Jun 27, 2024

I recently heard about a variety of financial news from different sectors. It was reported that Australian insurers are planning to raise premiums, while the Asia-Pacific region is expected to dominate the electric vehicle insurance market. Additionally, Japan’s interest rate hike is offering lessons for China’s insurers, and India’s non-life sector saw double-digit growth. Another report highlighted the hidden costs of homeownership, the importance of working with a financial advisor when planning for retirement, and provided information on bond fund yields and tax planning in California.

In terms of funding, several companies have recently secured significant amounts of funding. For example, Austin, Texas-based developer platform raised $35m in Series B extension funding, Boston Oncology Arabia, a Saudi maker of bio-generic drugs, raised $35m from TVM Capital Healthcare, and Sensi.ai, a provider of virtual monitoring for elder home care agencies, raised $31m in Series B funding. There were also significant investment and acquisition deals, such as Blackstone agreeing to buy British hotel operator Village Hotels for around £800m. Additionally, there was a glitch in the NYSE trading system which caused the price of a stock, BRK/A, to fall from $622,000 to $185, leading to substantial order imbalances and subsequent increase in the stock price.

In other news, a detailed account of the final days of Archegos Capital Management was reported, highlighting the actions of various investment banks as they dealt with the fallout of the firm’s collapse. Additionally, private equity firms were reported to have initiated recruiting for lucrative positions two years in advance, causing stress and inconvenience for junior investment bankers. Lastly, a legal battle between David Einhorn’s Greenlight Capital Inc. and a former employee, James Fishback, was highlighted, with Greenlight disputing Fishback’s claims of being an outstanding performer and head of macro trading at the firm.

Stay Well!