Ben Dummett

Wall Street Journal European M&A reporter/contact me securely on Whatsapp/Telegram/Signal [phone]

[WSJ Tech @WSJTech]

Artificial-intelligence startup Lovable has raised fresh funds at a $13.3 billion valuation, highlighting investor enthusiasm for vibe-coding tools https://t.co/XVwuDcyqY1

[Ben Dummett @BenDummett]

OpenAI said two artificial intelligence systems it was testing broke out of their test environment, hacked their way onto the internet and broke into another company https://t.co/htavfCRgZ4 via @WSJ

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Fenway Sports Group, the owner of the Boston Red Sox, is in talks to sell a minority stake in Britain’s Liverpool Football Club. https://t.co/6ERdei1rsi

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Lyons Magnus specializes in fruit-based ingredients and beverages, from flavored syrups for coffee drinks to fruit purees for smoothies. https://t.co/DSlVHigcIA

[WSJ Markets @WSJmarkets]

Italian bank UniCredit is edging closer to its longtime goal of taking over German rival Commerzbank, a landmark deal that would create a pan-European financial giant. https://t.co/4SQY7oXAAX

[Lauren Thomas @laurenthomas]

Another WSJ deal scoop confirmed this morning https://t.co/8zcZw9qDpi

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

How Socialist French banker Matthieu Pigasse won a leading role in Venezuela’s massive debt restructuring after strongman Nicolás Maduro’s ouster https://t.co/H4Im2KUwTr

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Sonny Rollins, who died Monday at the age of 95 at his home in Woodstock, N.Y., according to an announcement on his Facebook page, was frequently praised throughout his half-century-plus career as jazz’s greatest living improviser https://t.co/zGUQhdj3az

[WSJ Markets @WSJmarkets]

Large corporate deals had their best quarterly showing ever as companies forged ahead with tie-ups and investments despite a war and slumping stocks https://t.co/dtIa91m1Fy

[Lauren Thomas @laurenthomas]

Another WSJ M&A SCOOP:

Unilever is in advanced talks to combine its food business with spice-maker McCormick in a deal that would create a new food behemoth worth roughly $60 billion, including debt. Deal announcement expected tomorrow morning. $UL $MKC W/ @BenDummett

https://t.co/U9A8WEZP1S

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Breaking: Unilever is nearing a deal to combine its food business with spice-maker McCormick to create a new $60 billion behemoth https://t.co/HQCScAs1b9

[Margot Patrick @margotpatrick]

Canadian investor Stephen Smith is set to take a 26.9% stake in the publisher of the Economist magazine https://t.co/RXUQTrF0RX via @WSJ

[WSJ Markets @WSJmarkets]

Some of the world’s savviest investors suffered big dollar-figure losses last week after the conflict in the Middle East sent global markets on a wild ride https://t.co/EZwwLqgGCq

[Alexandra Bruell @alexbruell]

German publisher Axel Springer struck a deal to buy Britain’s Daily Telegraph newspaper for around $770 million. Latest w/ @BenDummett https://t.co/jHeC2tB1Zq via @WSJ

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Jack Dorsey is cutting 40% of Block's workforce, betting artificial-intelligence tools can fill the gap. Here’s how he explained the decision. https://t.co/Lxl0QXGtDW

[Lauren Thomas @laurenthomas]

SCOOP w/ @BenDummett: OnlyFans is in talks to sell a majority stake to an investment firm in a deal that values it at around $3.5 billion.

https://t.co/dzMlVPo7t6

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Exclusive: OnlyFans, the British online platform popular with sex workers and celebrities, is in talks to sell a majority stake to an investment firm in a deal that values it at around $3.5 billion. https://t.co/9rdBlna4PD

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Exclusive: Investment firm Stonepeak has struck a deal with the French shipping company CMA CGM to create a U.S.-based port venture valued at around $10 billion https://t.co/iIwm1ED0Zx

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Gerry Cardinale, the head of RedBird Capital Partners and Paramount CEO David Ellison’s close confidant, has spent the week in Europe with Paramount executives, in part to lobby regulators to back its bid and reject Netflix’s deal. https://t.co/vexNgGhoR0

[Ben Dummett @BenDummett]

BP said it has agreed to sell a majority stake in its Castrol lubricants business, a deal that values the entire division at $8 billion scoop confirmed https://t.co/SAM7ZRcrM2 via @WSJ