☕️Thanks Dad

Good morning.

Commerce secretary and key Trump advisor, Howard Lutnick is handing over ownership of his Wall Street firm Cantor Fitzgerald to his children to comply with government ethics rules. Lutnick will also sell stakes in two publicly listed companies for US$361 million ($558.5 million) to avoid conflicts of interest.

Howard’s 27-year-old son Brandon Lutnick was named chair of the holding company in February, while his younger brother Kyle Lutnick was named executive chairman. Brandon recently partnered with SoftBank, Tether and Bitfinex on a bitcoin-focused blank-cheque company aiming to capitalise on the Trump-led crypto renaissance.

🏆 LOI Subscriber #TBD

Market movers

Shares in lithium miner Liontown Resources plunged on Monday after it said it had no explanation for a recent 52% surge amid broader lithium sell-off.

The quick sync

• As Rajat Kulshrestha writes, Australia must invest in sovereign space manufacturing now or risk being left behind in a sector vital to our security and economic future. (Capital Brief)

• MA Financial’s new US$1.7b private credit JV with Monroe Capital and SMBC has quickly completed seven deals in its first month, showing strong early momentum. (Capital Brief)

• Mental health startup Foremind secures $1.5m to scale its proactive workplace mental health platform amid surging demand and tightening regulations. (Capital Brief)

• Elon Musk backer Baillie Gifford takes 5% stake in WiseTech as the logistics software giant faces leadership turmoil and investor scrutiny. (AFR)

Trading floor

M&A

• Lendlease forms UK JV with The Crown Estate to cut costs and free up over $300m in capital. (Capital Brief)

• NSX to be acquired by Canadian Securities Exchange in premium-backed deal, pending shareholder approval. (Capital Brief)

• Supercars broadcast deal nears completion; Foxtel likely to retain paid rights. (AFR)

• BGH Capital and Helloworld may join forces to merge their stakes in Webjet and take it private. (The Australian)

• 23andMe sells genetic data to Regeneron for US$256m, assuring privacy amid bankruptcy. (Capital Brief)

• Light & Wonder eyes more M&A and a primary ASX listing to compete with Aristocrat. (AFR)

• Spark, the $3.7b Australian and New Zealand-listed telecom company, is being eyed by at least two private equity firms for a potential buyout. (The Australian)

• Fancy Plants buys Rizo Desserts, expanding into sweet snacks for aged care and hospitals. (AFR)

Capital Markets

• Big banks' trading arms are quietly booming, cushioning profits as margins tighten and markets stay volatile. (Capital Brief)

• Mayne Pharma halts trading ahead of takeover update from Cosette. (Capital Brief)

• Australian HNW investors back OpenAI, SpaceX, and PsiQuantum in major US tech deals. (AFR)

• Talga Group begins capital raise, offering shares at 40¢, a 14.9% discount. (AFR)

• Nvidia nears investment in PsiQuantum’s $1.17b quantum computing funding round. (Capital Brief) (The Information)

• Carlyle Group launches Revera Energy, a new renewables platform from Amp Energy assets. (AFR)

• AustralianSuper bought shares in Whitehaven Coal, citing ESG alignment and net zero goals, but environmentalists see this as contradictory. (AFR)

• Rio Tinto invests $900m for 49.9% stake in Codelco’s Chilean lithium project, focusing on battery metals over iron ore. (Bloomberg)

• Peter Stevens Motorcycles enters administration, risking 400 jobs amid weak demand after 55 years. (AFR)

• A landmark court ruling that bitcoin is a form of money, not property, could trigger $1b in tax refunds and force the ATO to overhaul its crypto tax policy. (AFR)

• Moody’s US credit downgrade triggers a muted response in corporate bond markets, with spreads widening slightly and issuance off to a soft start. (Reuters)

VC

• UniSuper ups VC allocation to $100m with extra $25m investment in CSIRO’s Uniseed fund. (AFR)

• EatClub raises $18.2m to expand in UK with its dynamic restaurant pricing model. (Smart Company)

People moves

• Domino’s ANZ CEO Kerri Hayman will step down in 2025 amid wider leadership changes. (Capital Brief)

• MinRes chair James McClements to step down; Malcolm Bundey named new chair amid board overhaul and ASIC probe. (Capital Brief)

• Zenith co-founder David Wright resigns amid strategic clashes with PE owner. (AFR)

• Hearts and Minds CEO Brett Jollie will step down after just six months, prompting a leadership restructure and the appointment of Richard Howes as part-time managing director. (Capital Brief)

• Citi hires Paul Buys as ANZ research head, replacing Paul McTaggart, amid broader equities team shake-up. (Capital Brief)

• Worley axes regional roles in restructure, appoints global heads for projects and operations. (Capital Brief)

• CBS News chief Wendy McMahon resigns amid internal rift as Paramount eyes Skydance merger and Trump lawsuit settlement. (Reuters)

The watercooler