
Opening Bell: 4.20.21
Oatly Reveals Growing Losses, Revenue in U.S. IPO Filing [Bloomberg]
Oatly reported a $60 million net loss on $421 million revenue in 2020, compared with a loss of $36 million on revenue of $204 million the previous year, according to the filing…. The drink’s popularity has led to supply shortages in the U.S. following a delay related to the coronavirus pandemic in the construction of a production facility….
Behind the Mysterious Demise of a $1.7 Billion Mutual Fund [WSJ]
The Infinity Q Diversified Alpha Fund disclosed in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission valuations of investments that in at least three instances were incorrect or inconsistent with market conditions, said traders and academics. One valuation was mathematically impossible, said a former Morgan Stanley managing director who reviewed the disclosures…. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecutors at the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office are also investigating….
On Feb. 29, 2020, Infinity’s filing showed a gain on the position of $5.6 million.
But given the stated terms, the most Infinity could expect to make on the trade would be $5.2 million….
Hedge Fund Giant Warns of SPAC Blowup After Betting $1 Billion [Bloomberg]
“The SPAC phenomenon will end badly and leave many casualties,” Marshall said, while disclosing that the firm has more than $1 billion of gross exposure to SPACs in its flagship $21 billion Eureka hedge fund…. The SPAC structure could even have been designed to encourage “the bezzle,” he said, referencing a term coined by economist John Kenneth Galbraith to describe the period in which an embezzler has stolen money but the victim doesn’t yet realize it….
The firm owns or has owned “almost every SPAC” on the long side and is now also betting on their prices to collapse.
John Paulson Is Said to Participate in Piraeus Capital Increase [Bloomberg]
The billionaire investor, already one of the biggest private shareholders in Greece’s second-largest bank, will take up a significant stake alongside two other anchor investors, in a share sale that could raise as much as 1.38 billion euros ($1.66 billion), according to people familiar with the matter, who asked for anonymity to discuss private matters…. The capital increase is part of a broader clean-up effort by Piraeus that also includes bringing its bad-loan ratio below 3% over the medium term, from 45% last year, and a plan to sell new debt by the end of the year.
Cryptocurrency Giant Binance Hires Former Top Bank Regulator [WSJ]
Brian Brooks, an acting head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency under the Trump administration, will become the new chief executive of Binance.US, the U.S. affiliate of overseas crypto-exchange giant Binance Holdings Ltd…. During his time at the OCC, Mr. Brooks was dubbed the “CryptoComptroller” on social media for his friendly attitude toward digital currencies…. Before joining the OCC he was the chief legal officer of Coinbase Global Inc., the U.S. bitcoin exchange.
The Billionaire Scientist Behind The Pfizer-BioNTech Vaccine Has Not Sold A Single Share Of His Booming Stock [Forbes]
Uğur Şahin, the CEO and scientist behind the first Covid-19 vaccine authorized in the U.S., has not sold a single share of his company’s booming stock during the pandemic, Securities and Exchange Commission filings show…. With the development of the vaccine, however, BioNTech’s stock has risen by 900% since its 2019 IPO and today the company is valued at $37 billion. BioNTech now expects to generate $11.5 billion of revenue under deals for the vaccine that have already been struck. On paper, Şahin’s BioNTech stake is worth $6.1 billion.