January 2026 – Page 7 – Financial Updates

OpenAI’s Project Mercury: How AI Is Reshaping Entry-Level Finance Roles

OpenAI’s secretive “Project Mercury” hires ov...

These contractors earn about US$150 per hour ...

The initiative aims to automate junior banker...

Project Mercury reflects OpenAI’s push to mon...

Goldman Sachs Tops 2025 Global M&A Rankings as Deal Value Surges by 41%

Global M&A Financial Services

Global M&A rebounded in 2025 to about $4.8 tr...

Goldman Sachs topped global M&A league tables...

Goldman led North America by deal value while...

Falling rates and looser regulation are fueli...

US Banks Post Record Earnings Amid Fed Pivot, Tightening Regulation & Rising Rates

Americas Markets Financial Services

Wall Street’s biggest banks led a 2025 reboun...

Scale and diversification let giants like JPM...

Basel III Endgame was softened, with smaller-...

Generative AI, digital transformation, and a ...

Calviño’s EIB Strategy: Unity, Defence Finance & Climate Powerhouse

Europe Policy Financial Services

EIB President Nadia Calviño argues that Europ...

The EIB will raise defence and security lendi...

Key priorities include cutting red tape, adva...

These moves increase the EIB’s risk tolerance...

Why EU IPOs Lag: Structural Barriers & the Urgent Need for Integrated Reform

Europe Markets Financial Services

AFME argues that a meaningful revival of EU I...

European IPO volumes and deal values have slu...

Structural barriers—including fragmented regu...

Current reforms such as the EU Listing Act, a...

Fintech’s Turning Point in 2026: Agents, Regulation & Embedded Finance Take the Lead

Global Forecast Financial Services

By 2026, agentic AI will become core to finan...

Trust, governance, and stricter global regula...

Stablecoins, CBDCs, tokenized assets, and emb...

Legacy banks must modernize to open, modular,...

Hedge Funds Posted 10.7% in 2025—Can Strong Returns Hold Up Amid Rising Risks?

Global Markets Financial Services

Hedge funds had a strong 2025, posting ~10.7%...

Rising correlations with the S&P 500, crowded...

Smaller, sub-$100 million funds outperformed ...

Allocators are urged to deepen stress tests, ...

Silver Market Faces Tight Supply & Rising Risks Despite Strong Industrial Demand

Global Markets Financial Services

Hedge-fund veteran Alexander Campbell warns t...

Despite these risks, he argues silver remains...

From January 1, 2026, China will require expo...

This combination of near-term correction risk...

Cantor Fitzgerald Acquires UBS’s O’Connor Platform: Risks, Rewards & Timing

Global M&A Financial Services

Cantor Fitzgerald’s acquisition of UBS’s O’Co...

Losses tied to First Brands Group’s bankruptc...

Key O’Connor capital solutions executives dec...

The deal advances UBS’s post-Credit Suisse ba...

Bridgewater’s Record 2025: Pure Alpha Gains 33%, Asia & China Outperform Too

Global Markets Financial Services

Bridgewater’s Pure Alpha fund returned 33% in...

Other Bridgewater strategies also posted stro...

The firm, managing about $92 billion, has tig...

Open questions center on the sustainability o...