Good Morning! Morgan Stanley will cut 2,000 jobs in a cost-saving initiative. The bank, once a DEI champion, is also walking back diversity initiatives. The Trump Administration will reinstate the nearly 25,000 federal employees it fired, and Google acquired Wiz for $32 billion in the company’s largest acquisition ever. 

States are pushing back on private equity’s involvement in healthcare, and Texas’ governor is trying to lure Wall Street firms with a ‘stronger brand’ than NYC. 

Plus: Nvidia unveiled its latest chips, retail investors are giving up on buying the dip, and why JPMorgan doesn’t think the sell-off is driven by recession fears.

We’re excited to launch our new real estate newsletter: City Squeez! Sign up here to stay updated on the latest real estate news and exclusive listings.

This is for all those seeking to level up their career this summer.

_{SQUEEZ OF THE DAY}

Private Equity 🤝MLB

Private equity kicked off 2025 by making a few splashy investments in sports. First, it was a handful of NFL franchises but, now? Investors are eyeing Major League Baseball. 

Yesterday, Sixth Street announced it will acquire a 10% stake in the San Francisco Giants. While the exact price tag remains undisclosed, the Giants were valued at $3.8 billion at the start of the 2024 season, making Sixth Street's investment likely in the hundreds of millions.

The investment fills a crucial need as the Giants want to give their 25-year-old stadium a facelift, enhance their training facilities, also build apartments, entertainment, and office space around the area in a real estate project called Mission Rock. 

Private equity firms are rushing into sports franchises as valuations soar. The average NFL team has seen its valuation jump by 435% over the past decade. MLB is catching up, with over half of the league’s 30 teams now having private equity investment.

For PE firms, sports franchises offer a unique combination of stability, brand value, and real estate upside, while teams benefit from fresh capital to fund expansions and stadium improvements.

Sixth Street is betting on San Francisco with the investment, too. The private equity firm expects fans will return to the ballpark in the city, and that there will be booming real estate demand for the Mission Rock project.  

The deal was brokered by The Raine Group and adds to Sixth Street’s growing sports portfolio, which includes investments in Real Madrid, Barcelona, the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs, and Bay FC in the NWSL.

Takeaway: With professional sports ownership growing out of hand for ordinary investors thanks to skyrocketing valuations, private equity can offer a solution. These partnerships are marketed as being long-term, and aren’t just a quick cash-grab - teams are using the partnership to renovate stadiums, build mixed-use projects, and overall make an impact on the community. 

_{PRESENTED BY KNOPMAN MARKS}

Wall Street’s Top Firms Trust Knopman Marks—You Should Too.

Passing a securities exam isn’t just about memorizing facts—it’s about training the way top finance professionals do.

Knopman Marks is the go-to prep provider for aspiring finance professionals, trusted by the biggest firms on Wall Street. Their approach goes beyond the textbook, equipping candidates with the skills to learn faster, retain more, and apply knowledge under pressure.

• A Smarter Way to Study: Learn using science-backed memory techniques designed for long-term retention.

• More Than Just Instructors: Train with industry veterans who know what it takes to succeed.

• Performance-Driven Results: An adaptive learning process tailored to how you absorb information best.

Pass with confidence and set yourself apart in a competitive job market.

_HEADLINES

Top Reads

• GM picks Nvidia as partner to build self-driving car fleet (SW)

• Morgan Stanley to cut about 2,000 jobs (YF)

• What happened with Morgan Stanley corporate DEI (WSJ)

• US moves to reinstate fired workers (NBC)

• Alphabet to buy Wiz for $32B in its biggest deal ever (CNBC)

• States try to limit private equity in healthcare (Axios)

• Gov. says Texas has 'stronger brand than New York' as Wall Street looks south (CNBC)

• Nvidia unveils Blackwell Ultra AI chip for 'age of AI reasoning' (YF)

• Retail investors ditch buy-the-dip mentality during the market correction (CNBC)

• JPMorgan says market sell-off hasn't been driven by recession fears (Fox)

• Nasdaq plans second U.S. headquarters in Texas (WSJ)

• Private equity firms consolidating homes for disabled (WP)

• SEC makes solicitation easier for VC and private equity (Axios)

• US births drop to four-decade low (BB)

_{CAPITAL PULSE}

Markets Rundown

Stocks Dip Before Fed Verdict, Global Markets Shine

U.S. stocks fell Tuesday, with the S&P 500 shedding gains from a two-day rally as investors braced for the Fed’s call.

Growth sectors—tech and communication services—lagged, while value sectors like energy and health care held firmer.

Asia and Europe rose, with German sentiment hitting a 2022 peak after a fiscal package for defense and infrastructure cleared a vote (pending Friday’s final nod).

Industrial production jumped 0.7% in February, topping forecasts of 0.2%, hinting at manufacturing muscle.

10-year Treasury yields dipped just below 4.3%.

The Fed’s FOMC meeting kicked off, with markets betting on a hold at 4.25%-4.5%—focus shifts to the dot plot, where December’s two 0.25% cuts and 2.1% GDP growth for 2025 might tilt to three cuts amid softening data.

Powell’s likely to stress economic strength, justifying patience.

Meanwhile, international stocks rallied—the MSCI EAFE soared over 10% and MSCI Emerging Markets gained over 5%—fueled by Europe’s reforms and China’s pro-business buzz, spotlighting diversification as U.S. markets weather a 10% correction from mid-February highs.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) Lucid ($LCID) +9% after the EV company was upgraded by Morgan Stanley.

• (–) Tesla ($TSLA) -5% because the company’s Chinese rivals are gaining footing.

• (–) Him & Hers ($HIMS) -9% after the FDA warned about the company’s unapproved weight loss drugs.

Private Dealmaking

• Google acquired Wiz, a cloud security firm, for $32 billion

• Nervio, an automation solutions provider, raised $500 million

• Arbor Biotechnologies, a gene therapies developer, raised $73.9 million

• Maxion Therapeutics, an antibody-drug developer, raised $72 million

• MicroTransponder, a neurostimulator developer, raised $65 million

• Norm AI, a compliance automation startup, raised $48 million

For more PE, VC & M&A deals, subscribe to our Buysiders newsletter.

_{BOOK OF THE DAY}

Shift

Whether it’s anxiety about going to the doctor, boiling rage when we’re stuck in traffic, or devastation after a painful break-up, our lives are filled with situations that send us spiraling. But as difficult as our emotions can be, they are also a superpower.

Far from being “good” or “bad,” emotions are information. When they’re activated in the right ways and at the right time, they function like an immune system, alerting us to our surroundings, telling us how to react to a situation, and helping us make the right choices.

But how do we make our emotions work for us rather than against us? Acclaimed psychologist Dr. Ethan Kross has devoted his scientific career to answering this question. In Shift, he dispels common myths—for instance, that avoidance is always toxic or that we should always strive to live in the moment—and provides a new framework for shifting our emotions so they don’t take over our lives.

Shift weaves groundbreaking research with riveting stories of people struggling and succeeding to manage their emotions—from a mother whose fear prompted her to make a spur-of-the-moment decision that would save her daughter’s life mid-flight to a nuclear code-carrying Navy SEAL who learned how to embrace both joy and pain during a hellish training activity.

Dr. Kross spotlights a wide array of tools that we already have access to—in our bodies and minds, our relationships with other people, and the cultures and physical spaces we inhabit—and shows us how to harness them to be healthier and more successful.

Filled with actionable advice, cutting-edge research, and riveting stories, Shift puts the power back into our hands, so we can control our emotions without them controlling us—and help others do the same.

“A revolutionary guide to mastering your emotional life.”

_{DAILY VISUAL}

Where Wine Tariffs Would Hit the Hardest

_{PRESENTED BY NEVADA CANYON GOLD CORP}

Gold Has Broken $3,000. What’s Next?

For the first time in history, gold has surpassed $3,000/oz, cementing its role as the ultimate hedge against market volatility. With inflation concerns and global uncertainty rising, investors are turning to gold-backed strategies—but not all exposure is created equal.

Enter Nevada Canyon Gold Corp.—a firm taking a different approach to gold investment. Unlike traditional miners, NGLD focuses on royalties, generating revenue from active gold projects without direct mining risks.* And with Nevada ranked among the world’s top gold-producing regions, the company is strategically positioned in one of the safest jurisdictions.

With gold’s record-breaking rally, attention is shifting to the firms poised to capitalize on this momentum.

_{WHAT ELSE TO READ}

City Squeez - Our Real Estate Newsletter

On Monday, we launched the first edition of our City Squeez newsletter!

Think of City Squeez as the real estate version of Short Squeez, bringing you high quality real estate news, market insights, and exclusive global listings—delivered once a month.

Whether you're looking to buy, invest, or just stay informed, City Squeez has you covered.

Check out the inaugural edition here.

_{DAILY ACUMEN}

Finding Your Game

LeBron James’ 50,000-point milestone at 40 isn’t just about skill—it’s about staying true to what drives him: the game.

Purpose isn’t a flashy title or a paycheck; it’s the thing you’d grind at for free, the spark that hums beneath the noise.

Too many drift, chasing shiny distractions or greener grass that doesn’t exist—missing what’s already theirs.

Your “game” could be teaching, building, creating, or just raising kids right.

Finding it takes guts: name it, commit, act on it today—30 minutes, no excuses.

It’s not instant; it might simmer for years before it clicks.

But stick with it, like LeBron’s 22 seasons, and purpose doesn’t just fuel success—it becomes the scoreboard that matters.

_{ENLIGHTENMENT}

Short Squeez Picks

• Is kindness the key to high performance at work?

• 7 steps to building a smart, high-performing team

• What your boredom is trying to tell you

• Small talk is good for you and how to get better at it

• 5 self-improvement habits to become best version of yourself

_{MEME-A-PALOOZA}

Memes of the Day