Margin debt has risen to a record $1.5 trillion, with borrowing rising far faster than stock prices. The rally may continue, but history suggests that excessive leverage tends to turn rapidly into a market downfall.

Intertek faces a problem: to accept EQT’s £9.2bn cash offer today or pursue a breakup that could unlock higher valuations tomorrow. The debate reflects a broader question of certainty versus potential in public markets.

SMBC’s growing partnership with Jefferies signals more than another banking deal. It is a strategic push to build a trans-Pacific investment-banking powerhouse capable of competing for the world’s largest mergers, financings and cross-border transactions.

Paramount’s $111bn victory over Netflix for Warner Bros. shows how aggressive financing and persistence can beat scale. David Ellison’s win reshapes Hollywood’s power balance and sets up a direct challenge to Netflix.

Private Credit poses a major risk to investors, but the current controls may also be the last thing that stops it from becoming another 2008-style crisis

Novartis’ $2B Excellergy bet secures its current immunology portfolio while gambling on the future returns of a still-developing drug.

Apple is turning Siri into an AI marketplace; it is positioning iOS as the gateway through which every major AI company must compete for users.

How the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz continues to ripple through energy markets, trade routes, and geopolitics.

By taking Skechers private, 3G gains freedom from quarterly scrutiny and room to reshape operations. But with heavy debt and a consumer-facing brand, aggressive cost-cutting carries real risks.

New EU banking rules are reshaping competition across the continent. By encouraging consolidation among domestic lenders, CRD6 may accelerate the rise of larger, multi-jurisdictional European banking champions.

A White House-backed pledge aims to stop AI-driven electricity demand from raising household bills. Yet while companies may absorb energy costs, the growing pressure on grids and water supplies remains unresolved.

Canva’s rise rests not on replacing professionals, but on empowering non-designers. As it nears an IPO, the question is whether that advantage can survive in a world where AI makes design effortless.

Record-breaking funding rounds for Anthropic and OpenAI mark a new phase in the AI race. With vast sums flowing into compute and scale, the battle is no longer about ideas, but about who can afford to build intelligence first.

AI driven layoffs and immigration crackdowns are hitting the labor market at once. As white- and blue-collar jobs disappear, weakening consumer confidence threatens the spending that underpins the American economy.

Meta’s latest acquisition highlights a widening gap between ambition and execution. Despite heavy investment, the company has yet to define how AI will reshape its advertising-driven model or deliver meaningful returns.

Merck’s decision to walk away from Revolution Medicines highlights the tension between scientific promise and financial risk. In oncology, even breakthrough drugs carry uncertain returns, leaving firms to weigh billion-dollar bets against fragile probabilities.

Pfizer’s acquisition of Metsera comes at a steep price: nearly three times the company’s valuation just eight months earlier. After abandoning its own GLP-1 program, Pfizer is paying a large premium to reenter the obesity market late. But the deal raises a question of whether Pfizer already lost?

The rush toward AI infrastructure and electrification has turned critical minerals into one of the most crowded trades of 2026. EMAT’s decision to enter public markets through a reverse merger offers speed and exposure, but little of the trust traditionally built through an IPO.

In a single year, Qualcomm completed six acquisitions across AI and semiconductor infrastructure. The message is clear: as its traditional modem business faces long-term erosion, Qualcomm is racing to transform itself from a communications specialist into a fully integrated AI platform company.

Leveraged buyouts thrive on predictability. Video games do not. EA’s $55 billion take-private deal forces one of the most creatively volatile industries to operate under one of the most financially rigid ownership structures.

When a company with $5.3 billion in debt and a 47% stock collapse attracts a hedge fund and an NFL star, it’s not charity, it’s strategy. Jana Partners and Travis Kelce are betting they can turn Six Flags from a sinking relic into a comeback story worth watching.

Alkermes just placed a $2.1 billion bet on sleep with a sleep drug few investors saw coming. Alkermes isn’t just buying Avadel, it’s buying time and maybe the future of mental health medicine.