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Amidst a chaotic few days where we thought we’d see a hostile takeover of a block of Arctic ice after President Trump bear-hugged Greenland last weekend, another development may be just as momentous. Interim Davos Co-Chief Larry Fink revealed the pooh-bahs are thinking of moving the annual confab from the Alps to Detroit or Dublin. Quelle horreur!   

Despite the chaos, markets rebounded on Thursday, and dealmakers and corporate titans expressed a significant amount of bullishness about 2026 this week. Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick said that he is “pretty amped up” about the dealmaking and IPO environment as companies are in “excellent” health. This tone was echoed throughout CNBC’s interviews at Davos, with Citadel’s Ken Griffin noting that AI has been “a tremendous source of growth” and that “productivity will lift in America.” Moelis founder Ken Moelis said that “scale” and “access to capital” matter when discussing the potential for future deals, especially in Europe.  

The high hopes for the M&A market were not just left for Davos. Freshfields’ Ethan Klingsberg made similar predictions, saying the demand for data centers and software deals will drive M&A in 2026.

Beyond M&A, we enjoyed that the FT’s Henry Mance embodied “A Spirit of Dialogue” by sharing a translation guide for how to speak Davosian. One of the favorite phrases bandied about in Davos, “humanity has just entered a new era of possibility,” in Mance’s spoof translates to “It’s January.”

Meanwhile, Shaun Bisman and Gray Broaddus at Compensation Advisory commented on the recent ISS and Glass Lewis updates discussing 2026 pay-for-performance models and proxy voting guidelines. While these proxy advisors have come under fire recently, these updates provide a benchmark for the upcoming proxy season, with extra scrutiny and evaluation around CEO compensation being a main focus.

Have a great weekend and stay warm,

GPP Team

Reuters: Activist investors do not plan to play nice this year as they eye more corporate breakups

Amid a red-hot M&A market, Svea Herbst-Bayliss highlights comments from Bank of America and Barclays predicting that activists will keep pushing for company sales and break ups as a major tool in their arsenals, continuing a trend that started in the second half of 2025. Read More

The Deal: Activist-Targeted KeyCorp to Shuffle Board, Up Buybacks

A month after the new activist HoldCo called on changes at the Cleveland-based regional bank, KeyCorp announced a board refreshment and plans to double share repurchases to avoid a proxy fight. Read More

Netflix Makes the Next Move in the Quest for Warners

Netflix was the major actor in the Warner Bros. Discovery deal saga this week, with The Journal noting the streamer has shifted to an all-cash offer. In addition, Netflix reported earnings on Tuesday with the Heard on the Street’s Dan Gallagher noting that slowing growth and higher content costs showcase why the streaming giant needs WBD, even if it “dominates” the industry. Bloomberg reported that Paramount extended its tender offer for WBD shares through to February 20.

Financial Times: Berkshire Hathaway considers selling $7.7bn stake in Kraft Heinz

After a decade of involvement with the company, the FT reports that Berkshire is evaluating a potential sale of almost its nearly 28% stake in Kraft Heinz in what could be one of the first major moves under new CEO Greg Abel, although no deal is imminent. Read More

The Wall Street Journal: Zurich Insurance’s $10.3 Billion Beazley Offer Rejected

This week marked the fifth time that the London-listed cyber insurer Beazley has rejected a takeover offer by its European rival Zurich Insurance, with Beazley noting that it remains confident in its standalone prospects and that the offer is undervalued. Read More

The Deal: Drinks With The Deal: Hogan Lovells' Qureshi on Adjusting to New Environments

Mahvesh Qureshi, an M&A partner at Hogan Lovells and member of the firm's global board, sits down with host David Marcus to discuss her career, adapting to different environments, relating to clients, and the firm’s pending merger with Cadwalader. Read More

The Deal: Delaware Supremes Send Second Message to Chancery

Jean Haggerty recaps the Delaware Supreme Court decision to dismiss a lawsuit challenging an agreement between Moelis and founder Ken Moelis, emphasizing that the Court’s ruling will send a message that Chancery judges should be wary of breaking significant new legal ground in their opinions. Read More



IPO

Bloomberg: Deal-Starved SPACs Flood Market in 2026 Following Bonanza Year

After a strong 2025 for SPAC IPOs, the momentum has continued into 2026 so far with more than $2 billion going into companies opting to go public via the structure, creating a “cautious optimism” around the future of SPACs. Read More

Financial Times: Elon Musk’s SpaceX lines up 4 banks for blockbuster IPO

SpaceX has taken the next step to potentially become the world's largest IPO this week by lining up Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley for potential leading roles on the blockbuster listing. Read More

Barron’s: BitGo Is the Year’s First Big IPO. SpaceX, OpenAI, and Other Unicorns Could Be Lining Up.

BitGo, a crypto start-up, debuted on the NYSE on Thursday, and is one of the first to test the IPO waters and could be seen as a sign of the market to come in 2026. Read More



FROM OUR DESK TO YOURS

For those of you who are willing to brave the icy temperatures and potential snow, the Exhibits in New York Substack offers a list of fantastic shows that are more worth the adventure.  

• In Chelsea, you can discover Rob Pruitt’s third solo exhibition, Skyscapes, at 303 Gallery through February 28.  
• Meanwhile, right down the street, you can see Bruce Conner’s three-channel film installation, THREE SCREEN RAY, at Paula Cooper through February 14.  
• Last week provided the opening of Alison Rossiter’s fourth solo exhibition, Semblance, at Chelsea’s Yossi Milo. The work can be seen through March 14. 
• Moving down in the Lower East Side, 601Artspace, curated by Rachel Raphaela Gugelberger, is hosting an exhibition called An Incomplete Haunting. The research-driven and place-based works are on display through February 22.  
• Finally, in Tribeca, you can find Hitoshi Morimoto’s Ceramic City at Guild Gallery. The exhibition, which lasts until March 24, looks at statues through the prisms of light and shadow across ceramics.  

In addition, the Met’s George Morrison exhibition in the museum’s American Wing is on view through May 31. Horizons are the main theme of this magical exhibition and the works show “how much the ‘enigma’ of a horizon can shape a painter’s perspective.” 

With temperatures this cold, these exhibits offer the necessary escape to another viewpoint, and we are excited to check them out.  

PEOPLE MOVES

• Citi hired former Paramount executive and media banker Alex Berkett to run its media, entertainment and sports coverage group in New York. Read More
• Former Wachtell partner Alison Zieske Preiss joined Simpson Thacher. Read More
• Sidley named Kai Liekefett co-lead of its Public Company Advisory practice. Read More

• January 28: Bloomberg Deals TV Show Launch – New York, NY
• January 30: Skytop Shareholder Activism Summit – New York, NY 
• February 2-3: WSJ Invest Live – West Palm Beach, FL 
• March 3-4: Bloomberg Invest – New York, NY
• March 19-20: Tulane Corporate Law Institute – New Orleans, LA

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