Founder & CEO Bond Angle, LLC, Bond Angle, LLC

Vicki Bryan

Founder & CEO Bond Angle, LLC

Bond Angle, LLC

Insightful commentary and analysis on bond markets and market movers, including financial, economic, and industry catalysts and management shenanigans. 

High yield market investment research

Credit

Bloomberg reported that <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nikola-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:29029:1" rel="noopener">Nikola Corp (NKLA US)</a> ex CEO Trevor Milton has <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-06/nikola-s-milton-turns-to-lawyers-who-defended-tesla-s-musk?sref=Q1XEaVVD" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hired the s</a><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-06/nikola-s-milton-turns-to-lawyers-who-defended-tesla-s-musk?sref=Q1XEaVVD" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ame lawyers</a> who defended <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tesla-motors-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20279:1" rel="noopener">Tesla Motors (TSLA US)</a> CEO Elon Musk in his securities fraud conviction in 2018.He might also consider Jay Clayton.Few lawyers have been more helpful to Elon Musk than ex SEC chair Jay Clayton, given his astonishing leniency with Elon over his fake buyout of Tesla which cost investors $20 billion in evaporated market cap.

Bloomberg reported that Nikola Corp (NKLA US) ex CEO Trevor Milton has hired the same lawyers who defended Tesla Motors (TSLA US) CEO Elon Musk in his securities fraud conviction in 2018.He might also consider Jay Clayton.Few lawyers have been more helpful to Elon Musk than ex SEC chair Jay Clayton, given his astonishing leniency with Elon over his fake buyout of Tesla which cost investors $20 billion in evaporated market cap.

Nikola's Milton Just Hired Elon's Lawyers

<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nikola-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:29029:1" rel="noopener">Nikola Corp (NKLA US)</a> ousted <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-29/nikola-founder-charged-for-allegedly-misleading-investors?sref=Q1XEaVVD" target="_blank" rel="noopener">founder/CEO Trevor Milton was charged in federal court today with criminal and civil fraud</a> for lying to investors for years about “nearly every aspect of the business” to juice the stock price.This comes just two weeks after <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tesla-motors-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20279:1" rel="noopener">Tesla Motors (TSLA US)</a> CEO Elon Musk defended himself in court over his role in <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-13/musk-keeps-temper-in-check-in-tesla-solarcity-trial-testimony?sref=Q1XEaVVD" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pushing Tesla in 2016 to buy SolarCity</a> for an insupportable $2 billion without revealing its near-bankruptcy distress in order to bail out his relatives who ran it. Tesla already paid $60 million last year to settle the case, but Musk, true to form, stubbornly resists any efforts to hold him accountable for just about anything, no matter the harm.It could cost him $2 billion to refund the purchase price for SolarCity if he loses, and the Tesla shareholders suing have a credible case, but Musk is used to getting off without serious consequences.After all, he has defied courts, federal regulators, police, state and local government authorities for years with little more than a slap on the wrist.But this year things have changed, whether Elon Musk realizes it yet or not.

Nikola Corp (NKLA US) ousted founder/CEO Trevor Milton was charged in federal court today with criminal and civil fraud for lying to investors for years about “nearly every aspect of the business” to juice the stock price.This comes just two weeks after Tesla Motors (TSLA US) CEO Elon Musk defended himself in court over his role in pushing Tesla in 2016 to buy SolarCity for an insupportable $2 billion without revealing its near-bankruptcy distress in order to bail out his relatives who ran it. Tesla already paid $60 million last year to settle the case, but Musk, true to form, stubbornly resists any efforts to hold him accountable for just about anything, no matter the harm.It could cost him $2 billion to refund the purchase price for SolarCity if he loses, and the Tesla shareholders suing have a credible case, but Musk is used to getting off without serious consequences.After all, he has defied courts, federal regulators, police, state and local government authorities for years with little more than a slap on the wrist.But this year things have changed, whether Elon Musk realizes it yet or not.

Nikola's Ex CEO Trevor Milton Arrested for Lying to Investors. Some Ask, "What About Elon?"

Silver Point

Thomas J. Monaco

Independent Insight Provider

Silver Point is a boutique research firm that focuses on the broader financial services sector, with a particular focus on troubled institutions globally. 

Asia Ex Japan

Equity Bottom-Up

*No Stranger To Losses: As initially discussed in our “Credit Suisse Group – Hit Parade Continues” note dated March 30, 2021, we expressed our concerns related to various high profile screw-ups at Credit Suisse Group (CSGN.VX) [Credit Suisse]. Credit Suisse’ high profile challenges still include: Archegos Capital Management; Greensill Capital; Wirecard, and Luckin Coffee; and   *Adding Insult To Injury: According to Bloomberg, construction start-up, Katerra, has burned through over USD 2.0 bn and is now being shut down.  Credit Suisse initially indicated losses of between USD 1.0-USD 1.5 bn on its Greensill-related exposures.  Well, this figure appears to increase those losses closer to USD 2.0 bn.

*No Stranger To Losses: As initially discussed in our “Credit Suisse Group – Hit Parade Continues” note dated March 30, 2021, we expressed our concerns related to various high profile screw-ups at Credit Suisse Group (CSGN.VX) [Credit Suisse]. Credit Suisse’ high profile challenges still include: Archegos Capital Management; Greensill Capital; Wirecard, and Luckin Coffee; and   *Adding Insult To Injury: According to Bloomberg, construction start-up, Katerra, has burned through over USD 2.0 bn and is now being shut down.  Credit Suisse initially indicated losses of between USD 1.0-USD 1.5 bn on its Greensill-related exposures.  Well, this figure appears to increase those losses closer to USD 2.0 bn.  

Alpha-Centric ESG Research

Kyle Rudden

More and more, companies are using cryptocurrency (especially Bitcoin) as part of their corporate treasury management strategies, discussed in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/bitcoin-on-balance-sheets-indirect-crypto-exposure-considerations-for-crypto-leery-esg-investors" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:52207" rel="noopener">Bitcoin on Balance Sheets: Indirect Crypto Exposure Considerations for Crypto-Leery ESG Investors</a>. That trend is behind the topic of this report.Greater mainstream corporate and institutional use of Bitcoin is driving the growth in demand for cryptocurrency custody services, and banks around the world are rushing to fill that demand. It is a logical and relatively safe foray into the cryptocurrency space, albeit not without some risk.For ESG investors wishing to avoid direct or indirect cryptocurrency exposure, perhaps due to their views on crypto's wretched Environmental footprint, the banks herein will have significant indirect crypto exposure. However, I personally find it hard to be categorically bearish on this theme.Whilst the theme in the first Insight (holding Bitcoin on balance sheets) represents real risk, this is different. It could be argued that crypto custody perpetuates <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/bitcoin-usd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:25895:1" rel="noopener">Bitcoin (XBT)</a>'s climate impacts, thus is a bad thing. Perhaps, from a purely idealistic ESG viewpoint, that is partially true.However, the connection from custody service to carbon emissions is so far removed, and the risks associated with entering the crypto custody space are so comparatively minimal, that the opinion on this theme should be "neutral" at worst, and definitely not across-the-board "negative."But really, that is for each investor to decide, because the crypto/ESG issue is highly subjective.

More and more, companies are using cryptocurrency (especially Bitcoin) as part of their corporate treasury management strategies, discussed in Bitcoin on Balance Sheets: Indirect Crypto Exposure Considerations for Crypto-Leery ESG Investors. That trend is behind the topic of this report.Greater mainstream corporate and institutional use of Bitcoin is driving the growth in demand for cryptocurrency custody services, and banks around the world are rushing to fill that demand. It is a logical and relatively safe foray into the cryptocurrency space, albeit not without some risk.For ESG investors wishing to avoid direct or indirect cryptocurrency exposure, perhaps due to their views on crypto's wretched Environmental footprint, the banks herein will have significant indirect crypto exposure. However, I personally find it hard to be categorically bearish on this theme.Whilst the theme in the first Insight (holding Bitcoin on balance sheets) represents real risk, this is different. It could be argued that crypto custody perpetuates Bitcoin (XBT)'s climate impacts, thus is a bad thing. Perhaps, from a purely idealistic ESG viewpoint, that is partially true.However, the connection from custody service to carbon emissions is so far removed, and the risks associated with entering the crypto custody space are so comparatively minimal, that the opinion on this theme should be "neutral" at worst, and definitely not across-the-board "negative."But really, that is for each investor to decide, because the crypto/ESG issue is highly subjective.

Banks on the Bitcoin Bandwagon: Cashing in Through Crypto Custody Services

Financials Credit Analyst

Hank Calenti, CFA

CreditContinuum

Executive Summary: A liquidity driven melt-up combined with month-end rebalancing to drive bank credit spread performance over the last week. Remove the month-end rebalancing and short duration positioning may remain the best strategy over the next few weeks, absent a material inflection point in the upcoming non-farm payroll numbers. The short end of the rates market continued to push investors up the curve to generate returns. Awash with still rising liquidity, this melt-up was the key driver of credit spread outperformance.Risk asset volatility and talking about, talking about, talking about tapering had little lasting impact on US interest rates over the last few weeks. In fact, rate curve flattening, and falling forward breakeven rates, suggest that the interest rate market may buy the Fed’s assessment of inflation as being transitory.While the transitory mantra is believed, whispers of supply driven growth constraints are being mentioned. This would be interest rate and credit spread positive as it would extend the duration of the recovery and thereby delay late-stage economic cycle repositioning. Although not consensus, this thought is disconcerting, as it suggests the rising rates consensus is very wrong.Therefore, the risk is clearly that the rates market is underpricing the potential for an extended period of higher than anticipated inflation. However, holding cash is expensive. Moving too early to position for higher or longer than anticipated inflation may be career ending. Extending duration to take advantage of declining rates is considered insane. Carry trades remain unloved. Ergo, the silent self-doubtful suffering of the rate and credit markets. Security selection based on fundamental analysis, in so much as one avoids unexpected spread widening, may be the differentiator for outsized total returns over the next few weeks.  We elaborate on these themes within.Market Outlook: The question is whether the over-heating narrative will make a comeback and bring rate and tapering expectations closer. Financial stability risks appear binary from here. Either the Fed is over-accommodative, and it sits on its hands too long while asset bubbles over-inflate so that it gets nasty when it moves, or the Fed gets impatient, and it lowers accommodation unexpectedly which creates a risk off reaction. In both cases, curves flatten in a risk-off environment. We suspect the former is more likely, and for now, the Fed remains the bartender rather than the bouncer.

Executive Summary: A liquidity driven melt-up combined with month-end rebalancing to drive bank credit spread performance over the last week. Remove the month-end rebalancing and short duration positioning may remain the best strategy over the next few weeks, absent a material inflection point in the upcoming non-farm payroll numbers. The short end of the rates market continued to push investors up the curve to generate returns. Awash with still rising liquidity, this melt-up was the key driver of credit spread outperformance.Risk asset volatility and talking about, talking about, talking about tapering had little lasting impact on US interest rates over the last few weeks. In fact, rate curve flattening, and falling forward breakeven rates, suggest that the interest rate market may buy the Fed’s assessment of inflation as being transitory.While the transitory mantra is believed, whispers of supply driven growth constraints are being mentioned. This would be interest rate and credit spread positive as it would extend the duration of the recovery and thereby delay late-stage economic cycle repositioning. Although not consensus, this thought is disconcerting, as it suggests the rising rates consensus is very wrong.Therefore, the risk is clearly that the rates market is underpricing the potential for an extended period of higher than anticipated inflation. However, holding cash is expensive. Moving too early to position for higher or longer than anticipated inflation may be career ending. Extending duration to take advantage of declining rates is considered insane. Carry trades remain unloved. Ergo, the silent self-doubtful suffering of the rate and credit markets. Security selection based on fundamental analysis, in so much as one avoids unexpected spread widening, may be the differentiator for outsized total returns over the next few weeks.  We elaborate on these themes within.Market Outlook: The question is whether the over-heating narrative will make a comeback and bring rate and tapering expectations closer. Financial stability risks appear binary from here. Either the Fed is over-accommodative, and it sits on its hands too long while asset bubbles over-inflate so that it gets nasty when it moves, or the Fed gets impatient, and it lowers accommodation unexpectedly which creates a risk off reaction. In both cases, curves flatten in a risk-off environment. We suspect the former is more likely, and for now, the Fed remains the bartender rather than the bouncer.

Bank Credit Weekly: Month-End Rebalancing Takes Risk-Off Before Take-Off

Switzerland

UBS Group AG provides financial services to private, corporate and institutional clients. The Company offers investment banking, retail banking, corporate and institutional banking, as well as holistic wealth management planning and asset management services. UBS also offers securities services such as fund administration and third-party fund management.

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UBS Group AG (UBSG VX)

Nikola's Milton Just Hired Elon's Lawyers

Nikola's Trevor Milton has hired the same lawyers who defended Elon Musk in his securities fraud conviction in 2018. He might also consider ex SEC...

Vicki Bryan

Nikola's Ex CEO Trevor Milton Arrested for Lying to Investors. Some Ask, "What About Elon?"

Many of Milton's lies are very different vs tales Tesla CEO Elon Musk has told investors for years. Others seem troublingly similar. With new...

Vicki Bryan

Credit Suisse Group – Here We Go Again

CREDIT SUISSE GROUP: There were already concerns related to various high profile screw-ups. The latest appears to be Greensill-related construction...

Thomas J. Monaco

Banks on the Bitcoin Bandwagon: Cashing in Through Crypto Custody Services

Bitcoin holdings by issuers and investors is driving crypto custody demand. Big banks are stepping. A big opportunity, but some ESG investors might...

Kyle Rudden

Bank Credit Weekly: Month-End Rebalancing Takes Risk-Off Before Take-Off

Short duration positioning may remain the best strategy over the next few weeks, absent a material inflection point in the upcoming non-farm...

Hank Calenti, CFA

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