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Financial services
Strategy earnings tank after Feb's bitcoin sell-off
Strategy, the largest corporate holder of bitcoin, saw earnings sink below estimates amid a major cryptocurrency sell-off last quarter. Its loss per share was US$38.25, below its loss of $16.49 one year ago and well below the Zacks consensus estimate of a $3.41 loss. Revenue increased 11.9% to $124.30 million, missing estimates by 0.24%. “Adoption of Bitcoin continues to grow in 2026,” said CEO and president Phong Le. “Digital Credit, highlighted by STRC, has been a big success.” STRC is Strategy’s perpetual preferred stock. “We raised $5.6 billion year-to-date of STRC gross proceeds, increased daily trading volume to $375 million, while bringing volatility down to 3%, all done during a bitcoin bear market.” Strategy’s operating loss widened to $14.47 billion, compared with a loss of $5.92 billion a year ago. The company said this was due to an unrealised loss of $14.46 billion on its digital assets. Bitcoin prices plummeted during the quarter, losing around 45% of their value from November to early February. Prices have begun to rebound, reaching the $81,000 mark for the first time in three months this week, but remain far below their November peak of more than $126,000. Strategy is prepared to sell some of its
Financial services
Blackstone logs record AUM, private credit fund hit
Blackstone beat earnings and revenue estimates last quarter as assets under management reached a new record, though its private credit fund was hit by a slew of withdrawals. Earnings per share rose 25% year-over-year to US$1.36, above the Zacks consensus estimate of $1.33. Total segment revenues were up 24% to $3.43 billion, beating estimates of $3.32 billion. “Blackstone delivered outstanding first‑quarter results despite the turbulent environment, highlighted by almost $70 billion of inflows and positive appreciation across nearly all of our flagship strategies,” said chair and CEO Stephen Schwarzman. “Our all-weather model protects us in these times of disruption while also allowing us to invest where we see the greatest opportunity.” Assets under management climbed 12% to a record $1.30 billion. Fee-earning assets under management rose 9% to $937.6 billion. The company recorded inflows of $68.5 billion during the quarter, led by credit and insurance inflows of $37.02 billion and private equity inflows of $20.35 billion. Blackstone deployed $35.6 billion during the quarter, with realisations of $35.9 billion. Its private credit fund BCRED reported $3.7 billion in outflows, outpacing the $1.9 billion of equity
Financial services
Nasdaq beats with revenue growth across segments
Nasdaq beat revenue and earnings estimates last quarter, with major revenue growth across segments. Earnings per share were US$0.96, up from $0.79 one year ago and above the Zacks consensus estimate of $0.93. Revenue increased 14% to $1.41 billion, surpassing estimates by 2.96%. “Nasdaq delivered one of the strongest starts to the year in our company’s history with broad-based growth across all three divisions,” said chair and CEO Adena Friedman. “Our clients are increasingly turning to Nasdaq as a trusted transformation partner to modernise their core infrastructure, manage risk and increasing complexity, adapt to the evolution of capital markets, and integrate AI to drive greater efficiency in their operations.” Solutions revenue rose 14% to $1.08 billion, spurred by 20% growth in its Financial Technology sub-segment and an 11% increase in Capital Access Platforms. Index also posted 14% revenue growth. Nasdaq said during the quarter that it would revamp its rules to allow faster entry to the Nasdaq-100 for newly-listed large companies. Market Services net revenue was up 13% to $317 million. Operating income climbed 20% to $657 million. The company’s operating expenses grew 9% to $750 million, which it cre
Financial services
American Express beats, maintains outlook
American Express beat earnings and revenue estimates last quarter amid rising retail spending, but opted to maintain its guidance. Earnings were US$4.28, up from $3.64 one year ago and above the Zacks consensus estimate of $4.03. Revenue rose 11% to $18.91 billion, passing estimates by 1.55%. “We had a very strong start to the year, reflecting continued momentum across our premium customer base and execution of our proven growth strategy,” said chair and CEO Stephen Squeri. “We delivered 10 percent FX-adjusted revenue growth and 18 percent EPS growth in the quarter. Card Member spending grew 9 percent FX-adjusted, the highest quarterly growth in three years, driven by strong demand and engagement with our premium products.” Discount revenue rose 9% to $9.52 billion, while net card fees climbed 18% to $2.75 billion. Total interest income increased 9% to $6.67 billion. Provisions for credit losses were up 9% to $1.25 billion. Billed business, which represents total spending on AmEx cards, grew 10% to $428.0 billion. Retail spending was up 11%, CFO Christophe Le Caillec told Reuters, with luxury retail surging 18%. The company reaffirmed its full year guidance, which includes 9-10% revenue growth and earnings
Financial services
Perpetual sells wealth management arm to Bain Capital
Perpetual has announced the sale of its wealth management arm to private equity firm Bain Capital for A$500 million (US$350 million). The companies revealed that they agreed to an upfront cash agreement and a potential additional upfront cash payment completion based on performance and an earn-out of up to $50 million in an ASX release. As part of the transaction, Perpetual will also license the brands “Perpetual Wealth” and “Perpetual Private” to the Perpetual Wealth Management Group for a period of 15 years, as well as continue to own all rights in the “Perpetual” brand. The sale transaction will be implemented through the sale of all shares in Perpetual PWM Services as the head company of Perpetual Wealth Management Group, and is on a cash and debt-free basis. Perpetual CEO and managing director Bernard Reilly said the company believes this is the right outcome for its shareholders. “Following completion, Perpetual will have a stronger balance sheet and more simplified business, focused on two core businesses, asset management and corporate trustee services, while also enhancing its ability to invest for future growth and deliver improved shareholder returns over the longer term,” he said. “We believe we have

Financial services
Magellan and Barrenjoey to merge
Fund manager Magellan Financial Group (MFG) and investment bank Barrenjoey Capital Partners plan to merge to create a financial services group valued at A$1.6 billion (US$1.1 billion). They said Magellan would issue106.839 million MFG shares valued at $903 million to buy the 64% of Barrenjoey it does not already own, with 92.627 million shares going to 460 employees and some incoming directors and 14.212 million going to Barclays plc. Magellan has also agreed to buy up to 10% of Barrenjoey from Barclays for $148.9 million, funded by non-underwritten placement and share purchase plan at $8.45 per MFG share. The two companies said the Board believed the merger represented a compelling opportunity resulting in improved business diversification and resilience, an enhanced client proposition across both businesses, the ability to retain and attract the best talent, and a strong combined balance sheet providing opportunity for growth. “The merger creates a diversified, client-focussed Australian financial services group, with a proven talent base across investment management, corporate finance, equities, fixed income and capital markets,” they said in an ASX announcement. Barrenjoey generated $108 million in adjusted net
Financial services
PayPal CEO to exit as company misses estimates
Paypal has said its CEO will exit as the company missed earnings estimates last quarter, sending shares down 20.3%. Revenue was up 4% year-over-year to US$8.68 billion, below LSEG estimates of $8.80 billion. Earnings per share rose 3% to $1.23, under estimates of $1.28. “In 2025, PayPal delivered solid performance across multiple areas of the business. We grew revenue, transaction margin dollars, and earnings per share, underscoring the strength of our increasingly diversified platform,” said interim CEO Jamie Miller. “At the same time, our execution has not been where it needs to be, particularly in branded checkout.” Total payment volume rose 9% to $475.1 billion, and payment transactions were up 2% to 6.8 billion. Payment transactions per active account on a 12-month basis fell by 5%. Growth in branded checkout payment volumes fell from 6% one year ago to 1%. Branded experiences volume growth also halved from 8% to 4%, although Venmo volume growth rose from 10% to 13%. It expects full-year earnings per share to range from a low single-digit percentage decrease to a slight increase. LSEG estimates had projected 8% growth. CEO Alex Chriss will exit PayPal, the company said today. “While some progress has been
Financial services
Visa exceeds expectations amid strong holiday spending
Visa topped analysts' expectations in its first fiscal quarter of 2026 amid strong holiday spending. The payment firm's earnings per share surged by 15% to US$3.17, surpassing expectations of $3.14 per share in data compiled by Bloomberg. Net revenue also jumped by 15% to US$10.9 billion. This follows CEO Ryan McInerney saying that the company expects full-year net revenue to grow by a percentage in the “low-double-digit” range in October. McInernney attributed the strong first fiscal quarter to “resilient consumer spending and a strong holiday season, as well as continued strength in value-added services and commercial and money movement solutions”. This comes after the company expanded its offering to open its U.S. network to stablecoin settlement in December. Visa and its peers had been seeking to find ways to expand into the market for stablecoins as President Donald Trump’s administration provided more regulatory clarity. Visa’s biggest competitor, Mastercard, also recorded positive results for its final quarter of fiscal 2025 with adjusted earnings of $4.76 and net revenues of $8.8 billion. Both companies saw strong spending and surpassed analyst expectations. Both payment firms reached a pact in Nove
Financial services
BlackRock profit surges as assets reach US$14 trillion
Shares in BlackRock jumped more than 4% after the world’s largest asset manager reported fourth quarter (Q4) profit that surged past Wall Street estimates, driven by a market rally that boosted fee income and lifted assets under management (AUM) to a record US$14 trillion. The company also announced a 10% hike in its quarterly dividend to $5.73 per share and raised its share buyback authorisation, authorising the repurchase of an additional seven million shares. Key Highlights:Earnings per share: $13.16, beating analyst expectations of $12.21.Revenue: Rose 23% to $7 billion, exceeding estimates of $6.69 billion.Net Inflows: $342 billion in Q4; record full-year inflows of $698 billion.Assets Under Management: Record $14.04 trillion, up 22% year-over-year.United States stocks rallied last year on enthusiasm around artificial intelligence, easing interest rates, and steady economic growth, prompting investors to pour money back into lower-cost index strategies. As inflation eased and the job market cooled, the Federal Reserve turned more dovish, driving strong inflows into BlackRock's fixed-income products. Equity product inflow was $126.05 billion, down slightly from a year ago, while fixed-income products saw inflows of