): $700M (Preface Ventures)
TXSE Group 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $430M (BlackRock, Charles Schwab, Citadel Securities, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America)
Kahua 🇺🇸 (AI): $250M (Bain Capital)
Varda Space 🇺🇸 (Space): $250M (Lux Capital, Natural Capital)
Onodrim 🇳🇱 (Defense): $230M (Lux Capital)
Reverion 🇩🇪 (Energy): $175M (Kembara, Allianz, KfW Capital, aurum Impact, Carbon Equity)
CScale 🇺🇸 (AI): $145M (Atreides Management, Valor Equity Partners, Premji Invest, Sutter Hill Ventures, Maverick Silicon, NVIDIA, Intel Capital)
Hertha Metals 🇺🇸 (Steel): $133M (Khosla Ventures, Doerr Capital)
Onomondo 🇩🇰 (IoT): Over €100M (Aspirity Partners, EIFO)
Jeeves 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $110M (CoinFund)
Efficient Computer 🇺🇸 (Semiconductors): $97M (TQ Ventures)
R1 Therapeutics 🇺🇸 (Biotech): $80.5M (Samsara BioCapital, Abingworth, DaVita Venture Group, F-Prime, Curie.Bio, SNMA Capital, U.S. Renal Care)
Metaview 🇺🇸 (AI): $60M (Insight Partners, GV, Intrepid Growth Partners, Seedcamp, Vertex Ventures US, Plural, Garuda Ventures)
Flow Engineering 🇺🇸 (Hardware): $50M (Antonio Gracias, Gavin Baker, Sequoia Capital, Human Capital, Evantic, SV Angel, Odyssey, EQT, Thomas Wolf, Jonas von Malottki, Nico Rosberg, Roelof Botha)
Aptadir Therapeutics 🇮🇹 (Biotech): €40M (4BIO Capital, EXTEND, CDP Venture Capital, Indaco Venture Partners, XGEN Venture, CE-Ventures, Kerna Ventures, Angelini Ventures, Italian Angels for Biotech, Club degli Investitori)
Miter 🇺🇸 (Construction): $40M (Battery Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, Coatue)
Relay 🇺🇸 (Industrial tech): $36M (International Paper, Cerity Partners, Harmonic Growth Partners, Thayer Investment Partners, G2 Venture Partners, Wind River Ventures)
OuterSignal 🇺🇸 (AI): $22M (Long Journey Ventures, Abstract Ventures, BAM Ventures, Top Shelf Ventures, SuperAngel.Fund, AME Cloud Ventures)
Restate 🇩🇪 (AI): $20M (Singular, Redpoint Ventures, Capital One Ventures)
Ascerta 🇺🇸 (AI): $18M (Dell Technologies Capital)
LUPIN DENTAL 🇫🇷 (Healthcare): €15M
IPercept 🇸🇪 (Industrial tech): $16.5M (Isogon Ventures, 2150)
Inbolt 🇫🇷 (Robotics): €11M (Shift4Good, Bridges Climate Transition Partners, BNP Paribas Développement, Ora Global)
Atomic 🇺🇸 (Supply chain): $12.5M (Klass Capital, Madrona)
Rig Security 🇮🇱 (Cybersecurity): $12M (Ten Eleven Ventures, Brightmind Partners)
Kanu AI 🇺🇸 (AI): $11.7M (Trilogy Equity Partners, a16z speedrun, BMW i Ventures, Accel)
Zenithon AI 🇬🇧 (AI): $10M (Backed VC, Lunar Ventures, Seraphim Space, MMC Ventures, SOSV)
AlgoX2 🇺🇸 (Data): $10M (Bessemer Venture Partners, Fin Capital, Alumni Ventures, Somersault Ventures, Octave, Motivate VC, AAL VC)
Astrocyte Pharmaceuticals 🇺🇸 (Biotech): $9.5M (DeepWork Capital, MintPharma Capital, Waterstar Capital, Dynagrow Capital, Angel Star Ventures)
MARBLE 🇫🇷 (Fintech): €6.5M (SMARTFIN, ADNEXUS, PASSION CAPITAL, 42CAPITAL)
Beltic 🇺🇸 (AI): $7.3M (Norwest, Restive Ventures, Oxford Seed Fund, Collide Capital)
HiringCafe (AI): $6.8M
Kানurra 🇺🇸 (Healthcare): $6.5M (Necessary Ventures, Asylum Ventures, Daybreak Ventures, Virtue VC, Ford Street Ventures, Browder Capital)
Charter Space 🇺🇸 (Insurtech): $5M (Crystal Venture Partners, QED, Blank Ventures, Hustle Fund, Gaingels)
Tangent Robotics 🇺🇸 (Robotics): $4.5M (Fly Ventures, Toyota Ventures, Logos Fund, Sparked Ventures)
52North 🇬🇧 (Healthcare): £3.2M (Macmillan Ventures, Hargreave Hale AIM VCT, Cedars Sinai Intellectual Property Company, Cancer Research Horizons, University of Cambridge, OKG Capital, Innovate UK)
Arkivia 🇸🇪 (Legal tech): SEK 40M (Tobii founder, Sven Hagströmer)
mPay 🇵🇱 (Fintech): PLN 15M
Kontext 🇩🇪 (Cybersecurity): $4M (42CAP, a16z CSX, HTGF)
Quotr 🇺🇸 (Proptech): $4M (Llama Ventures, strategic angel investors)
Blue Health Intelligence 🇳🇱 (HealthTech): €3.4M (Knop Investments, Jeroen Tas, Anna Nooshin)
NOX Energy 🇧🇪 (Energy): €3M
Unknown 🇸🇪: €3M
IOPOLE 🇫🇷 (Fintech): €3M (IRDI Capital Investissement, SOFILARO)
Blackswan Space 🇱🇹 (Space): €2.5M (Iron Wolf Capital, Lemonade Stand, Linas Sargautis, NGL Ventures, Tomas Žalandauskas)
froots 🇦🇹 (WealthTech): €2.25M (Andreas Treichl, Reinhold Baudisch, Paul Fattinger)
Ahron 🇩🇪 (HR tech): €2.2M (Cusp Capital, superangels, business angels)
KHOY 🇫🇮 (Furniture): €2M (Virta Equity, Innovestor, angel investors)
ANote Music 🇱🇺 (Music): €2M (Seventure Partners, ScaleFund)
Tryp.com 🇩🇰 (Traveltech): €1.9M (Point Capital Partners, Iberis Capital, angel investors)
Unnamed startup 🇪🇪🇺🇦 (Defensetech): $2.1M
DOD Solution 🇪🇪 (DefenceTech): €1.8M (Angel One Fund, Better Angle, Defence Builder Fund, Network VC, Newfund, UAID Fund, WildField Ventures)
Tenoro 🇪🇸 (AI): €1.7M (Plus Partners, Bynd, Soldiers Field, business angels)
WheelMove 🇫🇷 (Healthcare): €1.5M (Rives Croissance, Bpifrance)
Edison IA 🇫🇷 (AI): €1M (Go Capital, CIC Ouest, Bpifrance)
Sovera Security 🇩🇰 (Cybersecurity): €535K (EIFO)
Kyndred 🇷🇴 (AI): €500K (Early Game Ventures)

Fund Watch

Bessemer Venture Partners 🇺🇸: $5.75B ($1.75B early-stage fund and $4B growth fund, closed)
Cheyne Capital 🇬🇧: $4B (9th European real estate credit strategy)
Siguler Guff 🇺🇸: $3B (US small buyout strategy)
Carlyle 🇺🇸: $2.3B (2nd infrastructure credit fund)
Schroders Capital 🇬🇧: $1.3B (4th flagship PE co-investment fund)
Princeton Equity Group 🇺🇸: $1.3B (Fund III, private equity fund focused on franchisors and multi-location businesses)
Clearlake Capital 🇺🇸: $1B (backed by private market fund stakes after collateral mix revamp)
Volition Capital 🇺🇸: $950M (6th growth equity fund)
DTCP 🇩🇪: €455M (new fund, backing Norwegian defense tech and expanding across the Nordics)
Crane Venture Partners 🇬🇧: $485M (four seed funds, building a global investment platform)
Fidelity Investments 🇺🇸: $450M (2nd real estate credit opportunities fund)
Rising Point 🇺🇸: $330M (debut fund, lower-middle-market private equity)
Friends & Family 🇺🇸: $300M (4th venture capital fund)
Zero Infinity Partners 🇺🇸: $156M (2nd infrastructure-tech VC fund)
Protego Ventures 🇮🇱: $125M (debut defense tech VC fund)
IronWave 🇫🇷: €105M (first close, growth fund for mature startups)
Dig Ventures 🇬🇧: $120M (3rd fund for early-stage European AI infrastructure startups)
Final Frontier 🇫🇮 & Myriad Defence 🇸🇪: €100M (Nordic defence tech fund, being built)
Sofinnova Partners 🇫🇷: €82M (Sofinnova MD Start IV, medtech venture fund, closed above target)
Lockheed Martin 🇺🇸: $25M (lead investor in Fortem Technologies’ $50M Series B)
BAG Ventures 🇺🇸: $11.3M (inaugural Fund I for enterprise AI startups, closed)
OWOW Venture Studio 🇳🇱: €2.65M (venture studio capital for B2B startups in traditional industries)

🔔IPO

ElevenLabs 🇬🇧 (AI): doubled its valuation to $22B through a $300M employee tender offer.
PayPo 🇵🇱 (Fintech): considering a Warsaw IPO at a valuation potentially exceeding PLN 2B.
Oura 🇸🇪 (Wearables): delayed its $2.2B US IPO despite being 4x oversubscribed.
RSM 🇺🇸 (Accounting): exploring a potential IPO to fund acquisitions and counter private equity-backed rivals.
Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing 🇨🇳 (Electronics): targeting a $2B-$3B Hong Kong IPO as soon as next month.
Dongshan Precision Manufacturing 🇨🇳 (Electronics): seeking to raise $2B-$3B in a Hong Kong listing.
RoboTechnik Intelligent Technology 🇨🇳 (Robotics): raised part of a combined $1.8B in Hong Kong listings.
Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages 🇮🇳 (Beverages): considering a December filing for a $1B IPO.
Ace Designers 🇮🇳 (Machinery): beginning talks for a $400M India IPO.
Standard Bank Angola 🇦🇴 (Banking): raised $225M from a 34% stake sale as Standard Bank increased its ownership to 75%.

🧳 Debt

Bulgaria 🇧🇬: sold $2.5B of bonds to plug its budget deficit.
SES 🇱🇺: raised €500M in senior unsecured notes due 2031.
Paramount Skydance 🇺🇸: agreed to issue $41.4B and €885M in senior secured notes and priced $8.5B and €850M in term loans.
Tesla 🇺🇸: lined up $30B in new credit facilities.
Citigroup 🇺🇸: led a $7.5B loan sale that drew $11.5B in demand.
Laos 🇱🇦: seeking a five-year senior unsecured dollar bond.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries 🇮🇳: plans to raise $1B local bonds to partly repay a bridge loan for its $12B acquisition of Organon.
Gujarat Themis Biosyn 🇮🇳: raised $60M private credit from Orion Capital Asia to acquire MicroBiopharm Japan.
Angola 🇦🇴: raised $224M from selling a 34% stake in Standard Bank Angola.

❌ Failures

Girondins de Bordeaux 🇫🇷: agreed to a €1 sale to Park Bench, with the buyer assuming its debts and avoiding liquidation.
PHL Variable Insurance 🇺🇸: policyholders sued its owner for mismanagement amid a $2.2B shortfall and possible liquidation.
Brightline 🇺🇸: the bankrupt high-speed rail company, which owes creditors $1B, agreed to a balance-sheet restructuring deal.

🎯 For a Few More Minutes…

🇩🇪 Hell’s Assets. Authorities in Germany and neighboring countries seized €48.6M in property and issued multiple arrests in a crackdown on a Hells Angels-linked money laundering ring. (Die Zeit)
🇮🇹 Orange Is the New Black. Campari 🇮🇹 turned Aperol Spritz from a regional drink into a $900M global juggernaut, proving that marketing can outshine tradition every time. (Les Echos)
🇺🇸 Shifting Blame. After a Cornell sophomore accused seven fraternity brothers of sexual assault, newly revealed Title IX documents show her struggle to be believed and her eventual decision to pursue justice in court. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Game of Nerves. The looming launch of Grand Theft Auto VI on November 19 has rival publishers scrambling to move their major releases up, hoping to avoid being steamrolled by Rockstar’s blockbuster. (Le Monde)
🇮🇩 Island Time. Anak Krakatau's latest eruption has added fresh islands to Indonesia's map, with nature doing the zoning and the building in one go. (Bloomberg)

Good morning!

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🗞️ Top Story

🇺🇸 Red Alert. Trump’s midterm campaign schedule skips swing states in favor of Republican strongholds, signaling even MAGA country needs a morale boost this year. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 PAC to the Future. OpenAI president Greg Brockman has quietly withdrawn a promised $25M donation to the Leading the Future super PAC, as AI lobbying faces mounting backlash. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Deal or No Deal. Trump insists no sanctions relief was offered to Iran, even as Tehran reviews a fresh proposal following discussions in Qatar. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Hot Take. Los Angeles and much of Southern California face a summer-style heat wave in October, with power demand and fire danger both set to spike. (Bloomberg)
🇧🇴 Law and Disorder. Bolivia’s attorney general Roger Mariaca was arrested after the US revoked his visa and accused him of cartel ties, bringing the country’s justice system into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. (Le Figaro)
🇷🇴 Majority Report. Romania’s parliament has rejected a second prime ministerial nominee, Siegfried Muresan, intensifying the political deadlock and raising the prospect of early elections. (Le Monde)
🇬🇧 Spy Hard. MI5 has warned UK universities to cut ties with a Chinese conglomerate accused of stealing sensitive research, putting cash-strapped institutions on high alert for espionage risks. (The Guardian)
🇬🇧 Blame Game. Andy Burnham points the finger at Iran for the RAF Fairford scare, but offers no evidence as the probe drags on and suspects walk free on bail. (New York Times)
🇬🇧 Polling Station. Senior Downing Street aides are canvassing experts and pollsters to see if rejoining the EU could fly with the public, hinting at a possible Labour pivot. (The Guardian)
🇺🇦 Time Out. Ukraine loses nearly €40M for every hour work halts due to missile alerts, as Russian strikes force the economy into repeated standstills. (Libé)
🇷🇺 Broken Record. Alexander Kynev, known for denouncing Russia’s rigged elections, was beaten during detention and charged with drug possession in a move critics say is pure retaliation. (El Pais)
🇰🇵 Weight Watcher. Kim Jong Un is reportedly "extremely obese" at more than 140 kg, yet South Korean officials say he remains physically active and medically monitored. (Le Parisien)
🇲🇦 Prime Time. Fatima Zahra El Mansouri becomes Morocco’s first female prime minister after her party’s election win, breaking a historic gender barrier in the country’s top office. (Washington Post)
🌍 Current Affairs. A new Green IT study warns that AI could emit six times more CO₂ in 2030 than in 2025, making its environmental footprint impossible to ignore. (Le Monde)

🏛️ Economy

🇺🇸 Fee to Believe. The SEC proposes letting retail funds charge performance fees as it pushes to open private markets to everyday investors, promising access with a price tag. (Financial Times)
🇺🇸 Audit and Peace. Scott Bessent, now Treasury Secretary, has settled with the IRS after years of using a hedge fund maneuver to dodge nearly $1M in Medicare taxes. The Senate can officially stop clutching its pearls. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Core Values. The Fed’s preferred inflation gauge showed core inflation at 3.0% in August, coming in much lighter than economists had predicted and giving markets a rare sigh of relief. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Brain Drain. Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton calls "super intelligence" a national security issue but sidesteps questions about appointing an AI czar to oversee the risks. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 User Unfriendly. OpenAI and Anthropic face an FTC inquiry over alleged deceptive practices and consumer harm, as regulators finally ask who is really in control of these AI tools. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Insider Farce. The Senate killed a Republican bill to curb congressional stock trading, with Democrats labeling it a hollow gesture that dodges the real ban voters want. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Leaving So Soon. Howard Lutnick’s annual filing shows $250M in income after joining the Trump administration, with most proceeds tied to businesses he was meant to exit. (CNBC)
🇫🇷 OAT of Control. France's 10-year bond yield is set for its biggest quarterly jump since 1987, as surging rates and a ballooning deficit spook investors. (Boursier)
🇪🇺 Access All Areas. US tech giants like Google, Apple, and Amazon meet more often with policymakers than any European rival, buying themselves a front-row seat in Brussels’ rulemaking. (Financial Times)
🇪🇺 Trusted Issues. The UK wants “trusted partner” status for its industries under the EU’s new industrial rules, but Brussels is not buying the label just yet. (Les Echos)
🇬🇧 Mind the Gap. The UK economy slowed less than expected in Q2 2026, with GDP up 0.5% and household incomes finally moving in the right direction. (Boursier)
🇬🇧 Test Drive. Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey says regulating AI is premature, insisting rigorous testing should come first to expose risks before lawmakers jump in. (BBC)
🇬🇧 Coal Comfort. A new report shows UK banks have pumped $8.3B into coal projects since Cop26, making Barclays 🇬🇧 and HSBC 🇬🇧 Europe’s most generous fossil backers. (The Guardian)
🇰🇷 Chip Happens. South Korea’s monthly exports smashed the $120B mark in September, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix cashing in on global AI demand. (Wall Street Journal)
🇮🇷 Tanker Games. Oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz are rising thanks to shuttle tankers, even as US-Iran tensions keep the route far from stable. (Bloomberg)

🏢 Real Estate

🇺🇸 Fixed Anxiety. mortgage rates have climbed for the sixth week in a row, putting the brakes on both refinancing and homebuyer demand as affordability shrinks again. (CNBC)
🇵🇹 Eviction Notice. Portugal’s parliament backs a bill to make it easier for landlords to evict tenants after two months of unpaid rent, lowering the threshold and scrapping deposit caps in the name of market flexibility. (Le Parisien)
🇸🇬 House Rules. Singapore's private home prices jumped 1.4% in Q3, the fastest pace since 2024, even as sales lost steam and buyers hesitated. (Bloomberg)
🇳🇿 Home Alone. New Zealand house prices have dropped to their lowest level since early 2021, extending a slump that is now dragging on the country’s economic recovery. (Bloomberg)

🔗 On-chain

🇺🇸 Liquidity Theater. Observers suspect that Kalshi 🇺🇸 and Polymarket 🇺🇸 are showcasing impressive trading volumes that may mask inorganic activity, sparking debate over market integrity. (CNBC)
🇪🇺 Licence to Bill. regulators are grilling Binance 🇨🇳 for continuing to serve European customers despite being ordered to wind down its business after failing to secure a licence. (Financial Times)

💱 Listed Markets

🇺🇸 Patch Perfect. Google unveils Gemini 4 Argon, its most advanced AI yet, claiming it can autonomously find and fix critical software flaws better than any rival. (TechCrunch)
🇺🇸 Memory Lane. Micron 🇺🇸 posts soaring profit and revenue for Q4 as the global shortage of memory chips promises to keep cash flowing through 2028. (Wall Street Journal)
🇺🇸 Call of Duty. Options traders piled into Alphabet and Microsoft calls, betting $600M that the tech giants will break out to new highs soon. (CNBC)
🇫🇷 Quantum Leap. French quantum company Pasqal reports a 14% jump in revenue after its US listing, now sitting on €313M in cash to fuel expansion. (Siliconrepublic)
🇩🇪 Driving Local. BMW announces it will end its globalized production strategy and focus on regionalized manufacturing, blaming the new world order for putting up roadblocks. (Les Echos)
🇨🇭 Block Party. Banks led by Bank of America and Deutsche Bank added a rare "omniblocker" clause to the $3.2B Nestle Waters debt deal, shielding lenders from being sidelined by rival creditor groups. (Bloomberg)
🇯🇵 Red Flagged. Nidec 🇯🇵 posted a massive loss driven by a $4B write-down and a scandal that left auditors unimpressed and leadership scrambling for cover. (Wall Street Journal)

🛎️ Big Deals (M&A)

A U.S. federal judge 🇺🇸 approves the settlement between Paramount Skydance 🇺🇸 and twelve U.S. states over its $110B acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery 🇺🇸, including $300M in additional annual production spending commitments.
Salesforce 🇺🇸 has agreed to acquire AI consumer-interview company Listen Labs 🇺🇸. Financial terms were not disclosed.
H.I.G. Capital 🇺🇸 has completed the acquisition of UK safety equipment distributor Arco 🇬🇧.
Hormel Foods 🇺🇸 has agreed to acquire Brakebush Brothers 🇺🇸, a chicken products processor, for $1.055B.
Evolution Equity Partners 🇺🇸 announces a strategic growth investment in Aurachain 🇨🇭.
Piper Sandler 🇺🇸 is in talks to merge with Perella Weinberg Partners 🇺🇸 in a $4.75B-$1.6B deal.
Ancora Holdings 🇺🇸 raised its cash bid for H.B. Fuller 🇺🇸's building adhesives unit to $1.4B.
Bain Capital 🇺🇸 will acquire a 25% stake in AI construction platform Kahua 🇺🇸 at a valuation above $1B.
Flashlight Capital Partners 🇺🇸 urges Secom 🇯🇵 to double its stakes in S-1 Corp. 🇰🇷 and Taiwan Secom 🇹🇼 after its earlier bid for an S-1 stake was rejected.
Exus Renewables 🇺🇸 acquired four large-scale solar projects from ibV Energy Partners 🇺🇸 in Louisiana and Wisconsin.
Trump Media & Technology Group 🇺🇸 has agreed to merge with TAE Technologies 🇺🇸. The deal is awaiting regulatory approval and is expected to close this year.
MGM Resorts International 🇺🇸 is exploring an offer for People Inc. 🇺🇸, which owns a 27% stake in MGM.
Shopify 🇨🇦 acquires the Shop.com domain from Market America 🇺🇸.
Shine 🇫🇷 acquires French fintech Libeo 🇫🇷, a supplier-invoice management and payment specialist, for an undisclosed amount.
Niji 🇫🇷 has completed its acquisition of AI specialist WITH Madrid 🇪🇸, effective September 1.
Credit Agricole 🇫🇷 is studying the acquisition of Banco BPM 🇮🇹, valued at $28B, after building a 30% stake.
Germany 🇩🇪 will block the sale of logistics firm Zippel 🇩🇪 to COSCO 🇨🇳.
EMERAM 🇩🇪 invests a double-digit €M amount in hello again 🇦🇹.
UniCredit 🇮🇹 is preparing to seize control of and overhaul the board of listed German lender Commerzbank 🇩🇪, valued at $50B, by January.
Asterion Industrial Partners 🇪🇸 and Teras Capital 🇪🇸 are exploring strategic options for their Olin Telecom joint venture.
RHI Magnesita 🇦🇹 has made a cash-and-stock takeover offer for Vesuvius 🇬🇧, valued at $1.5B and backed by activist investor Cevian Capital 🇸🇪.
Novo Nordisk 🇩🇰 acquired rights to an experimental obesity pill from Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals 🇨🇳 for $2.6B.
H. Lundbeck 🇩🇰 expressed interest in acquiring Xeris Biopharma 🇺🇸, a commercial-stage drugmaker valued at $1.8B.
UiPath 🇷🇴🇺🇸 has completed the acquisition of AI startup WorkFusion 🇺🇸 for nearly $190M, including $160M upfront and up to $30M in additional payments.
AstraZeneca 🇬🇧 is investing $2B in Summit Therapeutics 🇺🇸 to collaborate on a cancer medicine.
Pistachio 🇳🇴 acquires Hugin.io 🇳🇴 to add compliance management capabilities.
Stokke Industri 🇳🇴 is weighing a sale of Jets 🇳🇴 at a $530M valuation.
HCLSoftware 🇮🇳 intends to acquire 100% of Zagreb-based RPA company Robotiq.ai 🇭🇷 for €9M, with closing expected by November 2026.
Lynas Rare Earths 🇦🇺 has agreed to acquire Meteoric Resources 🇦🇺 for $672M.
Israel 🇮🇱 objected to Hapag-Lloyd 🇩🇪's $4.2B acquisition of ZIM Integrated Shipping Services 🇮🇱.

🧳 Private Markets & VC

🇺🇸 Spy vs. Spy. Matan Grinberg alleges board adviser Chris Degnan shared confidential Factory info with competitor Cognition just before Degnan took a top job there, prompting a public war of words. (TechCrunch)
🇺🇸 Flavor of the Week. TypeSafe, the latest AI darling, is reportedly seeking $1B in new funding at a $10B valuation after its launch video went viral across Silicon Valley. (Les Echos)
🇺🇸 Heavy Metal. The Pentagon puts $65M into Hertha Metals, betting the startup can break China’s grip on high-purity iron for critical defense magnets. (Wall Street Journal)
🇺🇸 Terms of Enragement. OpenAI lands in court after its AI models are blamed for hacking Hugging Face, opening a new front in the battle over tech accountability. (CNBC)
🇺🇸 Cash Out Loud. Employees at ElevenLabs 🇺🇸 can now sell shares at a $22B valuation, as the company doubles its price tag in just months. (TechCrunch)
🇳🇱 Fund and Games. Lux Capital is negotiating to lead a €200M round for Dutch defense startup Onodrim, aiming for a €1B unicorn valuation before the first missile is even built. (Bloomberg)
🇬🇧 Pound for Pound. UK venture capital funds have equaled US long-term returns for the first time, while the latest generation of British funds outpaces both US and European peers. (EU-Startups)
🇸🇬 Fund and Games. Hao Dong, ex-GIC trader, is launching Windrise Capital and seeking up to $300M for a new hedge fund focused on commodities. The real play begins in 2027. (Bloomberg)

Fundraising

OpenAI 🇺🇸 (AI): $30B
Kalshi 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $1B (Tiger Global, Dragoneer)
Helix Digital Infrastructure 🇺🇸 (Infrastructure): $1B (Samsung and affiliates)
Modal Labs 🇺🇸 (AI): $750M (Accel)
Neko Health 🇸🇪 (Healthcare): $700M (Preface Ventures)
TXSE Group 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $430M (BlackRock, Charles Schwab, Citadel Securities, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America)
Kahua 🇺🇸 (AI): $250M (Bain Capital)
Varda Space 🇺🇸 (Space): $250M (Lux Capital, Natural Capital)
Onodrim 🇳🇱 (Defense): $230M (Lux Capital)
Reverion 🇩🇪 (Energy): $175M (Kembara, Allianz, KfW Capital, aurum Impact, Carbon Equity)
CScale 🇺🇸 (AI): $145M (Atreides Management, Valor Equity Partners, Premji Invest, Sutter Hill Ventures, Maverick Silicon, NVIDIA, Intel Capital)
Hertha Metals 🇺🇸 (Steel): $133M (Khosla Ventures, Doerr Capital)
Onomondo 🇩🇰 (IoT): Over €100M (Aspirity Partners, EIFO)
Jeeves 🇺🇸 (Fintech): $110M (CoinFund)
Efficient Computer 🇺🇸 (Semiconductors): $97M (TQ Ventures)
R1 Therapeutics 🇺🇸 (Biotech): $80.5M (Samsara BioCapital, Abingworth, DaVita Venture Group, F-Prime, Curie.Bio, SNMA Capital, U.S. Renal Care)
Metaview 🇺🇸 (AI): $60M (Insight Partners, GV, Intrepid Growth Partners, Seedcamp, Vertex Ventures US, Plural, Garuda Ventures)
Flow Engineering 🇺🇸 (Hardware): $50M (Antonio Gracias, Gavin Baker, Sequoia Capital, Human Capital, Evantic, SV Angel, Odyssey, EQT, Thomas Wolf, Jonas von Malottki, Nico Rosberg, Roelof Botha)
Aptadir Therapeutics 🇮🇹 (Biotech): €40M (4BIO Capital, EXTEND, CDP Venture Capital, Indaco Venture Partners, XGEN Venture, CE-Ventures, Kerna Ventures, Angelini Ventures, Italian Angels for Biotech, Club degli Investitori)
Miter 🇺🇸 (Construction): $40M (Battery Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, Coatue)
Relay 🇺🇸 (Industrial tech): $36M (International Paper, Cerity Partners, Harmonic Growth Partners, Thayer Investment Partners, G2 Venture Partners, Wind River Ventures)
OuterSignal 🇺🇸 (AI): $22M (Long Journey Ventures, Abstract Ventures, BAM Ventures, Top Shelf Ventures, SuperAngel.Fund, AME Cloud Ventures)
Restate 🇩🇪 (AI): $20M (Singular, Redpoint Ventures, Capital One Ventures)
Ascerta 🇺🇸 (AI): $18M (Dell Technologies Capital)
LUPIN DENTAL 🇫🇷 (Healthcare): €15M
IPercept 🇸🇪 (Industrial tech): $16.5M (Isogon Ventures, 2150)
Inbolt 🇫🇷 (Robotics): €11M (Shift4Good, Bridges Climate Transition Partners, BNP Paribas Développement, Ora Global)
Atomic 🇺🇸 (Supply chain): $12.5M (Klass Capital, Madrona)
Rig Security 🇮🇱 (Cybersecurity): $12M (Ten Eleven Ventures, Brightmind Partners)
Kanu AI 🇺🇸 (AI): $11.7M (Trilogy Equity Partners, a16z speedrun, BMW i Ventures, Accel)
Zenithon AI 🇬🇧 (AI): $10M (Backed VC, Lunar Ventures, Seraphim Space, MMC Ventures, SOSV)
AlgoX2 🇺🇸 (Data): $10M (Bessemer Venture Partners, Fin Capital, Alumni Ventures, Somersault Ventures, Octave, Motivate VC, AAL VC)
Astrocyte Pharmaceuticals 🇺🇸 (Biotech): $9.5M (DeepWork Capital, MintPharma Capital, Waterstar Capital, Dynagrow Capital, Angel Star Ventures)
MARBLE 🇫🇷 (Fintech): €6.5M (SMARTFIN, ADNEXUS, PASSION CAPITAL, 42CAPITAL)
Beltic 🇺🇸 (AI): $7.3M (Norwest, Restive Ventures, Oxford Seed Fund, Collide Capital)
HiringCafe (AI): $6.8M
Kানurra 🇺🇸 (Healthcare): $6.5M (Necessary Ventures, Asylum Ventures, Daybreak Ventures, Virtue VC, Ford Street Ventures, Browder Capital)
Charter Space 🇺🇸 (Insurtech): $5M (Crystal Venture Partners, QED, Blank Ventures, Hustle Fund, Gaingels)
Tangent Robotics 🇺🇸 (Robotics): $4.5M (Fly Ventures, Toyota Ventures, Logos Fund, Sparked Ventures)
52North 🇬🇧 (Healthcare): £3.2M (Macmillan Ventures, Hargreave Hale AIM VCT, Cedars Sinai Intellectual Property Company, Cancer Research Horizons, University of Cambridge, OKG Capital, Innovate UK)
Arkivia 🇸🇪 (Legal tech): SEK 40M (Tobii founder, Sven Hagströmer)
mPay 🇵🇱 (Fintech): PLN 15M
Kontext 🇩🇪 (Cybersecurity): $4M (42CAP, a16z CSX, HTGF)
Quotr 🇺🇸 (Proptech): $4M (Llama Ventures, strategic angel investors)
Blue Health Intelligence 🇳🇱 (HealthTech): €3.4M (Knop Investments, Jeroen Tas, Anna Nooshin)
NOX Energy 🇧🇪 (Energy): €3M
Unknown 🇸🇪: €3M
IOPOLE 🇫🇷 (Fintech): €3M (IRDI Capital Investissement, SOFILARO)
Blackswan Space 🇱🇹 (Space): €2.5M (Iron Wolf Capital, Lemonade Stand, Linas Sargautis, NGL Ventures, Tomas Žalandauskas)
froots 🇦🇹 (WealthTech): €2.25M (Andreas Treichl, Reinhold Baudisch, Paul Fattinger)
Ahron 🇩🇪 (HR tech): €2.2M (Cusp Capital, superangels, business angels)
KHOY 🇫🇮 (Furniture): €2M (Virta Equity, Innovestor, angel investors)
ANote Music 🇱🇺 (Music): €2M (Seventure Partners, ScaleFund)
Tryp.com 🇩🇰 (Traveltech): €1.9M (Point Capital Partners, Iberis Capital, angel investors)
Unnamed startup 🇪🇪🇺🇦 (Defensetech): $2.1M
DOD Solution 🇪🇪 (DefenceTech): €1.8M (Angel One Fund, Better Angle, Defence Builder Fund, Network VC, Newfund, UAID Fund, WildField Ventures)
Tenoro 🇪🇸 (AI): €1.7M (Plus Partners, Bynd, Soldiers Field, business angels)
WheelMove 🇫🇷 (Healthcare): €1.5M (Rives Croissance, Bpifrance)
Edison IA 🇫🇷 (AI): €1M (Go Capital, CIC Ouest, Bpifrance)
Sovera Security 🇩🇰 (Cybersecurity): €535K (EIFO)
Kyndred 🇷🇴 (AI): €500K (Early Game Ventures)

Fund Watch

Bessemer Venture Partners 🇺🇸: $5.75B ($1.75B early-stage fund and $4B growth fund, closed)
Cheyne Capital 🇬🇧: $4B (9th European real estate credit strategy)
Siguler Guff 🇺🇸: $3B (US small buyout strategy)
Carlyle 🇺🇸: $2.3B (2nd infrastructure credit fund)
Schroders Capital 🇬🇧: $1.3B (4th flagship PE co-investment fund)
Princeton Equity Group 🇺🇸: $1.3B (Fund III, private equity fund focused on franchisors and multi-location businesses)
Clearlake Capital 🇺🇸: $1B (backed by private market fund stakes after collateral mix revamp)
Volition Capital 🇺🇸: $950M (6th growth equity fund)
DTCP 🇩🇪: €455M (new fund, backing Norwegian defense tech and expanding across the Nordics)
Crane Venture Partners 🇬🇧: $485M (four seed funds, building a global investment platform)
Fidelity Investments 🇺🇸: $450M (2nd real estate credit opportunities fund)
Rising Point 🇺🇸: $330M (debut fund, lower-middle-market private equity)
Friends & Family 🇺🇸: $300M (4th venture capital fund)
Zero Infinity Partners 🇺🇸: $156M (2nd infrastructure-tech VC fund)
Protego Ventures 🇮🇱: $125M (debut defense tech VC fund)
IronWave 🇫🇷: €105M (first close, growth fund for mature startups)
Dig Ventures 🇬🇧: $120M (3rd fund for early-stage European AI infrastructure startups)
Final Frontier 🇫🇮 & Myriad Defence 🇸🇪: €100M (Nordic defence tech fund, being built)
Sofinnova Partners 🇫🇷: €82M (Sofinnova MD Start IV, medtech venture fund, closed above target)
Lockheed Martin 🇺🇸: $25M (lead investor in Fortem Technologies’ $50M Series B)
BAG Ventures 🇺🇸: $11.3M (inaugural Fund I for enterprise AI startups, closed)
OWOW Venture Studio 🇳🇱: €2.65M (venture studio capital for B2B startups in traditional industries)

🔔IPO

RSM 🇺🇸 (Accounting): exploring a potential IPO to fund acquisitions and counter private equity-backed rivals.
PayPo 🇵🇱 (Fintech): considering a Warsaw IPO at a valuation potentially exceeding PLN 2B.
Oura 🇸🇪 (Wearables): delayed its $2.2B US IPO despite being 4x oversubscribed.
ElevenLabs 🇬🇧 (AI): doubled its valuation to $22B through a $300M employee tender offer.
Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing 🇨🇳 (Electronics): targeting a $2B-$3B Hong Kong IPO as soon as next month.
Dongshan Precision Manufacturing 🇨🇳 (Electronics): seeking to raise $2B-$3B in a Hong Kong listing.
RoboTechnik Intelligent Technology 🇨🇳 (Robotics): raised part of a combined $1.8B in Hong Kong listings.
Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages 🇮🇳 (Beverages): considering a December filing for a $1B IPO.
Ace Designers 🇮🇳 (Machinery): beginning talks for a $400M India IPO.
Standard Bank Angola 🇦🇴 (Banking): raised $225M from a 34% stake sale as Standard Bank increased its ownership to 75%.

🧳 Debt

Phoenix Tower International 🇺🇸: secured a $2B debt facility from Ares.
Paramount Skydance 🇺🇸: agreed to issue $41.4B and €885M in senior secured notes and priced $8.5B and €850M in term loans.
Trinity Capital 🇺🇸: priced $350M of 7.50% notes due 2032.
Skylight 🇺🇸: expanded its credit facility to $75M.
Tesla 🇺🇸: lined up $30B in new credit facilities.
Citigroup 🇺🇸: led a $7.5B loan sale that drew $11.5B in demand.
Bulgaria 🇧🇬: sold $2.5B of bonds to plug its budget deficit.
SES 🇱🇺: raised €500M in senior unsecured notes due 2031.
Laos 🇱🇦: seeking a five-year senior unsecured dollar bond.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries 🇮🇳: plans to raise $1B local bonds to partly repay a bridge loan for its $12B acquisition of Organon.
Gujarat Themis Biosyn 🇮🇳: raised $60M private credit from Orion Capital Asia to acquire MicroBiopharm Japan.
Angola 🇦🇴: raised $224M from selling a 34% stake in Standard Bank Angola.

❌ Failures

PHL Variable Insurance 🇺🇸: policyholders sued its owner for mismanagement amid a $2.2B shortfall and possible liquidation.
Brightline 🇺🇸: the bankrupt high-speed rail company, which owes creditors $1B, agreed to a balance-sheet restructuring deal.
Girondins de Bordeaux 🇫🇷: agreed to a €1 sale to Park Bench, with the buyer assuming its debts and avoiding liquidation.
Greggs 🇬🇧: plans to close four manufacturing sites, putting 740 jobs at risk.

🎯 For a Few More Minutes…

🇺🇸 Shifting Blame. After a Cornell sophomore accused seven fraternity brothers of sexual assault, newly revealed Title IX documents show her struggle to be believed and her eventual decision to pursue justice in court. (New York Times)
🇺🇸 Game of Nerves. The looming launch of Grand Theft Auto VI on November 19 has rival publishers scrambling to move their major releases up, hoping to avoid being steamrolled by Rockstar’s blockbuster. (Le Monde)
🇩🇪 Hell’s Assets. Authorities in Germany and neighboring countries seized €48.6M in property and issued multiple arrests in a crackdown on a Hells Angels-linked money laundering ring. (Die Zeit)
🇮🇹 Orange Is the New Black. Campari 🇮🇹 turned Aperol Spritz from a regional drink into a $900M global juggernaut, proving that marketing can outshine tradition every time. (Les Echos)
🇮🇩 Island Time. Anak Krakatau's latest eruption has added fresh islands to Indonesia's map, with nature doing the zoning and the building in one go. (Bloomberg)

Other issues

🗞️ Top Story

🏛️ Economy

🏢 Real Estate

🔗 On-chain

💱 Listed Markets

🛎️ Big Deals (M&A)

🧳 Private Markets & VC

Fundraising

Fund Watch

🔔IPO

🧳 Debt

❌ Failures

🎯 For a Few More Minutes…

🗞️ Top Story

🏛️ Economy

🏢 Real Estate

🔗 On-chain

💱 Listed Markets

🛎️ Big Deals (M&A)

🧳 Private Markets & VC

Fundraising

Fund Watch

🔔IPO

🧳 Debt

❌ Failures

🎯 For a Few More Minutes…

🗞️ Top Story

🏛️ Economy

🏢 Real Estate

🔗 On-chain

💱 Listed Markets

🛎️ Big Deals (M&A)

🧳 Private Markets & VC

Fundraising

Fund Watch

🔔IPO

🧳 Debt

❌ Failures

🎯 For a Few More Minutes…

Other issues

👔 AI Will Handle It

🥪 Lunchbox Swap

🏗️ Clerk's Special