logo
Universal Music confidentially files for US listing

Universal Music confidentially files for US listing

Straits Times22-07-2025
Find out what's new on ST website and app.
NEW YORK - Universal Music Group, the world's biggest music label, disclosed on July 21 that it had confidentially filed for a US listing.
Universal Music, whose primary listing is in the Netherlands, did not reveal the size of the US offering or how much it was planning to raise.
The company was valued at about 49.65 billion euros (S$74.3 billion) based on its July 21 closing price on the Dutch exchange, according to LSEG data. The stock is up about 10 per cent this year.
Billionaire Bill Ackman-led Pershing Square, one of the major stockholders in Universal Music, had previously pushed the company to list its shares in the United States.
The Netherlands-based label's roster of stars includes Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Drake, The Weeknd, Ariana Grande, and Harry Styles, according to its website.
Companies are lining up to list their shares in the United States to take advantage of a strong rebound in the country's equity markets following a brief lull due to uncertainty surrounding President Donald Trump's tariff policies.
Confidential filings allow companies to keep financial and strategic information private while engaging with regulators and assessing investor appetite ahead of public disclosure. REUTERS
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
World US President Trump 'caught off guard' by Israel's strikes in Syria
World US not rushing trade deals ahead of August deadline, will talk with China, Bessent says
Opinion Singapore's vaping crisis lays bare the drug addiction nightmare for parents
Singapore LTA seeks tailored solutions to improve Bukit Panjang LRT's maintenance inspections
Multimedia 'It's very sad': She comforts loved ones turned away by inmates
Singapore Subsidies and grants for some 20,000 people miscalculated due to processing issue: MOH
Opinion Sumiko at 61: 7 facts about facial skin ageing, and skincare ingredients that actually work
Opinion With Shatec cutting back operations, what's next for the hospitality sector?
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Jane Street to argue that retail demand drove its India trades
Jane Street to argue that retail demand drove its India trades

Business Times

time3 minutes ago

  • Business Times

Jane Street to argue that retail demand drove its India trades

[HONG KONG] Jane Street Group is expected to argue that its controversial Indian options trades were a response to outsized demand from retail investors, sources familiar with the matter said. The trading giant has been working on its defence against market manipulation allegations from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The regulator in early July alleged Jane Street had taken large positions that artificially influenced prices in the country's stock and futures markets, moving them in favour of its options bets on multiple days. Jane Street said on Monday (Jul 28) that it has sought an extension to respond to the interim order. Last week, Sebi lifted Jane Street's temporary trading ban after the firm deposited 48.4 billion rupees (S$718 million) in alleged 'unlawful gains' into an escrow account. A 105-page order from Sebi detailing its preliminary findings devoted a long section to Jane Street's trading activity on Jan 17, 2024, which was the firm's most profitable day over a roughly two-year period that the regulator scrutinised. The New York-based firm is expected to argue it was eager to facilitate options bets from the country's retail investors, knowing it would be largely unhedged, said the sources familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private information. The firm hedged less in India than in other markets and spread out its hedging activity over multiple hours on that day in January 2024 to reduce its market impact, the sources said it is likely to explain. On that morning, the NSE Nifty Bank Index dropped 3.2 per cent at the open and fell further during the day. Sebi alleged that Jane Street aggressively bought the index's constituent stocks in the cash and futures markets to manipulate the gauge's intraday levels, then reversed the trades in the afternoon to profit from a much larger bearish index options position. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Jane Street is expected to say that high retail demand for options on that index was a key driver behind its trading in the morning, according to the sources familiar with the matter. The firm will likely argue that individual traders bought about US$4 billion worth of the gauge's stocks using options in the first half hour of trading, and that Jane Street, which was acting as a market maker, facilitated about US$1 billion of that demand. Those numbers are based on net delta positions, which represent the value of cash equities, the options positions are equivalent to when taking into account the derivatives' sensitivity to the underlying assets' price moves. Partial hedging Sebi's order said that Jane Street's share purchases on that January 2024 morning represented between approximately 16 per cent and 25 per cent of the trading turnover for 10 of the 12 Nifty Bank Index stocks, making the firm by far the single largest net buyer. As Jane Street sold call options and bought puts, it amassed a bearish position that represented 7.3 times the size of its long cash and futures bets, according to the regulator. Jane Street is expected to argue that the high retail options demand created a gap between prices implied by the options and those reflected by the shares, and the firm sought to close it through a standard arbitrage trade, the sources familiar said. The retail demand was so large that only 10 per cent of it could have been hedged, partial hedging being a common practice among derivatives market makers internationally, the firm is expected to say. In the afternoon, Jane Street sold the stocks over more than three hours, spreading out its hedging to protect against settlement-price uncertainty as the options were about to expire, also a typical tactic globally, the sources said it will argue. Sebi did not respond to a request for comment. Huge turnover Retail traders' enthusiasm for options has helped turn India into the world's biggest market for listed derivatives by contracts traded, with turnover of more than 300 times that of cash equities. Global trading firms have used their capital and technological edge to profit from that large imbalance, but local investors have cumulatively incurred billions of US dollars in losses, leading the regulator to crack down on the trading frenzy. Critics of Jane Street say the sheer size of its positions built up over a short time would have given the firm market-moving power, even if the trades were within regulatory limits. Alexander Gerko, the billionaire founder of rival XTX Markets, has challenged Jane Street to show that its India trading strategy was 'legit' by proving it would work better after scaling it down by a factor of 100. 'Any 'normal' strategy works worse as it scales up, due to market impact, unless your strategy IS market impact,' he wrote in a LinkedIn post earlier this month. The regulator's interim order presented serious allegations and a 'compelling narrative', though it is not certain that Jane Street acted inappropriately based on the initial findings, said Abhiraj Arora, a Mumbai-based partner at law firm Saraf and Partners who once worked at Sebi's surveillance and investigations department. Arora, who is not involved in the case, said that too harsh a crackdown and excessive surveillance of market makers could lead to wider bid-ask spreads, poorer trade execution and increased price swings. The Jane Street case ultimately 'serves as a significant test for India's regulatory framework and its capacity to oversee increasingly complex global trading practices', he said. BLOOMBERG

South Korea Finance Minister Koo to target mutually beneficial US trade deal
South Korea Finance Minister Koo to target mutually beneficial US trade deal

Straits Times

time33 minutes ago

  • Straits Times

South Korea Finance Minister Koo to target mutually beneficial US trade deal

Find out what's new on ST website and app. SEOUL - South Korean Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol said on Tuesday he would try to derive a mutually beneficial trade agreement with the United States, in comments ahead of his departure to Washington to meet U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Seoul officials are scrambling in an all-out push to clinch a trade deal ahead of an August 1 deadline to avert punishing tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump against the country's key industrial exports to the United States. Koo's plan to travel to Washington last week for talks with Bessent was postponed due to the U.S. treasury chief's scheduling conflict. "Treasury Secretary Bessent holds the important position of overseeing trade negotiations in the Trump administration," Koo said in brief remarks to reporters. "We will make the best effort to derive an agreement based on our national interest that would allow South Korea and the United States to co-exist," he said. Koo said he would be joining Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan and Minister for Trade Yeo Han-koo who have been holding talks with U.S. officials including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick for an "all-out response." REUTERS

At least three victims shot in mid-Manhattan skyscraper; suspect 'neutralised'
At least three victims shot in mid-Manhattan skyscraper; suspect 'neutralised'

Straits Times

time2 hours ago

  • Straits Times

At least three victims shot in mid-Manhattan skyscraper; suspect 'neutralised'

Find out what's new on ST website and app. An area is cordoned off with police tape during a reported active shooter situation in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S. July 28, 2025. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon NEW YORK - A person who opened fire inside a midtown Manhattan skyscraper housing the National Football League headquarters and offices of several major financial institutions, including hedge fund giant Blackstone, has been 'neutralised' the New York city police commissioner said. Police did not immediately make details of the shooting public, but a law enforcement source told Reuters at least one New York Police Department officer and two civilians were struck by gunfire and that the suspect was believed to be dead. The source said the information was preliminary, and the condition or extent of injuries sustained by the police officer and two others was not immediately known. The New York Post newspaper, citing unnamed police sources, reported that a gunman wearing a bullet-resistant vest and carrying an AR-style rifle had opened fire inside the Park Avenue skyscraper, wounding a police officer and a bystander. The Post reported they were in critical condition. The gunman, the Post reported, had barricaded himself inside the office tower, possibly on the 32nd floor of the building. A short time later, New York Police Commissioner Jessica Disch said on X: 'At this time, the scene has been contained and the lone shooter has been neutralized.' The skyscraper at 345 Park Avenue houses a number of financial firms, including Blackstone, the world's largest hedge fund, as well as KPMG and Deutsche Bank, along with the NFL headquarters and the Consulate General of Ireland. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. World Trump says many are starving in Gaza, vows to set up food centres Asia Cambodia, Thailand agree to 'immediate and unconditional ceasefire' to de-escalate border row World US, China hold new talks on tariff truce, easing path for Trump-Xi meeting Asia Giant algal bloom off South Australia devastates marine life, threatens seafood exports Sport Dare to dream, urges Singapore's first International Swimming Hall of Famer Joseph Schooling Singapore 44 suspects under probe for involvement in SIM card fraud Singapore Tanjong Katong sinkhole: Road recovery works progressing steadily, tests under way Singapore ST Explains: What we know about the Tanjong Katong sinkhole so far News media footage showed a large police presence in the area around the office tower. 'There is an active shooter investigation taking place in Midtown right now,' New York Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement on social media platform X as news of the shooting first surfaced. The FBI said agents from its New York field office were also responding to provide support at the scene. REUTERS

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store