Warner Bros. Discovery firmly rejected Paramount’s takeover bid in favor of Netflix’s cleaner offer, while Japan’s Mizuho made its biggest-ever bet on India with a major Avendus acquisition.
Continuing the trend of international interest, India also moved to fully open its insurance sector to foreign investors.
In financial markets, a sharp crypto selloff has investors turning cautious, pushing capital toward more actively managed strategies.
Here’s a glance at the major developments on Wednesday.
WBD rejects Paramount, backs Netflix
Warner Bros. Discovery’s board unanimously shot down Paramount Skydance’s $108.4 billion hostile takeover bid, priced at $30 per share in cash, calling it “illusory.”
The company said that Paramount’s offer is clearly worse than Netflix’s binding $27.75 per share offer for its studios, content library, and Max streaming business.
The board pointed to Paramount’s shaky financing, despite claims of support from Larry Ellison’s family, and flagged major structural red flags, including Paramount’s weak credit profile and a projected 68x debt-to-income ratio after the deal.
Paramount’s proposal, which bundles its cable networks, would also slap heavy restrictions on content licensing and lean on $9 billion in projected synergies driven largely by job cuts.
By contrast, Netflix’s bid delivers cleaner value, backed by firm debt commitments and a hefty $5.8 billion breakup fee, with the board urging shareholders to support it as both deals move through their respective regulatory reviews.
Mizuho makes big India bet
Japan’s Mizuho Securities is set to buy a majority stake in Indian investment bank Avendus from KKR for up to ¥81 billion ($523 million), acquiring between 61.6% and 78.3% of the shares and turning Avendus into a consolidated subsidiary.
The deal marks Mizuho’s biggest investment in India to date, as it ramps up its investment banking footprint to meet rising client demand in one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies.
KKR, which first invested in Avendus in 2016, will exit the business, while founders Kaushal Aggarwal and Gaurav Deepak keep their stakes and continue to run day-to-day operations.
Co-founder Ranu Vohra will sell his stake and step down after the transaction.
Strategically, the move strengthens Mizuho’s cross-border M&A capabilities, building on synergies from its 2023 Greenhill acquisition and helping offset Japan’s longer-term demographic headwinds.
India opens insurance sector for 100% foreign ownership
India’s Parliament cleared the Sabka Bima Sabki Raksha Bill on Wednesday, paving the way to lift foreign direct investment in insurance from 74% to 100%, subject to presidential approval.
The sweeping reform updates the Insurance Act of 1938, the LIC Act of 1956, and the IRDAI Act of 1999, with the goal of pulling in global capital, improving insurance penetration, and advancing the government’s “Insurance for All by 2047” push.
The bill introduces a range of changes, including sector-specific licenses for areas like cyber and marine insurance, composite licensing, and the ability for insurers to merge with non-insurance firms.
It also gives IRDAI greater authority over solvency and commission norms.
For foreign reinsurers, the required net-owned fund is cut to ₹1,000 crore from ₹5,000 crore, though at least one senior executive must be Indian.
Premiums will be required to be fully invested domestically, a move aimed at increasing competition and bringing down costs.
Crypto caution deepens after sharp selloff
Crypto investors are turning noticeably more cautious after a sharp market pullback, with Bitcoin sliding 36% from its October 6 peak of $126,223 to roughly 30% below its highs.
Bitcoin treasury companies were hit even harder: Strategy Inc. is down 54% since October and 63% from July, as once-lofty premiums to the crypto they hold disappeared, bringing what Lyn Alden called a “localized bubble” to an end.
Mining stocks, including IREN, CleanSpark, Riot, and MARA, also stumbled as many pivot toward AI data centers, a shift weighed down by heavy debt loads and ongoing cash demands, even with access to low-cost power.
In response, active management is gaining favor.
VanEck’s Onchain Economy ETF is up 32% since May after underweighting highly leveraged players, while EMJX targets yield through hedged crypto treasuries using options strategies.
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