Market Maker

Welcome back to the Deal Room on the AmplifyME podcast where this week our Director of Corporate Finance Stephen Barnett unpacks three themes in focus this week: Bill Ackman the famous activist investor has said that he would consider taking Elon Musk's 'X' public. You've heard of a SPAC but what's a SPARC?! The IPO run continues with Birkenstock the German footwear maker about to fetch a valuatio...

AmplifyME co-founder Piers Curran returns to the show to deconstruct what exactly is going on in the oil market and the potential impact it could have on the global economy. This is a great episode to really connect the dots and better understand how financial markets and the economy operate. Free daily newsletter https://bit.ly/3Oeu4Wk Free Finance Accelerator simulation https://bit.ly/3GoyV5r Co...

Private equity firms have been increasingly adding another layer of debt to their complex borrowing arrangements, raising concern among some investors about potential risks to the wider industry and the financial system. In this episode, Director of Corporate Finance Stephen Barnett explains how the PE business model works, how it's impacted by rising interest rates, and what the potential dangers...

Andrew came from humble beginnings. Born in Peckham, London, success as a young person was just about not getting into trouble! Fast forward to today and he has worked in New York as a trader, is an award-winning TV producer and has been instrumental in setting up a wide variety of diversity initiatives across the finance industry. However, it has not been without its challenges. In this conversat...

The past two weeks have seen some big names come to market including the likes of Arm, Instacart, Klayvio and Birkenstock. While there are similarities, there are also unique differences.  From the sector, strategy, and end outcome for founders and venture capitalists, this is a great episode for anyone interested in working in Equity Capital Markets (ECM). Better still, Stephen Barnett, our...

Arm, the chip designer owned by SoftBank is set to secure at least the top end of the price range in its initial public offering, which would command a $54.5bn valuation. Who is Arm? What is their business model? Why are there so many banks involved in running the deal? What are anchor investors? What can you expect on pricing and the first day of trading? All these questions and more are answered...

In the spirit of application season and making sure you apply to the right role for you, our latest podcast episode is a deep dive into the role of an equity research analyst. Where does Equity Research sit in an Investment Bank?  How is the division structured in terms of teams/focus? What are the main tasks of an Equity Research Analyst? What are the key skills necessary to have success in...

Director of Corporate Finance Stephen Barnett returns to the show to answer questions on the following three themes: Big money coming out of oil-rich Gulf countries is helping the Middle East buck the global M&A trend. So what's the strategy, how important is 'soft' power and where might there be opportunities for aspiring young bankers? We've covered Kim so it's over to Kylie! Reports this we...

In our latest podcast episode, I talk to AmplifyME co-founder Piers Curran on three major topics: 1 - UK house prices have fallen at the fastest rate since 2009. How bad will it get and why Denmark might have the solution to Britain's broken housing market 2 - UBS posted the biggest-ever quarterly profit in banking history this week, so how exactly did they pull it off? 3 - Is the US labour market...

Nvidia reported an incredible 88% jump in revenue this week driven by the ongoing demand for AI chips. However, their shares finished the session flat. What is a fair valuation for the tech stock and can its shares continue to rise? The BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) launched their biggest expansion in its history but what is this group of nations, why the additions and what ar...

In this episode, Director of Corporate Finance Stephen Barnett dives into Softbank's $100bn Vision Fund. Here's what you can expect: - The history of Softbank and the creation of the Vision fund - How the size of the fund changed venture capital – and not necessarily for the good - WeWork as a case study for the venture boom - The impact of higher interest rates and market drawback on Softbank - W...

In this wide-ranging interview, our Director of Corporate Finance Stephen Barnett speaks to Ross about: What working for a world-class team feels like How to leave jobs you love and make hard career decisions The differences between a global bank + a regional bank Why mentors don’t always need to be your seniors What is venture debt, and how to break into early-stage funding Best career advice for...

In this wide-ranging interview, Our Director of Corporate Finance Stephen Barnett talks to Ross about: Why taking multiple gap years might make sense and the benefits of an MBA Why being a jack of all trades is beneficial to banks, and to your career How to navigate assessment centres (in the face of adversity) Why soft skills are most important to develop at an early age (the rest you can learn)...

Ares Management, one of the world’s largest private equity investors, recently announced a new $75mn investment into Major League Soccer's (MLS) Inter Miami. In this episode, Director of Corporate Finance Stephen Barnett breaks down the mechanics of the deal and why the likes of David Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group, has stated that "It’s very difficult to buy a sports team and lose mo...

Find out why despite Apple's drop in revenue the company has crossed an important milestone with its Services division and how aggressive and consistent job cuts, amid a surprisingly resilient US economy, has Amazon feeling optimistic about the future. Meanwhile, ratings agency Fitch downgraded the United States earlier this week to much fanfare in mainstream media. So how important is this news f...

In this conversation, our Director of Corporate Finance Stephen unpicks the changing IPO landscape and looks at the challenges of direct listing and the structure of SPAC deals using real-life examples in focus today. A great listen for anyone interested in banking to better understand the importance of strong fundamentals, investor awareness, and careful consideration of structural aspects when a...

A BIG week for global markets, from tech earnings to central bank decisions, get the full low down. On the trading floor this week, Anthony and Piers discuss: Meta makes a comeback, Google excels on advertising spend and Microsoft posts tepid numbers. Get up to speed on the latest earnings reports from the world's largest tech names. A dovish Fed, soft landings, and yield curve control. Find out w...

Stephen Barnett, our Director of Corporate Finance goes solo this week to cover three major topics in focus: Oddity IPO - The Israeli company ('where beauty meets Israeli technology') debuted on the Nasdaq. Lead book-running managers Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and Allen & Co. priced the IPO at $35, raising $424mn and achieving a first-day IPO 'pop' of over $35%! Cava IPO - The US fast food...

I am joined by co-founder Piers Curran to talk over three themes in markets this week: 1) Goldman Slumps - the US investment bank reported its lowest quarterly profit in almost six years, weighed down by falling trading and investment banking. Was this unexpected? What does it mean for the fate of CEO David Solomon? 2) Tesla’s profit margins slipped in the latest quarter as a series of price cuts...

This week I've pulled on the best minds at AmplifyME on Markets and Banking as Piers Curran and Stephen Barnett deconstruct the first of the big Wall Street banks to report their Q2 performance. We look beyond the headlines to explore the reasons behind the performance in different divisions, the impact of the macro climate, and how their business strategies differ. If you are applying to one of t...

The main topic of conversation this week is Fidelity National Information Services who have agreed to sell a majority stake in its merchant payments arm Worldpay to private equity firm GTCR, valuing the business at up to $18.5bn. In fact, this is one of the largest corporate carve-outs in history! Get an overview of the deal, its structure, and the role of syndicated debt explained in a super easy...

Co-founder Piers Curran returns to the Friday show to discuss: US interest rate expectations - Has the market gone too far, what does an inverted yield curve imply, and why a resilient economy is actually bad news for markets! UK mortgage crisis - Should you be worried?, how far north will interest rates rise and why the UK economic situation is the same but different from the US OPEC+ cut again -...

In this week's global markets episode, we talk about: Jerome Powell, Christine Lagarde and Andrew Bailey gathered at the ECB forum on central banking held in Sintra Portugal. Find out what was said and the current outlook for the three major central banks. US data surprised to the upside this week ramping up bets for the Fed to continue to tighten policy in the months ahead. US banks passed the Fe...

Welcome back to The Deal Room, our mid-week show where we talk all things corporate finance. Up for discussion in this episode: - Elon Musk’s SpaceX is offering to sell insider shares at a price that would raise the company’s valuation to about $150bn. So what is a tender offer and why is space a growth area? - Aston Martin has struck a strategic supply agreement for high-performance EVs with U.S....

Welcome back to The Trading Floor, where I'm joined by Stephen to deconstruct some of the major news in markets this week with the addition of some career tips from the students in our community! What to expect in this episode: MARKETS - The Bank of England hiked interest rates by more than expected. What are the risks for the UK mortgage market and its impact on markets? - Nvidia now tops Tesla a...