On Monday, UPS revealed that in December it sued European antitrust regulators over a 5-year-old decision that blocked the delivery company’s takeover of the Netherlands’ TNT Express. UPS is seeking more than $2 billion in damages. UPS-rival FedEx eventually acquired TNT in 2015 – NYTimes and WSJ
There are power moves, and then there’s swooping in at the last minute to outbid Rupert Murdoch for the British satellite broadcaster he’s had his sights set on for years. Comcast just did the latter. Oh, and Disney’s in the mix, too – NYTimes and Bloomberg and WSJ
Struggling General Electric announced a board overhaul yesterday that includes the nomination of three outsiders, including an accounting expert and former American Airlines exec – WSJ
Indeed, John Flannery is warning investors not to bet against GE – MarketWatch
Deutsche Bank has unveiled plans to list its asset-management division (DWS) in an IPO on Germany’s Frankfurt Stock Exchange – Law360
China’s governmental takeover of Anbang Insurance does not augur well for businesses looking to capitalize on a once-seemingly-endless supply of Chinese deal money – NYTimes
Not that there isn’t cash out there to be had. The Journal explores the nuts and bolts behind SoftBank’s recent multi-year buying spree – WSJ
The NLRB dropped a major reversal on us late yesterday with news that its recent Hy-Brand decision killing the 2015 Browning-Ferris joint-employment test is now on ice – Law360 and NYTimes
Fidelity Investments finds itself in something of a MeToo/Wells-Fargo-esque morass after an outside consultant’s review revealed that its famed stock-picking business incentives approach created a culture of harassment and misconduct – WSJ
SDNY Judge Lorna Schofield has delivered another resounding “no” to investors seeking to use sampling to establish liability and damages in their toxic RMBS case against HSBC as trustee – Law360
The early results of companies’ tax overhaul windfall spending are in, and they suggest that many are spending it on shareholder-friendly stock buybacks rather than material investments – NYTimes
A major and troubling side effect of the Amazon and Alibaba phenomenon: cardboard. Way too much of it – Marketplace