☕️ Tax loophole

Good morning.

Oxford University has crunched some numbers and calculates private equity firms have avoided income taxes on over US$1 trillion ($1.5 trillion) in carried interest pay since 2000 by structuring it to be taxed at lower capital gains rates.

Oxford’s Ludovic Phalippou told the Financial Times that, according to his calculations, Blackstone Group has pocketed a cool US$33.6 billion in carried interest, milking the tax loophole in the US and Europe for all it's worth.

And the kicker is that, despite all that, Phalippou’s numbers seem to show the median private equity fund's returns at about the same level as long-term US stock returns. Is the real skill of these financial maestros tax lobbying or outperforming the market? You be the judge.

🏆 LOI Subscriber #TBD

Market movers

ASX shares took a nosedive on Thursday, as the market operator’s five-year turnaround strategy seems to be running on an uphill treadmill—lots of effort, not so much progress.

CEO Helen Lofthouse tried to sugarcoat the tech blowout by promising streamlined processes and a "clear path to our growth horizon," that investors just couldn’t quite see.

With expenses expected to grow by 15% this year and a return on equity goal now a hazy dream, investors fled, leaving shares to wallow at $58.14 after an 8% drop.

The quick sync

• JOLT, JetCharge and Ampol in a race to succeed where Tritium failed in EV charging (Capital Brief)

• oOh!media CEO Cathy O'Connor touts outdoor ad strength amid TV market pain (Capital Brief)

• Ray White Capital eyes $1 billion in private real estate loans (AFR)

• How thanks.dev is tackling the growing problem of open-source exploits (Capital Brief)

• ANZ targets affluent suburbs with 95% no-LMI home loans (The Australian)

Trading floor

M&A

• Goldwind's 1.4GW Baldon wind farm is up for auction, with over 1GW aiming for Renewable Energy Zone access in an upcoming tender by NSW EnergyCo. (AFR)

• Qantas is acquiring the remaining 49% stake in TripADeal for $211m. (Capital Brief)

• CSR is ending its 62-year run on the ASX after shareholders approved a $4.3bn buyout by France’s Saint-Gobain, despite some concerns over the low price. (AFR)

• Storypark is inviting bids as it explores software M&A opportunities, leveraging RBC's expertise. (AFR)

• QIC's infrastructure private debt team has issued a $225m loan to Porter Airlines. (AFR)

• Louis Dreyfus remains determined in its bid for Namoi Cotton, despite competition concerns from the regulator. (AFR)

• The ACCC has expressed concerns that Sigma Healthcare's proposed acquisition of Chemist Warehouse could reduce competition by raising barriers for rivals in the pharmacy sector. (Capital Brief)

• Australia's corporate watchdog issued its first interim stop order against Hirehood's CSF campaign on VentureCrowd due to concerns over its indirect share structure. (BNA)

• Beach Energy has made its first gas sale after connecting its Enterprise gas field to the Otway plant in Victoria. (Capital Brief)

• Potential buyers of Healius's Lumus Imaging unit are signing confidentiality agreements to receive information memorandums, released at the end of the week. (The Australian)

Capital Markets

• Australian Vintage secured $15m from institutional investors and will next offer a retail raise to bring the total to $19.9m. (AFR)

• Hard Fizz raised $2.5m from investors including Tom Paton of Conargo Capital and billionaire Laurence Escalante's family office. (BNA)

• Winsome Resources is seeking $20m from investors to continue exploration at its Adina lithium project in Quebec. (AFR)

• Brazilian Rare Earths increased its fundraising to $80m, and Australian Vintage secured $19.9m with lender NAB's support, indicating positive trends in the Australian equity capital markets. (The Australian)

VC

• None

People moves

• Five V Capital is hiring talent from Quadrant and Navis Capital, including mid-level and junior dealmakers, to bolster its team and invest its funds. (AFR)

• Vinyl Group disclosed that Robert Millner, chairman of Washington H. Soul Pattinson, is a major shareholder. (BNA)

• Neobank Judo announced Rosanna Fornarino as its new COO and Renee Roberts as its chief risk officer. (Capital Brief)

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