☕️Brutal Dumping

Good morning.

The Australian Foundation Investment Company (AFIC) finally called time on its long-running and highly profitable situationship investment in WiseTech, dumping its entire stake in the logistics software company amid unresolved governance concerns.

Releasing its half-year results on Wednesday, AFIC chief executive and managing director Mark Freeman said the almost century-old investment company — which had previously looked past the initial scandal engulfing co-founder Richard White — was done with WiseTech for now.

Capital Brief reports that as tends to be the case with messy breakups, Freeman left the door open to a future rekindling: “We will keep it on the radar because what they have built is really interesting.”

🏆 LOI Subscriber #TBD

Market movers

Shares in gold developer Emerald Resources soared Wednesday after the company upgraded the resource estimate at its Memot Gold Project by 27%. The stock jumped 13.2%, leading gains among ASX-listed gold miners as the rally in spot gold prices continues.

The quick sync

• SaaS is selling off but Australia’s VCs say AI is reshaping it, not ending it. (Capital Brief)

• Canada says the rules-based order is over while Australia still hopes it can be fixed. (Capital Brief)

• Nationals quit frontbench en masse over hate laws, deepening Coalition rift and intensifying pressure on Ley’s leadership. (Capital Brief)(Capital Brief)

• Revolution flags rising covenant-lite risk from global lenders as it backs safer mid-market credit. (Capital Brief)

• Trump drops Europe tariff threat after Greenland 'deal framework' with NATO. (Capital Brief)

Trading floor

M&A

• The ACCC has moved Ampol’s EG Australia acquisition into a Phase 2 competition review. (Capital Brief)

• Energy Fuels to buy Australian Strategic Minerals for $447m, giving shareholders a 121% premium. (Capital Brief)

Capital Markets

• Rio Tinto beat its 2025 copper guidance as Oyu Tolgoi ramped up, while iron ore output was mixed and other commodities met expectations. (Capital Brief)

• Cyprium Metals launches $30m share placement to fund copper projects. (AFR)

• Lynas lifted revenue in the December quarter as prices rose, even though rare earth production fell sharply due to power outages. (Capital Brief)

• Ballard Mining launches $50m cash call amid gold rally. (AFR)

• Netflix posted strong Q4 results and upbeat guidance, but shares slid as investor attention shifted to deal-related risks. (Capital Brief)

• Cashrewards pushes back after ANZ closure under Matos’ leadership. (AFR)

• Vulcan Energy’s successful well test at Lionheart supports its lithium project development and production targets. (Capital Brief)

• Steve Waugh backs Amsterdam Flames, seeking $3m for European T20 cricket venture. (AFR)

• Westgold’s gold production jumped 33% to a record level in the December quarter. (Capital Brief)

• Shark attacks spark surge in Sharkbanz sales at Manly surf store. (AFR)

• Paladin Energy’s shares surge after Q2 uranium production rises 16%. (Capital Brief)

• Grow Inc valuation drops to $150m amid Series E down-round and M&A talks. (AFR)

• Evolution Mining rallies on record $1.1b quarterly cash flow. (Capital Brief)

• Saks collapse hits Australian fashion brands and local department stores. (AFR)

• AFIC has sold its entire stake in WiseTech over governance and debt issues. (Capital Brief)

• UK government takes GBP25M stake in Kraken to push London listing. (AFR)

• Fundbox expands into Australia with MA Financial support. (Capital Brief)

• OECD urges Australia to cut spending and reform taxes to avoid rising debt. (Capital Brief)

• Revolution Asset Management warns Australia faces rise of covenant-lite private credit deals. (Capital Brief)

• Ken Griffin calls Japan bond selloff ‘explicit warning’ for US. (Bloomberg)

• Bill Hwang seeks pardon for fraud that cost banks USD10b. (Bloomberg)

• Sony unveils USD230 clip-on earbuds, joining a growing wave. (Bloomberg)

• Dimon says Trump’s credit card cap would spell ‘economic disaster’(Bloomberg)

VC 

• Legal AI startup Ivo raises $55m Series B led by Blackbird to grow globally. (Capital Brief)

• AI sparks SaaS sell-off, but VCs say the model is evolving, not dying. (Capital Brief)

People moves

• Sarovar Agarwal is the new managing partner of Kearney Australia, replacing Adam Dixon. (Capital Brief)

• David Di Pilla’s tax lawyer Janet Cho joins Corrs. (AFR)

• Mineral Resources quietly reshuffled its leadership, with iron ore division CEO Chris Soccio and sales/marketing GM Jason Keys departing the company. (AFR)

• Adobe has hired ex-Airbnb CIO Lucius DiPhillips as its new chief information officer. (Capital Brief)

• Citi bankers’ bonuses rise 20% amid cost-cutting warnings. (AFR)

• Linfox succession in focus as Peter Fox steps away amid Lindsay Fox’s aging. (AFR)

The watercooler