☕️Licence to Punt

Good morning.

Apple is taking its watches off the US market during its busiest season, as it awaits the verdict of a patent dispute due after December 25.

The move comes ahead of a possible import ban of Series 9 and Ultra 2 Apple Watches which feature a blood oxygen sensor, which a US trade agency ruled violates patents owned by health monitoring tech firm, Masimo.

Only time will tell whether Biden steps in to exercise his Presidential veto power to overturn the ban, if not, Apple could end up with a lot of time(pieces) back on its hands.

🏆 LOI Subscriber #TBD

Market movers

In a coup that will have those partial to a flutter buzzing, Tabcorp made something of a parlay on Monday as it secured a two-decade extension to its exclusive Victorian licence for retail wagering and pub betting. The announcement not only eased investor concerns about the Victorian licence looming expiration, but removed all anxiety around a potential shared licence situation with key competitor Sportsbet.

The announcement saw shares in the gambling group shoot up over 20% during trading Monday, closing at just over 90 cents.

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The quick sync

• Adobe has abandoned its planned $20bn acquisition of Figma due to regulatory issues with UK and European authorities. (Capital Brief)

• Origin will inject $530m into UK’s energy retailer Octopus Energy, taking its stake in the £6.2bn company to 23%. (AFR)

• Despite Brookfield’s failed efforts to secure Origin and AGL, the Canadian investment manager still has an appetite for Australian assets. (Capital Brief)

• South Korean ecommerce group Coupang will acquire Farfetch with a US$500m package of rescue loans. (Financial Times)

• Dealmakers revel in December’s M&A deal flurry. (Capital Brief)

• NASDAQ drops Zoom from NASDAQ 100 index as it underperformed every major equity benchmark in 2023. (Bloomberg)

• The Competition Tribunal’s review into the ANZ-Suncorp merger leaves key questions unanswered ahead of February decision. (Capital Brief)

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Trading floor

M&A

• Nippon Steel has revealed its plans to acquire iconic steelmaker US Steel for $14.9bn. (Capital Brief)

• Evolution has successfully acquired an 80% stake in the New South Wales copper-gold mine Northparkes. (Capital Brief)

• Cura Day Hospitals is set to be acquired by Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) in a deal worth over $500m. (AFR)

• Investors in takeover target Azure Minerals inch closer to a partnership agreement, potentially resolving the control battle. (AFR)

• Lendlease has agreed to sell 12 Australian community projects to Stockland Corporation Limited and its capital partner Supalai Australia Holdings for $1.3bn. (Capital Brief)

• CRH and Barro family propose a $2.1bn buyout for cement maker Adbri at $3.20/share, ending boardroom tensions. (AFR)

• Link Group board supports $1.2bn buyout offer from MUFG at $2.10/share, ending years of uncertainty. (BNA)

• Investment bankers celebrate over $5bn in deals with Link Group, Pacific Smiles, and Adbri acquisitions. (AFR)

CAPITAL MARKETS

• Pacific Smiles shares soar 18% as Genesis Capital makes unsolicited takeover offer. (Capital Brief)

• BRC Capital faces solvency questions as subsidiaries are wound up, adding financial pressure to the Melbourne Rebels. (AFR)

• Australian video game industry revenue reaches $345.5m, up 21% in FY2023, per AGDS and IGEA data. (Startup Daily)

• Shares of Adbri surged by 30% following news of a $2.1bn takeover bid by Barro Group and CRH. (Capital Brief)

VC

• OneVentures banks over $100m from Employment Hero sale, yielding a return over 13x. (Startup Daily)

• International student-focused app Mist raises $1.6m in Seed funding with support from Investible and others. (Startup Daily)

People moves

• None

The watercooler