☕️Penny Pincher

Good morning.

Property investors and home buyers are facing the prospect of higher transaction costs as the nation’s dominant electronic conveyancer PEXA prepares to pass on regulatory charges to its customers.

PEXA is fighting a decision by its NSW regulator that would force it to absorb the costs of a $1 per transaction fee. While the company has always charged nationally consistent prices to lawyers and conveyancers using its platform, the dispute in NSW has been the catalyst for it to alter that approach.

PEXA’s decision to move away from nationally consistent pricing was made in October 2025 with the business set to pass on a $1 per transaction fee charged by one of its regulators in every state except NSW from 18 May. Capital Brief reveals that PEXA is also planning to pass on the costs related to its integration with state revenue offices.

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Market movers

Shares in explosives maker Dyno Nobel plunged on Monday after the company agreed to sell its Phosphate Hill fertiliser business in northwest Queensland to Mayfair Australia for the nominal sum of $1.

Citi (buy rated) said the market was likely focused on the low sale price and deferred consideration, though it argued Dyno Nobel was now a pure explosives play and that the fertiliser unit had been tracking well below earnings expectations after floods, gas supply disruptions and higher sulphur prices hit operations. Under the terms of the deal, Dyno Nobel will fund about $126 million in remediation costs before exiting the site, with up to $100 million in deferred payments tied to performance.

The quick sync

• Australian companies pouring money into AI are discovering it cannot fix a decade of accumulated tech debt, with bills arriving long before any returns, writes Nigel Dalton. (Capital Brief)

• The High Court will finally settle the Katy Perry trade mark battle in a ruling that could reshape how Australian brand law treats confusion on the register. (Capital Brief)

• NEXA gets multimillion-dollar equity investment from the government-backed ABGF for Asia-Pacific expansion and platform roll out across over 300 Services Australia centres. (Capital Brief)

• Macquarie's eight-year bet on brokers over referral networks is paying off just as the major banks face fraud reviews in the very channels they built to chase margin. (Capital Brief)

• Trump says Iran war ‘very complete’, sending markets surging and oil diving. (Capital Brief)

Trading floor

M&A

• Pro Medicus secures $40m in US contract renewals. (Capital Brief)

• Dyno Nobel sells Phosphate Hill plant to focus on explosives business. (Capital Brief)

• Five V Capital buys 60% of FTP Solutions in $70m mining tech deal. (AFR)

• Humm prepares to grant due diligence access to bidder Credit Corp. (Capital Brief)

• Nasdaq teams with Kraken to launch tokenised stock trading with on-chain settlement and global access. (Capital Brief)

Capital Markets

• Court dismisses profit-sharing claim against AFT Pharmaceuticals. (Capital Brief)

• Australian bond yields hit 10-year high on RBA rate hike expectations. (Capital Brief)

• Koala prices IPO at 10.5× FY26 earnings, institutional bids due Wednesday, retail offer March 24. (AFR)

• Macquarie’s broker strategy drives strong mortgage lending growth. (Capital Brief)

• Gas buyers snub Origin’s discounted LNG offer amid weak demand, policy uncertainty. (AFR)

• Nanosonics wins FDA clearance expanding CORIS system use. (Capital Brief)

• Ex-CommBank exec and Nick Greiner launch Colter Bay Capital with $100m to target mid-market corporate loans. (AFR)

• Oil jumps over 20% as Middle East war disrupts Strait of Hormuz supplies. (Capital Brief)

• PEXA drops national pricing amid $1 transaction fee dispute. (Capital Brief)

• Pornhub blocked in Australia over age checks; VPN downloads spike. (AFR)

• ASX drops nearly 3% on oil surge and Middle East tensions. (Capital Brief)

• Glencore may list on ASX to lift valuation following Rio merger collapse. (AFR)

• EU to sign defence partnership with Australia, Iceland, and Ghana. (Capital Brief)

• New CDC chief urges improved data sharing and public trust to prevent COVID-era mistakes. (AFR)

• Trump sons back US drone firm Powerus targeting Pentagon sales. (Capital Brief) (WSJ)

• AirTrunk secures $1.7b Tokyo loan, backs Middle East expansion despite war. (AFR)

• NEXA wins ABGF backing to expand digital queue platform across Asia-Pacific. (Capital Brief)

• Hims & Hers jumps after Novo Nordisk lawsuit dropped; partnership for weight-loss drugs announced. (Capital Brief)

• G7 pledges action on rising oil prices but delays emergency reserve release; Brent crude nears USD119. (Capital Brief)

• Anthropic sues Pentagon over “supply chain risk” label after refusing lethal AI use, citing First Amendment violation. (Capital Brief)

• Live Nation tentatively settles DOJ antitrust case over Ticketmaster, while 25 US states vow to fight on. (Capital Brief)

• AI can raise productivity, but boards and CFOs worry it won’t overcome years of costly tech decisions or reliably improve margins and returns. (Capital Brief)

• The High Court will decide the Katy Perry v Katie Perry trade mark case Wednesday, focusing on global mark rights and potential market confusion. (Capital Brief)

VC 

• Nvidia backs UK AI data centre Nscale in $2b Series C raise. (Capital Brief)

• NSW launches $20m fund to back emerging tech and bioscience startups. (Smart Company)

• Project F updates Startup Toolkit to guide founders on hiring, pay, and culture as teams scale. (Startup Daily)

• GIC targets Australian real estate with new joint ventures after $4b National Storage deal. (AFR)

People moves

• DigiCo CEO Michael Juniper takes extended personal leave. (Capital Brief)

• KKR infrastructure lead Andrew Jennings resigns, returning to Queensland. (AFR)

• Horizon Nexus adds ex-PwC deals partner Glen Hadlow to Sydney team. (AFR)

The watercooler