☕️ Axe & exit

Good morning.

Goldman Sachs is reportedly in the midst of its annual axe-wielding ritual, slashing over 1,300 underperformers across its global operations. Fingers crossed not too many will be found at One Farrer and the Sydney office is instead part of David Solomon’s growth plans to capitalise on an M&A and capital market rebound.

Meanwhile, Warren Buffett just turned 94, but his $1 trillion Berkshire Hathaway isn't slowing down—offloading US$6.2b ($3.8b) in Bank of America shares since July without spelling out the reason (in words).

🏆 LOI Subscriber #TBD

Market movers

Downer EDI’s shares surged 17% as investors cheered the return to profit. Despite a bumpy ride with write-downs and job cuts, it seems

Downer seems on a fast track to margin improvement, with Downer chair Mark Menhinnitt and CEO Peter Tompkins steering towards a leaner, meaner operation—let's just hope they don't derail again.

The quick sync

• Nine Entertainment accused Google, Meta of scraping its content for AI models, with criticism surfacing just as it revealed AI licencing deal talks were progressing. (Capital Brief)

• Star Entertainment has asked lenders to relax rules on loan repayments as it tries to shore up its financial viability and execute a new strategy under CEO Steve McCann. (AFR)

• Tribeca’s David Aylward on Maas Group, gold and his 'opportunistic, style neutral' approach. (Capital Brief)

• Atlassian’s Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes spent their final day as co-CEOs working remotely, without a farewell to commemorate Mr Farquhar’s executive departure. (AFR)

• The RBA’s recently departed research chief says the central bank’s decision not to raise interest rates further risks entrenching high inflation. (AFR)

Trading floor

M&A

• Brazil suspended access to Elon Musk's X after he defied Supreme Court orders, escalating a conflict with Justice De Moraes. (Capital Brief)

• Global Infrastructure Partners is pursuing a $1.8bn bid for a 40% stake in Jemena, with Stonepeak dropping out of the competition. (The Australian)

• The $20bn sale of AirTrunk is close to being decided, with sellers seeking final clarifications from bidders led by IFM Investors and Blackstone. (AFR)

• China Investment Corporation may sell its $5bn stake in Goodman, attracting interest from institutional investors. (The Australian)

• Accel-KKR's bid to acquire LiveHire faces opposition from hedge fund Harvest Lane, which is seeking higher offers and preparing a Takeovers Panel application. (AFR)

• GIP has dropped its bid for Queensland Airports Limited to focus on pursuing deals for AirTrunk and Jemena. (AFR)

• Adamantem Capital’s $NZ520m buyout of The Warehouse may be paused, but ex-Metcash CEO Ian Morrice might lead the chain if the deal proceeds. (The Australian)

Capital Markets

• None

VC

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People moves

• Atlassian co-founders Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes spent their last day as co-CEOs working remotely, marking the end of their partnership. (AFR)

• Barrenjoey's bonus payouts excited top performers but left others less satisfied, potentially leading to staff departures. (The Australian)

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The watercooler