☕️Gotta Catch ‘em all

Good morning.

Pokémon cards, which pay no dividends and aren’t subject to financial regulation, have seen a roughly 3,821% monthly cumulative return since 2004, the WSJ reports.

That return absolutely smokes the S&P 500’s 483% jump over the same period, while Meta, a Magnificent Seven member, has climbed a measly 1,844% since going public in 2012.

Interest in the cards among amateur investors began picking up during the Covid-19 pandemic, but skyrocketed after influencer Logan Paul revealed in 2022 that he bought a near perfect-grade “Pikachu Illustrator” card worth USD5.3 million, setting a new Guinness World Record for the most expensive Pokémon trading card sold in a private sale.

That Pokémon-obsessed kid in kindy lugging his 2kg card collection around isn’t looking so silly after all.

🏆 LOI Subscriber #TBD

Market movers

Shares in Nine Entertainment plunged on Thursday, dropping 35.9% as the stock began trading without its special and final dividends. The payout, worth 53 cents a share, was funded by the company’s sale of Domain to CoStar.

The quick sync

• Linktree staff have been ordered to embrace AI or justify new hires, as CEO Alex Zaccaria bets on faster product rollouts without layoffs. (Capital Brief)

• Labor is backing long-term gas expansion under its climate policy, despite warnings it will derail net-zero goals and deepen the climate crisis, writes Marian Wilkinson. (Capital Brief)

• Foxtel CEO Patrick Delany says the company will soon have balance sheet capacity for fresh acquisitions, as its DAZN integration nears completion. (Capital Brief)

• Harvey AI lands in Australia with bold plans to transform legal training and reshape the future of law firms. (Capital Brief)

Trading floor

M&A

• Warner Bros Discovery soars 30% on report of Paramount Skydance takeover bid. (Capital Brief)

• Final bidding round begins in $2.5b La Trobe Financial sale. (AFR)

• Molycop sold to Tega in USD1.5b deal, IPO shelved. (The Australian)

• Journey Beyond set to acquire Uluru’s Ayers Rock Resort. (AFR)

• Foxtel, under DAZN, eyes acquisitions to build scale amid media consolidation. (Capital Brief)

• AC Industries seeks $100m+ PE sale. (AFR)

• Sembcorp eyes Alinta Energy in Australian renewables expansion. (The Australian)

• Bids in for Adelaide Airport stake; GIP among interested parties. (The Australian)

• Digital agency Rocket has become Australia’s first official OpenAI Services Partner. (Smart Company)

• Mayne Pharma fights Cosette’s bid to exit $672m takeover. (AFR)

• Booming US deals may push Reece to reconsider its American operations. (The Australian)

Capital Markets

• Westpac says RBA fee cuts will raise credit card costs and backs a capped system over lower interchange fees. (Capital Brief)

• GQG’s FUM rose 0.6% in August to USD167.6b despite USD1.8b outflows. (Capital Brief)

• Boss Energy to complete Honeymoon uranium mine review by end-2026. (Capital Brief)

• Perenti’s Barminco secures $300m, 4-year mining contract with Ramelius. (Capital Brief)

• West Wits Mining launches $19m capital raise via placement and SPP. (AFR)

• Stripe Capital to launch in Australia by end-2025 with SME loans and platform upgrades. (Capital Brief)

• Mondo Power wins $12.3m ARENA grant for Melbourne electric truck hub. (Capital Brief)

• Australian Retirement Trust invests $1b in Macquarie’s green energy fund under 2030 impact plan. (Capital Brief)

• Harvey AI expands to Australia, set to reshape legal training and work. (Capital Brief)

• PEP and Brookfield near $3b debt refinancing for Intellihub expansion. (AFR)

• Defence awards $7.35b base services contracts to Downer, Ventia and Service Stream. (Capital Brief)

• IEA lifts 2025 oil supply forecast to 2.7m bpd after OPEC+ output hike. (Capital Brief)

• US inflation hits 2025 high at 2.9% in August ahead of Fed rate cut decision. (Capital Brief)

• ECB holds rates at 2% with inflation near target and growth outlook lifted. (Capital Brief)

• Westpac warns the RBA’s plan to cut interchange fees will push banks to raise credit card costs, urging a regulated cap for small merchants instead. (Capital Brief)

• Super funds are dumping foreign currency risk at speed, betting a rising Aussie dollar could sting global investments and shake up markets. (AFR)

• ANZ’s job cuts firestorm shows why Reddit is now corporate Australia’s biggest blind spot. And why that’s a dangerous bet. (Capital Brief)

• With OpenAI signing jaw-dropping global tech deals, Canberra could be next. (Capital Brief)

• If Australia builds data centres the way it built the grid, expect delays, blowouts and backlash. Unless we wise up fast, writes Tom Gooch. (Capital Brief)

• Phil Lowe says Australia’s aversion to risk could squander AI’s potential, urging bold policy reform over red tape. (Capital Brief)

VC 

• Sydney startup KERB pivots to IoT car park solution. (Startup Daily)

• Equity Clear, supported by Investment NSW and UNSW, is developing a national diversity reporting standard to improve transparency in startup funding. (Smart Company)

People moves

• AirTrunk co-founder Michael Juniper joins HMC Capital as DigiCo board director and senior executive. (Capital Brief)

• Clayton Utz hires Mark Malinas as head of private equity. (The Australian)

• NextDC appoints Deborah Page to its board from Nov 2025. (Capital Brief)

• Bendigo Bank to cut 158 jobs in tech and mortgage units under restructure. (Capital Brief)

• Fortescue Zero sacks recruits before start date. (AFR)

• ANZ CRO Kevin Corbally named head of institutional capital management. (Capital Brief)

• UK PM Starmer sacks US ambassador Peter Mandelson over Epstein ties. (Capital Brief)

The watercooler