☕️Pearly Whites

Good morning.

AI, inflation and (of course) Elon Musk had a knack of dominating headlines this year. While it would be folly to try to predict the future, with the recent surge in dealmaking, rate cuts on the near horizon and a slew of federal elections, 2024 is undoubtedly going to be a busy year for markets.

As Blackstone chanted in their recent Holiday video, we hope you “Stay calm, stay positive, never give up” and enjoy your Christmas break.

LOI will be taking a break over the holiday period, returning in early January.

🏆 LOI Subscriber #TBD

Market movers

Pacific Smiles shares climbed almost 5% on Thursday after turning down an unsolicited $223 million takeover offer by Genesis Capital. The dental services group said the private equity firm’s offer at $1.40 per share ‘materially undervalues’ the company. Genesis has already amassed an 18.75% stake in Pacific Smiles.

While it rejected the offer, Pacific Smiles left the door open to Genesis returning a materially improved offer.

Together with Stake | Invest on Wall St and the ASX

The quick sync

• Woodside and Fortescue miss out on funding for green hydrogen projects from the $2b Hydrogen Headstart program. (Capital Brief)

• Warner Bros Discovery and Paramount have met to discuss a potential merger. (Capital Brief)

• The Federal Reserve has just about achieved its goal of taming US inflation. (AFR)

• The key sectors that Future Generation’s fund managers are predicting will be ripe for investment during 2024. (Capital Brief)

• OpenAI competitor Anthropic chases $22b valuation in a fresh funding round led by Menlo Ventures. (Capital Brief)

• US banks and law enforcement will have access to a new beneficial ownership database, helping firms stop criminal and terrorist financing. (Wall Street Journal)

Trading floor

M&A

• Yet another oil and gas merger takes shape as Harbour Energy scoops up Wintershell Dea assets for $16.52b. (Capital Brief)

• Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) is teaming up with Dexus to bid for a 74% stake in Queensland Airports Limited (QAL). (AFR)

• Vinyl Group acquires full control of The Brag Media in a $10m deal funded by WiseTech Global's CEO. (Startup Daily)

• Allure Bridals has acquired Australian brand Portia & Scarlett, after a five-month courtship. (BNA)

CAPITAL MARKETS

• Bird Global has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Florida. (Capital Brief)

• Transurban has revealed that the financing division of its WestConnex Group has successfully closed an $800m US private placement. (Capital Brief)

VC

• Victoria's startup ecosystem has expanded by $12b, reaching over $100bn, as reported by LaunchVic. (Startup Daily)

People moves

• Wilsons Advisory hires former Credit Suisse operative Joe Zhang; set to join on Feb 1 2024. (AFR)

• SecondQuarter Ventures’ first hire David Moss has climbed the ranks to become Principal in recent promotion. (SecondQuarter Ventures)

The watercooler