—— Captain of Lynch Yacht Under Investigation; Citadel Miami Headquarter to Break Ground in 2025; Small Cap Stocks Gain as Money Rotate Out of Megacap; IBM to Cut China Research Team; Apollo and BlackRock to Fund Amazon Aggregators Merge; Nvidia Staff Has Little Time to Enjoy New Wealth; SpaceX to Send Billionaire to Space
1. Captain of Lynch Yacht Under Investigation
Italian authorities are investigating James Cutfield, the New Zealand-citizen captain of the yacht Bayesian, in connection with its sinking last week off the coast of Sicily, which resulted in the death of UK tech tycoon Mike Lynch and six others. The investigation is focused on potential charges of manslaughter and negligent shipwreck, according to one of the lawyers involved.
The investigation into Cutfield’s actions does not imply any guilt or negligence on his part; rather, it is a formal procedural step that allows prosecutors to continue their inquiry into the tragic event.
The victims of the Bayesian sinking, which occurred during severe weather, were likely either asleep or attempting to escape as the yacht sank within minutes, Sicilian prosecutors said on Saturday. Deputy prosecutor Raffaele Cammarano noted that Cutfield had been “very cooperative” in answering questions during the investigation.
Details about the exact circumstances surrounding the victims’ deaths remain unclear, and prosecutors have indicated that they are limited in what they can share with the press to avoid compromising the ongoing investigation.
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2. Citadel Miami Headquarter to Break Ground in 2025
Ken Griffin is planning to break ground next year on a 54-story tower in Miami, which will serve as the new headquarters for his Citadel financial empire. The project is being developed with the assistance of a Philadelphia-based developer acting as a consultant.
The proposed tower, located at 1201 Brickell Bay Drive, will encompass 1.7 million square feet, featuring both office spaces and a roughly 413,000-square-foot hotel on the upper floors, according to plans filed with Miami-Dade County on Monday. The construction of the waterfront building is scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2025, as confirmed by a spokesperson for Griffin.
Griffin, the billionaire founder of hedge fund Citadel and market maker Citadel Securities, first announced the project in 2022, with an estimated cost of over $1 billion. That same year, Griffin relocated his family and businesses from Chicago to Miami. Citadel and Citadel Securities will serve as the anchor tenants of the new tower.
The building, which is expected to become one of Miami’s tallest structures, will “redefine the Miami skyline,” the spokesperson said. The project is also anticipated to enhance Miami’s reputation as a “destination for talented professionals and their families, businesses, and culture.”
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3. Small Cap Stocks Gain as Money Rotate Out of Megacap
Stock traders, optimistic about potential Federal Reserve rate cuts, shifted away from tech megacaps just days before Nvidia Corp.’s earnings report, causing a dip in these large technology stocks.
While most shares in the S&P 500 advanced, there was a noticeable rotation of money out of the perceived safety of big tech stocks. This shift followed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s indication on Friday that the Fed may cut borrowing costs in September. Although the S&P 500 index edged lower on Monday, its equal-weighted version, which treats companies like Target Corp. and Microsoft Corp. equally, reached an all-time high, fueled by hopes that the market rally would broaden beyond the tech giants.
“Powell sealed the deal for a September cut at Jackson Hole — leaving intact our thesis for continued broadening/rotation,” said Ohsung Kwon at Bank of America Corp. “But don’t sleep on Nvidia earnings, a consistent driver of S&P returns and still a risk to markets if they disappoint.”
This trading activity echoed a recent trend where capitalization-weighted indexes, which are heavily influenced by the largest companies, underperformed the average stock. Given that firms like Apple Inc. and Nvidia each represent over 6.5% of the S&P 500, any losses in these megacaps can significantly impact the index, even if most other members are posting gains.
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4. IBM to Cut China Research Team
IBM is closing down the majority of its research and development operations in China, marking the latest instance of a US company scaling back its presence in the world’s second-largest economy amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing.
The move affects more than 1,000 employees across several offices in mainland China, specifically those working in two research-focused units: the China Development Lab and the China Systems Lab.
IBM’s decision to reduce its R&D staff in China is part of a broader trend of American companies retrenching from the country. In May, Microsoft offered to relocate hundreds of its Chinese employees working on cloud and artificial intelligence projects, as the US continued to limit China’s access to sensitive technologies. Microsoft had previously closed its LinkedIn social networking site in China.
Jack Hergenrother, an IBM executive, cited increased competition as a key reason for the cuts during a virtual meeting with staff on Monday. He noted that IBM’s China infrastructure business was shrinking and that the company was shifting its R&D efforts closer to customers outside of China, according to a report by Chinese media outlet Jiemian, which first broke the news.
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5. Apollo and BlackRock to Fund Amazon Aggregators Merge
Apollo Global Management Inc. and BlackRock Inc. are in discussions to provide new debt financing for the merger of two Amazon aggregators, according to sources familiar with the situation.
This proposed deal is part of an ongoing trend of consolidation among companies that had raised substantial capital to acquire brands sold on Amazon.com Inc., only to see the e-commerce boom of the pandemic era subside.
In this latest merger, Paris-based Branded is negotiating to acquire San Francisco-based Heyday, in a transaction valued at $521 million in equity. The merged entity will be named Essor, a French word meaning “take flight,” and is expected to be valued at over $1 billion, according to the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the negotiations.
The deal would also involve a round of new debt financing from BlackRock, Apollo, and Apollo-backed Victory Park Capital, which would support Essor in making acquisitions within the distressed direct-to-consumer e-commerce market.
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6. Nvidia Staff Has Little Time to Enjoy New Wealth
On a summer day in Santa Clara, California, the parking lot of Nvidia Corp.’s headquarters is filled with luxury cars—Porsches, Corvettes, Lamborghinis—some even painted in the lime green of Nvidia’s logo. These high-end vehicles reflect the newfound wealth of many employees, thanks to Nvidia’s stock, which has soared 3,776% since the start of 2019. The company’s success in selling chips essential for artificial intelligence has minted numerous multimillionaires among its workforce.
However, the relentless work culture at Nvidia is taking its toll. Current and former employees describe a high-stress environment with grueling work hours, leaving little time to enjoy the fruits of their financial success. This has led to what some describe as a brewing culture problem at the company. Ten people, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution, shared their concerns about the demanding work environment.
Nvidia, founded 31 years ago, has rapidly accumulated market capitalization faster than any other company in history. Founder and CEO Jensen Huang has cultivated a culture of intense work ethic and “scrappiness,” where overworking is expected. The company operates with a chaotic structure, where a single manager may have dozens of direct reports. Rather than following competitors’ practices of layoffs, Huang has said he prefers to “torture [employees] into greatness.”
One former employee, who worked in technical support for enterprise clients, recounted being expected to work seven days a week, often until 1 or 2 a.m. He mentioned that his colleagues, especially those in engineering, faced even longer hours. Describing the environment as a “pressure cooker,” he recalled company meetings that turned into yelling matches.
Despite the stressful conditions, the lucrative pay packages made it difficult for employees to leave. This former employee left Nvidia in May and spoke anonymously to share his experience candidly.
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7. SpaceX to Send Billionaire to Space
SpaceX is preparing to launch a crew of four private astronauts early Tuesday morning for a historic mission, Polaris Dawn, which aims to conduct the world’s first commercial spacewalk.
The crew includes billionaire Jared Isaacman, who previously flew with SpaceX in 2021 and is funding this mission. He will be joined by two lead SpaceX engineers, Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon, and Scott “Kidd” Poteet, a former Air Force pilot and Isaacman’s friend.
They will launch aboard a modified SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, which will be carried into space by a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The launch is scheduled for 3:38 a.m. local time on August 27, with additional launch windows at 5:23 a.m. and 7:09 a.m. If necessary, SpaceX has backup launch opportunities on August 28 at the same times.
The highlight of the Polaris Dawn mission will take place on the third day, when Isaacman and Gillis plan to perform spacewalks outside the Crew Dragon spacecraft. Each will step out of an open hatch for about 15 to 20 minutes, tethered to the vehicle, marking a significant milestone in commercial space exploration.
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本文内容来自《Financial Times》、《Bloomberg》，以及《The Real Deal》等多家财经新闻媒体。