☕ Who's to blame?

Good morning. We ran a Linkedin poll on who's to blame for the SVB implosion and while it's no surprise to see most say it's SVB's fault, about a quarter of folks think it's the VC/startups to blame 😬

Good morning. We ran a Linkedin poll on who's to blame for the SVB implosion and while it's no surprise to see most say it's SVB's fault, about a quarter of folks think it's the VC/startups to blame 😬

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ps. if this was fowarded to you, sign up here > letterofintent.com.au 

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MARKET MOVERS

*Stock data as of the market close. Commodities and crypto data in USD.

Market news: The market went risk off on Friday in the wake of the SVB collapse.

While no one is saying there is any risk of an SVB-style collapse in Australia, that didn't stop the local markets from selling off the banks by around 2%, with CBA the hardest hit.

THE QUICK SYNC

  • News on the SVB bank failure

    • Hedge funds offering to buy startup deposits at SVB for 60c on the $. (Reuters)

    • Investors implore the government to step in after SVB failure (CNBC)

    • SVB paid out bonuses hours before seizure. (Axios)

    • Start-ups pull money out of struggling SVB (AFR)

  • Inside Anchorage Capital Partners, the very private PE deal makers. (AFR)

  • AGL ready to help customers before energy prices ‘jump 20pc’. (AFR)

  • JPMorgan sues former executive over Epstein ties, demands eight years of pay. (SMH)

  • Saudi oil giant Aramco posts record $161 billion profit for 2022. (CNBC)

TRADING FLOOR

M&A:

  • Cuscal has acquired Basiq, a fintech data services start-up. (AFR|BNA)

  • Merchant Place has hired Miles Advisory to find a new owner for Smoke Alarms Australia. (AFR)

  • Tyro’s board is still waiting on a firm bid from Potentia Capital’s consortium. (AFR)

    • Doubts emerge if Tyro directors will support a sweetened offer. (The Australian)

  • GoGet, the car share service, taps Grant Samuel to start pitching buyers. (AFR)

  • Tough conditions have increased the prospect of more buyouts in the food sector. (AFR)

  • AusCann announced it will be divesting 52% of its CannPal stake for just $1. (BNA)

  • Criteo has swooped on Melbourne-based Brandcrush. (BNA)

  • Nirvana Asia was a company that InvoCare was poised to buy. (The Australian)

  • BGH and Sixth Street asked for an extension to explore an alternative Pushpay proposal after shareholders voted the takeover down. (The Australian)

Capital Markets:

VC:

  • More Good Days, a pain management startup, has raised $3.5m in its first funding round. (AFR)

Others:

  • Quadrant has poached Navis Capital dealmaker Johnny Zhang (AFR)

  • Shadi Haddad will be replaced as Till Payments CEO days after the company's $70m funding round. (AFR)

  • GenesisCare was meant to be the next CSL before it buckled under its debt load. (The Australian)

TOGETHER WITH WHOLESALE INVESTOR

Starting this week, LOI readers now have exclusive complimentary passes to Australia’s largest venture capital conference, Emergence 2023, hosted by Wholesale Investor, March 23-24.

  • 750+ Aussie VCs, Investors and Deal Makers… professionals from the VC and Capital Markets space will gather in Sydney CBD to learn, network and access exciting scale-up opportunities.

  • 40+ leading speakers and panellists… including folks from Five Sigma, TEN13, Empress Capital, NAB Ventures, BMYG, INP Capital, Flying Fox Ventures, Kotti Capital, Apollo Crypto, Aussie Angels, Gencap Wealth, Investible, Backbone Partners and Antler

  • 80+ Founders… across emerging and core sectors will be presenting their opportunities directly to you.

Dealflow, insights, and networking… claim your complimentary pass as an LOI reader here.

THE WATERCOOLER

THE TRADE

  • Strategy & Corporate Development Manager — OFX (Learn More)

  • Business Development, Vice President (M&A) — GenesisCare (Learn More)

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