Good morning! JPMorgan isn’t making any new fans, reportedly planning to bring all staff back to the office five days a week—60% are already doing so. AI startup Anthropic aims for a $60B valuation, tripling last year’s. Meanwhile, Meta will ditch fact-checkers, allow political content, and add Community Notes like Elon’s X.

Trump announced a $20B foreign investment to build U.S. data centers, and ramped up threats to make Canada the 51st state, gain control of Greenland and the Panama Canal, with Donald Trump Jr. visiting Greenland, and vowed to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America.

Plus, the CEO of Panera Bread’s parent company stepped down, and the 25 fastest-growing jobs in the U.S.

Investors are no longer conducting due diligence manually—they are automating DD with Hebbia. Test it out today.

_{SQUEEZ OF THE DAY}

Private Equity Wants Your 401(k)

Private equity execs are pitching a new deal - and this time it’s to the Trump administration and Washington as a whole. As Americans’ 401(k) balances swell to $13 trillion - private equity megafunds like Blackstone and Apollo are hoping to break into the untapped world of everyday investors.

Historically, investing in private equity has been limited to institutional investors or just the ultrawealthy elites. But, thanks to Trump’s deregulatory agenda, private equity sees an opportunity to allow defined contribution plans like 401(k)s to invest in unlisted assets like leveraged buyouts, high-risk loans, and illiquid real estate. 

With only 4,000 publicly traded companies in the U.S. compared to 25 million private companies, proponents argue that this shift would give investors access to a broader and potentially more lucrative pool of opportunities.

Marc Rowan, CEO of Apollo, who was in running to be Trump’s Secretary of Treasury is even trying to play hero a little bit. He joked “we levered the entire retirement of America to Nvidia’s performance. That just doesn’t seem smart.”

Rowan has expressed concerns about the over-concentration of retirement savings in index funds and thinks that allowing Americans to diversify in private equity could smooth over volatility from the ups and downs of the public markets. 

But it’s not without risk, though. Private equity funds are notorious for high fees, limited transparency, and restricted liquidity. Retirement savers might not be savvy enough to separate the good funds from the sketchy ones. And other investors could fall into fee traps.

Takeaway: Expect private equity to intensify lobbying efforts to enable self-directed investments in their funds. While the proposed changes could unlock new wealth-building opportunities, they also risk embedding private equity deeper into the financial lives of ordinary Americans, raising questions about fees, oversight, and accountability. Coming soon: your 401(k) statement, brought to you by Blackstone—just don’t read the fine print.

_{PRESENTED BY HEBBIA}

Automate Deal Diligence + Save Hours Per Day

Here’s why 30% of the top 50 asset managers use Hebbia, the AI designed specifically for finance/deal diligence. 

• Saves hours of work per day on diligencing, screening, memo writing

• Scans PDFs, documents, and more (no length limit)

• Drafts one-pagers off your team’s investment philosophy

Don’t just take our word for it–Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures, Google Ventures, and Peter Thiel just invested $130 million into this game-changing AI. 

Book a quick demo to see Hebbia in action.

_HEADLINES

Top Reads

• JPMorgan planning to bring staff back to office 5 days a week (YF)

• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman denies sexual abuse allegations made by his sister in lawsuit (CNBC)

• Anthropic raising $2 billion in deal valuing the startup at $60 billion (YF)

• Trump announces $20B foreign investment to build new U.S. data centers (CNBC)

• Trump: 'all hell will break loose' if hostages are not freed by inauguration (Fox)

• Trump ramps up threats to gain control of Greenland, Panama Canal (BBC)

• Meta scraps fact-checking, brings back political content (CNBC)

• Elon's 3-word response to Meta’s major pivot on censorship (Fox)

• The Dubai billionaire who's investing billions in America (Fox)

• Donald Trump Jr. visiting Greenland as father renews ownership call (Axios)

• Wall Street notched another win in gentler banking regulator (CNBC)

• AI startups drive VC funding resurgence (YF)

• Wealth managers flock to South America beach haven for the rich (BB)

• CEO of Panera parent company departs after less than two years (BB)

• America’s 25 fastest growing jobs (LinkedIn)

_{CAPITAL PULSE}

Markets Rundown

Stocks Waver on Strong Economic Data

Equity markets closed lower on Tuesday after starting the day in positive territory. The ISM Services PMI for December came in at 54.1, exceeding expectations of 53 and signaling continued strength in the services sector of the U.S. economy. However, the prices subindex rose to a near two-year high of 64.4, raising concerns about future inflation pressures. 

JOLTS job openings also surprised to the upside, rising to 8.1 million, compared with expectations for 7.7 million, indicating strong labor demand.

In response, bond yields surged, with the 10-year Treasury yield climbing to 4.7%, while stocks retreated. The S&P 500 dropped by 1.1%, and the Nasdaq declined by 1.9%, led by weakness in technology and consumer discretionary, while health care and energy outperformed.

Balanced Performance Between Growth and Value Stocks Expected in 2025

Growth stocks outpaced value stocks for the second straight year in 2024, with the Russell 1000 Growth Index rising 33%, compared with 14% for the Russell 1000 Value Index. Enthusiasm around artificial intelligence and robust earnings growth supported this outperformance.

Analysts expect earnings growth for the Russell 1000 Value Index to reach 12%, potentially the strongest since 2021, supported by their domestic revenue exposure, which could make them less sensitive to trade-policy uncertainty.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) Getty Images ($GETY) +24% after announcing a merger with Shutterstock.

• (+) Moderna ($MRNA) 12% because flu and COVID-19 fears reignited.

• (–) Nvidia ($NVDA) -6% after the company’s CES event.

Private Dealmaking

• Stryker bought Inari Medical for $4.9 billion

• Getty Images bought Shutterstock for $3.7 billion

• Anthropic, an AI startup, raised $2 billion

• NXP bought TTTech Auto for $625 million

• Fire1, a medical device software maker, raised $120 million

• XyloCor Therapeutics, a gene therapies developer, raised $67.5 million

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

_{BOOK OF THE DAY}

The Crux

What passes for strategy in too many businesses, government agencies, and military operations is a toxic mix of wishful thinking and a jumble of incoherent policies.

Richard P. Rumelt’s breakthrough concept is that leaders become effective strategists when they focus on challenges rather than goals, pinpointing the crux of their pivotal challenge—the aspect that is both surmountable and promises the greatest progress—and taking decisive, coherent action to overcome it.

Rumelt defines the essence of the strategist’s skill with vivid storytelling, from how Elon Musk found the crux that propelled the success of SpaceX to how the American military came to grips with the weaknesses of its battle strategy. Musk’s core challenge, for example, was rocket reusability.

His intense focus on the soft landing of SpaceX’s rockets enabled them to be used again—radically reducing the cost of putting a pound in orbit. Musk’s strategy was not based on how value is created or how to position SpaceX in its industry.

It was a design foraction, the mental maneuver that focuses energy on what really made a difference through understanding the crux and creating an effective response that led to breakthrough.

“A bracingly direct guide about the pitfalls of strategy, based around a climbing metaphor."

_{DAILY VISUAL}

Final Numbers

_{WHAT ELSE TO READ}

Quick. Concise. And Impactful.

Those are the three words we would use to describe The Average Joe’s free investing newsletter.

Their newsletters are the “IKEA instructions for investing” — short, simple and concise.

Filled with market trends and insights that are relevant and impactful.

And it’s delivered straight to your inbox (will never ask you to tip), all in a short 5-minute read.

Join 250K+ investors receiving The Joe.

_{DAILY ACUMEN}

Money Conflicts

Money conflicts in relationships are rarely about the dollars—they’re often stand-ins for deeper emotional conflicts like trust, power, or fear.

Differences in financial habits, like spending versus saving, can feel like deal-breakers, but they’re often rooted in personal histories and insecurities.

For example, one partner might overspend to counteract childhood guilt, while the other saves obsessively to avoid repeating their parents' mistakes.

When couples face these clashes, they tend to polarize, digging deeper into their positions instead of seeking balance. This “my way or the highway” mentality turns communication into a battle, missing the chance to complement each other’s strengths.

Instead of viewing financial differences as insurmountable, couples can use them to create harmony. A spender can bring joy and spontaneity, while a saver offers stability.

Resolving conflicts starts with emotional honesty—exploring what money truly represents for each partner, be it security, love, or control. Open communication, compromise, and empathy pave the way to understanding and growth.

Ultimately, money is just the surface issue. Digging deeper into its meaning can transform conflicts into opportunities for connection and a richer relationship. Balance, after all, is where the magic happens.

_{ENLIGHTENMENT}

Short Squeez Picks

• The psychology of attachment styles at work

• Why empathy should be your top leadership priority

• Just because you want to lead doesn’t mean you should

• The subscription services that can save money

• Why dating apps could look radically different in 5 years

_{MEME-A-PALOOZA}

Memes of the Day