☕️Prodigal Founder

Good morning.

WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann is plotting to buy the embattled office-sharing startup out of bankruptcy after being publicly ousted as CEO in 2019. According to a letter obtained by the NY Times, Neumann’s new company, Flow, has unsuccessfully sought to engage with WeWork since December, after it filed for bankruptcy. The letter also claims Dan Loeb's hedge fund Third Point would help finance a WeWork acquisition. Third Point has denied that it has committed financing to the deal.

WeThought WeCrashed was the last We’dHear of the eccentric Neumann…Turns out some leopards can’t change their spots.

🏆 LOI Subscriber #TBD

Market movers

Shares in Nick Scali climbed over 16% to $14 during trading on Tuesday, after the furniture retailer posted improved profit guidance for H1. Despite a 29% fall in profit from last year, NCK improved on its October $40 million to $42 million guidance at $43 million. CEO Anthony Scali told the AFR that foot traffic has increased recently and that Labor’s impending tax-cuts should strengthen consumption.

The quick sync

• Investors behind Afterpay’s VC arm Touch Ventures are demanding that management wind the business up and delist from the ASX. (Capital Brief)

• Poor returns and souring sentiment toward Chinese equities have led to the closure of two Australian funds. (AFR)

• The RBA is attuned to potential risks of a prolonged downturn in China. (Capital Brief)

• PwC is staring down a class action from aggrieved former partners who saw distribution payments evaporate in the wake of last year’s tax scandal. (The Australian)

• BP will expand its share buyback scheme after the group reported its second largest annual profit in over a decade. (Financial Times)

• How Aussie unicorn Linktree is making lemonade out of Instagram’s move to expand its link-in-bio feature. (Capital Brief)

• UBS will deepen cost cutting measures, after its Credit Suisse integration drove the bank into its second consecutive quarterly loss. (Financial Times)

Trading floor

M&A

• Spirit Tech is set to acquire InfoTrust for $35m. (AFR)

• Zip emerges as potential takeover target amid impressive financial turnaround. (The Australian)

• Navis Capital has initiated the sale of Mainland Poultry, a premium New Zealand egg and animal feed business. (AFR)

• Citywide Service Solutions seeks options for waste unit. (AFR)

• Metrics topped up funding for RealtyAssist late last year and engineered a board majority. (AFR)

Capital Markets

• Brazilian Rare Earths draws market buzz with high-grade deposit; Petra Capital initiates coverage after share price rally. (The Australian)

• Mondiale VGL, previously considered for an ASX listing, is now focused on a private equity sale after discussions with fund managers. (AFR)

• Fletcher Building mulls capital raise amid cost increase concerns. (The Australian)

• Bain Capital's recent completion of Accolade Wines' recapitalization marks a significant development in the wine industry. (The Australian)

VC

• Sydney startup AMSL Aero, known for its hydrogen-powered Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft, has secured its first commercial sale. (Startup Daily)

People moves

• Aware Super has poached HESTA CFO, Sally Collins, who will step into COO role at the superannuation giant. (AFR)

• UBS head of real estate sales Tim Leahy departs after 20 years. (AFR)

• Citi appoints Cristina Chang as head of markets in Australia. (AFR)

• RBC Capital Markets welcomes the inaugural analyst class after the internship program launch. (AFR)

The watercooler