David Levine

M&A in Digital Assets - This is just the beginning.... Stripe's acquisition of Bridge is just the latest in a series of M&A deals in this sector that have largely flown under the radar. A few others that have grabbed headlines: 🎯 Robinhood's acquisition of BitStamp 🎯 DTCC's acquisition of Securrency 🎯 Coinbase's acquisition of One River Asset Management 🎯 CoinShare's acquisition of Valkyrie Funds This is a long-term trend that will accelerate as the industry matures, as regulations evolve and as opportunities arise that are too amazing to ignore. No matter what side of the table you are on, value capture and risk allocation are the central tenets of any deal. Find out how to maximize one and minimize the other with Deals in Digital Assets: https://lnkd.in/e9a2xCJR You'll be surprised that it's written by lawyers 😆 #Mergers #Acquisitions #DigitalAssets #Crypto Mayer Brown

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Thanks to IFLR for publishing the article I wrote with Moshe Berliner, "Cautious optimism for US middle-market M&A in 2025," exploring key deal term trends and insights. #mergersandacquisitions

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Great hosting Yoel Sano for a fireside salon discussion on global political risk and security, from U.S. #energy policy post elections to the results of the ongoing global conflicts, with Global Finance Magazine. Points to consider that we often forget: Financial markets are a great place to go to better understand global #political and #security risks, such as #currency's performance as a #trust in a government. Also, reading #fiction is a great way to imagine the unimaginable. In literature, politics and economics! #politicalrisk #security #uselections #energypolicy #markets

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Delighted to share an update on important #digitalasset regulatory developments affecting asset managers in the US with my partners Cheryl L. Isaac and Rich Kerr tomorrow!

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I find Michael Hsu, Acting Comptroller of the Currency, to be one of the most interesting financial regulators to listen to. (Shout out to Hsu's 2022 "Don't Chase" speech on FOMO in the Fintech world. https://lnkd.in/eKxH8nRR). Hsu testified today on the Hill, https://lnkd.in/eeYuzC47, and his remarks contained a few nuggets: ▪ You can see the effect of the CFPB's influence in comments on addressing fairness and discrimination, overdraft and insufficient funds fees, and financial inclusion. ▪ Regulators are like a dog with a bone on third party management issues in bank-fintech relationships. ▪ There has been a "notable increase in the number of generative AI pilots" at larger banks. Talk about FOMO . . . ▪ Hsu is not above a gratuitous dig at the crypto industry. In referencing tokenization initiatives, he said: "In contrast to crypto, tokenization is driven by solving real-world settlement problems and can be developed in a safe, sound, fair, and compliant manner." Ouch. 💥 #fintech #bankfintechpartnerships #regulatorycompliance

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While there was an approval of spot ether ETFs by the SEC last week, those ETFs will not be immediately be available to investors and are not being traded in the market. Anna Pinedo, J. Brandon Birdsall and I answer four key questions on when these spot #ether products may start trading and what this means for future #crypto-related investment products. Resources and more from the Mayer Brown #DigitalAssets, #Blockchain and #Cryptocurrency group: https://lnkd.in/exarn_Ks

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The SEC has recently fined seven prominent companies for breaches of whistleblower protection rules, sending a strong message about the importance of safeguarding individuals who report misconduct. - Amgen Inc. : $700,000 penalty for problematic language in separation agreements. - Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. : $250,000 fine for failing to properly notify employees of their whistleblower rights. - L3 Technologies Inc. : $475,000 fine for restrictive clauses in employee agreements. - Mylan N.V. : $200,000 fine for confidentiality agreements that compromised whistleblower protections. - Oracle Corp. : $300,000 penalty for using non-disclosure agreements that potentially deterred reporting. - Raytheon Technologies Corp. : $500,000 fine for policies that could suppress employee reports. - Sempra Energy: $350,000 fine for inadequate communication of whistleblower protections. These fines underscore critical issues such as the risk of retaliation, problematic non-disclosure agreements, and the necessity for clear, compliant policies. The SEC’s enforcement action highlights that protecting whistleblowers is not just a regulatory requirement but a cornerstone of ethical corporate governance. Companies are encouraged to review and enhance their policies to ensure they not only meet legal standards but also cultivate a culture of transparency and integrity. #SEC #WhistleblowerProtection #CorporateCompliance #EthicalBusiness #RiskManagement #Transparency #GlobalBusiness

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The case for emerging managers: “What we don’t want to do is lock ourselves out of these high-performing, differentiated strategies for the simplicity of going with the big guys”, Taffi Ayodele director of the emerging manager strategy at the NYC Office of the Comptroller #investmentstrategies #investmentreturns #roi #assetallocation #emergingmanagers #riskreward #premium #performance

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Are SPACs making a comeback? It sure looks like it. See some stats below. Three SPAC IPOs priced this past week. LIONHEART CAPITAL-backed Lionheart Holdings (CUBWU) raised $200 million, Melar Acquisition I (MACIU) raised $150 million to target “emerging finance”, and Flag Ship Acquisition (FSHPU) raised $60 million to target middle-market growth businesses. Six IPOs submitted initial filings this past week. Hospital and health care clinic operator Ardent Health (ARDT) led the pack, filed to raise an estimated $500 million. Country club owner and operator Aureus Greenway Holdings (AGH) filed to raise $19 million at a $119 million market cap. Real estate platform Linkhome (LHAI) filed to raise $12 million. China-based TV program distributor Unitrend Entertainment Group (INHI) filed to raise $6 million at a $186 million market cap. Chinese business services provider YSX Tech (YSXT) filed to raise $6 million at a $116 million market cap. Chinese precision parts manufacturer ZJK Industrial (ZJK) filed to raise $5 million at a $305 million market cap. Seven SPACs submitted initial filings this week. Voyager Acquisition (VACHU) filed to raise $261 million to target healthcare. SIM Acquisition I (SIMAU), formed by Sauvegarder Investment Management, filed to raise $200 million to target healthcare. SilverBox IV (SBXD.U), the fourth SPAC formed by members of SilverBox Capital, filed to raise $200 million. HCM II Acquisition (HONDU), backed by Hondiu Capital Management, filed to raise $200 million. Tavia Acquisition (TAVAU.RC) filed to raise $175 million to target energy transition, the circular economy, and food tech. Black Spade Acquisition II (BSIIU) filed to raise $150 million to target entertainment, lifestyle, and technology. Future Vision II Acquisition (FVNNU) filed to raise $50 million to target the TMT industry in the Greater China region. #SPACS #IPO #MERGERSANDACQUISITIONS #CAPITALMARKETS Source: https://lnkd.in/eQ8XxrFc

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Don’t miss the latest insights from THE CRED, where we explore wide-ranging topics across the private credit space, from PIK trends (featuring an article I co-authored with Angelina Liang and Edward Newlands), to the ABCs of ABF. You can read more via the link below. #privatecredit #THECRED

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Well, let’s just say it: New York Climate Week is “the new COP.” As our good friends at Sightline said so well, “Vibe-wise, this NYCW centered more on solutions and getting down to brass tacks, rather than outlining high-level problems.” NYCW is where people go to get things done. Sure, it was a mosh pit of decentralized, self-assembling change, but…like NYC itself, the chaos works. Let’s call it: NYCW>COP.

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Don't wait - invest! The recent comptroller's report paints a stark picture of Israel's climate readiness, or rather, the lack of it. Yet, waiting for the government to magically transform into climate warriors isn't realistic. So, how can we change the picture? My take: by leaning into resilience and adaptation technologies. Investing in water-saving agritech, drought-resistant crops, or advanced weather prediction tools may help achieve the stated goals of improving the crisis. These solutions and others are in high demand globally. By focusing on them, we're not just preparing for our future - we're impacting the world at large. Share any examples that you’ve seen or heard of for successful water-saving agritech or drought-resistant crops! https://lnkd.in/ePA536JB #ClimateChange #StartupNation #Agritech #Sustainability #ClimateTech

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This week Treasury had a whole section in its Q4 presentation to the Treasury Borrowing Advisory Committee to crypto, including the key benefits and challenges of US treasury tokenization and trends in digital asset growth and usage. This follows FINRA's publication on the Metaverse and the Implications for the Securities Industry last week. I'm so heartened by how far the industry has come - I am choosing to focus on the educationally-oriented regulatory focus as opposed to the enforcement-oriented regulatory focus. https://lnkd.in/eTrvEgcq ***** Other news of note: The UK Government published draft regulations for its Cryptoasset Reporting Framework; Larry Fink called Bitcoin “an asset class in itself” and “an alternative to other commodities like gold”; Flow Traders and Wormhole formed a strategic partnership; MicroStrategy plans to acquire $42B in Bitcoin; UK $1.5T AUM pension fund Legal & General is exploring ways to tokenize its investment management liquidity funds; Solayer and OpenEden announced the launch of a yield-bearing stablecoin on Solana, sUSD, backed by US Treasury bills; Crypto.com’s spot trading volume quadrupled from July to September, announced acquisition of SEC registered broker-dealer Watchdog Capital, LLC; Microsoft’s Board tells shareholders to vote no on Bitcoin(?!); Canary Funds filed with the SEC for a SOL ETF; BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF had an inflow of +875M; Aurum announced the launch of a $1B tokenized fund, relying on Zoniqx’s asset tokenization solution and leveraging XRP Ledger; Buenos Aires introduced zk-based digital identity service QuarkID; Chainlink expanded to Bitcoin through a Spiderchain integration; Reddit disclosed that it sold the majority of its crypto portfolio before October (ouch); SEC has formally acknowledged filing to convert the Grayscale Digital Large Cap Fund (mostly BTC and ETH but also SOL, XRP, and AVAX) into an ETF; lots of ongoing coverage of BRICS Pay, developed in order to conduct cross-border transactions without multiple intermediaries (and bypass reliance on the dollar).  

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Huge thanks to Paayal Zaveri for covering the launch of Patron Fund II in Bloomberg and to Edward Ludlow and Caroline Hyde for having me on to chat about our new fund on Bloomberg Television this morning. Re-posting the note shared by my co-founder Brian Cho this morning: We’re excited to announce Patron Fund II, a $100M seed-stage fund dedicated to supporting founders building for the next generation of consumers. This new fund is shaped by our experience as early builders and investors at Andreessen Horowitz, Riot Games, and Discord, along with insights from the past three years since launching our first fund. Our journey has made it clear that tomorrow’s most transformative companies will serve the hundreds of millions growing up on platforms like Roblox and Discord. Games have always been at the forefront of consumer tech adoption, and we’re dedicated to supporting visionary founders who use this gaming lens to build venture-scale businesses across all verticals. The name "Patron" reflects the kind of firm we strive to be—one that offers unwavering support to founders. With our experience scaling category-defining companies, we bring unique expertise in designing products that engage people for thousands of hours, while guiding founders through every step of their journey. We exclusively lead seed rounds to stay deeply involved from the start through to scale. As patrons, we empower builders to create something lasting. If you’re a founder who shares this vision, we’d love to connect. Amber Atherton, Brian Cho & Jason Yeh

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How can artificial intelligence be useful to middle-market M&A professionals? My colleague Katherine Franco (third from left on panel) had a great time talking with Ian Brown (Quantum Capital Group), Loren Den Herder (Moss Adams), and Rich Robinson (Platform Partners LLC) yesterday at the Association for Corporate Growth Houston’s May Luncheon panel presentation about how AI is impacting deal sourcing, execution, and portfolio management across accounting, private capital, and legal workflows. https://lnkd.in/eXdySxNR #artificialintelligence #ai #mergersandacquisitions #middlemarket

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Per a report from today’s Wall Street Joirnal, Morgan Stanley apparently sucks when it comes to having a robust anti-terrorism compliance program. I believe the legal term to describe Morgan Stanley’s reported approach to anti-terrorism compliance is “dumpster fire” but others may have different ideas. I would love to learn more about Morgan Stanley’s Al-Qaeda related nonsense for reasons that are likely obvious. If you or someone you know are willing to talk, please consider reaching out.

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You may have already read about this enforcement action, but you may not have considered what it really is about, what it really means, and the implications for #doublemateriality disclosure language in the United States. The bottom line seems to be if you say something in your 10 – K, the SEC will assume it’s financially material and therefore they expect you to fully treat the issue and associated disclosures as #material. #sustainability #climate #corporategovernance #ESG

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