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- 🍋 Goldman → Blackstone → Prison Pipeline
🍋 Goldman → Blackstone → Prison Pipeline
The 27-year-old Blackstone associate sentenced to 28 months in prison for insider trading, plus chipmaker stocks got rekt.
Together With
“Down cycles are not fun. But they form the basis for enormous future profitability.” — Stephen Schwarzman
Good Morning! Nasdaq had its worst day since 2022 following reports that President Biden plans to restrict chipmakers from exporting equipment to China - Nvidia fell almost 7% alone. Disney’s Bob Iger and Willow Bay bought Angel City FC. Carlyle and KKR might come looking for your student loan payment soon, with the private equity duo buying Discover’s student loan portfolio for $10.8 billion. Plus Musk explains his support for an anti-EV presidential ticket, and how to lead when you lack natural charisma.
Data room provider Datasite is back with its summer giveaway. Win an iPad mini, an Amazon gift card, or designer sunglasses. To enter, simply follow them on LinkedIn.
SQUEEZ OF THE DAY
Goldman → Blackstone → Prison Pipeline
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Having Goldman Sachs and Blackstone on your resume at 27-years-old is pretty impressive. It seems like the only real way you can mess up is doing something "catastrophically stupid"... like insider trading.
Anthony Viggiano was sentenced to 28-months in prison yesterday for insider trading. Viggiano worked on various mergers and partnerships during his time at Goldman and Blackstone, and he passed on tips to a college buddy and childhood neighbor.
Viggiano’s lawyer calls the trio “seemingly overgrown frat bros.”
For example, he tipped off his friends when AIG sold a portion of its business to Blackstone, or when Advent International (a Goldman client) bought satellite operator Maxar Technologies.
At the cost of his career, Viggiano apparently only made $35k in cash from the stock tips, while his buddies netted around 400k in profit. Prosecutors sought to make an example of Viggiano, emphasizing that he should have known better.
Takeaway: Maybe the craziest part of the story? Viggiano won an ethics contest in college. Viggiano owned up to his mistakes, acknowledging he acted flat-out idiotic. And this was a slam-dunk case for prosectors - passing off stock tips to your buddies is as bad as it gets.
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HEADLINES
Top Reads
Nvidia, ASML, and TSMC stocks got hammered (YF)
HSBC appoints Georges Elhedery as group CEO starting Sept. 2 (CNBC)
Apple is convincing Wall Street it knows how to market AI (YF)
Business travel is booming back (Axios)
Trump is starting to move markets (YF)
Fed ‘getting closer’ to an interest rate cut (CNBC)
Disney CEO Bob Iger and Willow Bay bought Angel City FC (YF)
In the bond market, risky PIK toggle deals are back (Axios)
Elon Musk explains his support for an anti-EV presidential ticket (YF)
Discover sells student loan portfolio to Carlyle, KKR for up to $10.8 billion (CNBC)
CAPITAL PULSE
Markets Rundown
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Stocks closed lower; Nasdaq posts worst day since 2022 as stricter chipmaking export laws rattled investors.
Movers & Shakers
(+) GitLab ($GTLB) +9%after the software company received takeover interest.
(–) ASML ($ASML) -13% after the U.S. floats stricter rules for chipmakers.
(–) Five Below ($FIVE) -25% after cutting guidance, departure of CEO.
Private Dealmaking
Allianz bought a 51% stake in Income Insurance for $1.64 billion
EssilorLuxottica, the Ray-Bans maker, bought Supreme for $1.5 billion
Tekion, a cloud platform for auto retailers, raised $200 million
Scorpion Therapeutics, a precision oncology company, raised $150 million
Aven, a credit cards provider, raised $142 million
Matera, a banking software provider, raised $100 million
For more PE, VC & M&A deals, subscribe to our Buysiders newsletter.
BOOK OF THE DAY
The Sound Of The Future
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/29f39d34-054c-41a7-9b9f-102702c09653/Screenshot_2024-07-17_at_11.10.20_PM.png?t=1721287999)
Voice is the next technology – remarkably similar in potential impact to the internet and mobile computing - poised to change the way the world works. Tobias Dengel is in the vanguard of this breakthrough, understanding the deep, wide-ranging implications voice will have for every industry.
In The Sound of the Future, he connects the dots about this emerging paradigm to vividly illustrate how business leaders can stay ahead of the game, rather than scrambling to catch up, as voice technology gradually reveals its power, creating a host of new winners and losers.
Using fascinating, colorful stories, Dengel explains how the “voice-first” experience is becoming part of the global technology mainstream, exploring the ways voice will do a better job of serving basic human needs such as safety, speed, accuracy, convenience, and fun, as well as making it possible for hundreds of millions of people around the planet to participate more fully and productively in today’s high-tech world by making interactions with technology virtually effortless.
A pervasive technology like the internet and mobile, voice, with applications in marketing, sales, service, manufacturing, and logistics, will change the way we work at every level and every function, driving down costs, boosting productivity, and enabling the creation of entirely new business models.
“Why voice technology is the next big thing in technology, as big as mobile a decade ago and the internet in the late 90s, fundamentally altering the way companies do business.”
DAILY VISUAL
Total US Government Interest Expenses Now at $800Bn
![](https://media.beehiiv.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=scale-down,format=auto,onerror=redirect,quality=80/uploads/asset/file/e965e020-6490-4f51-ae3c-b2d21e61f486/image.png?t=1720870275)
Source: Apollo
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DAILY ACUMEN
Sleep
In our 24/7 world, sleep is often seen as a luxury. But it's a biological necessity, as crucial to our well-being as food and water.
What if you treated sleep as a non-negotiable part of your success strategy?
Consider the cost of sleep deprivation: decreased productivity, impaired decision-making, increased health risks.
Now think of the benefits of good sleep: enhanced creativity, better memory, improved mood.
Prioritize your sleep.
Create a bedtime routine. Make your bedroom a sleep sanctuary.
Remember, sometimes the most productive thing you can do is rest.
ENLIGHTENMENT
Short Squeez Picks
How to lead when you lack natural charisma
How to thrive at work if your boss expects hustle culture
3 productivity lessons from writing a book
How to slow down for a more enjoyable life
3 ways your anxiety can help you
MEME-A-PALOOZA
Memes of the Day
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