HawkEye 360 Seeks IPO under ticker HAWK

2015-Herndon-founded satellite data firm HawkEye has now 30 satellites in orbit harvesting data for radio frequency (RF) signals intelligence. 

"Adjusted" EBITDA of just under $25m on a revenue number of almost $118m gives them a 21% adjusted EBITDA margin in FY2025. Revenue growth in FY25 was 74%.

HawkEye "democratises" RF signals intelligence data, previously the domain of state actors.  This is one category of satellite data; others include optical data (photographs) and thermal imaging data.

RF signals are emitted from a multitude of sources including mobile devices, jammers, beacons, drones and missile systems. HawkEye captures, geolocates and classifies signals from orbit. 

In December 2025, they acquired Signal Analysis Incorporated, a signal processing defence specialist.

There are a few direct competitors, with firms like Vantor and Satellogic specializing in optical, and Hydrosat and SatVus specializing in thermal data.  France based Unseenlabs (founded 2015) maintains a nanosatellite constellation using RF emissions to locate vessels at sea, which have disabled their AIS transponders - and hence is focused more exclusively on the maritime space.

Reshuffling Residencies at Informa PLC

Falkirk-born Lord Stephen Carter (founding CEO of media watchdog Ofcom in 2003), Group Chief Executive of Informa, a FTSE100 company, has shifted his residency to the UAE.  The Group's COO, Patrick Martell, has moved to Informa's New York office. Just 5% of Informa's revenue is domestic 40% US and 36% Middle East and Asia. The Board signed off the mass relocation plan following executives spending increasingly less time in the UK.

US sanctions on Lukoil and Rosneft

This includes secondary sanctions on companies that service them, including banks. Note that neither have significant assets in the US. 

GRID Bill Passed to Expedite Dispatchable Generation

The American House of Representatives has passed a bill which could accelerate the progress of dispatchable power generation. The bill's sponsor, Rep. Troy Balderson, lamented "shovel-ready projects" were being delayed "while demand continues to climb". 

In the US, a bill must go through both both "chambers" (House and Senate, which together form the US Congress) and then be signed into law by the President who has the right to veto the bill as well.

The GRID Power Act gives FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) a total of 60 days to review proposals from RTOs and ISOs for projects to be pushed to the front of interconnection queues. 

The projects need to show how they would boost the reliability and resilience of the grid.

Interconnection queues are lists maintained by grid operators that track requests from power developers to connect new generation projects like wind turbines, solar farms, battery storage or dispatchable plants to the electricity grid. Projects in the interconnection queues may be withdrawn due to financing issues or delays in gaining regulatory approval.

For example, we may have a BESS project (Battery Energy Storage System) in Howard County Texas that wants to connect into the ERCOT system, with a capacity range of 200MW-300MW. Another example can be a small gas project that wants to connect into AESO (Alberta Electric System Operator) - Alberta is a province in Western Canada - supplying, say, 0-10 MW.

Monitoring the queues can give an indicator of future capacity. CAISO (California ISO, or California Independent System Operator, to give it its full title) queue reports can be found here. 

EPSA (the Electric Power Supply Association) has published an article explaining the GRID Act and how it contributes to reliability in a growing power system.

Commonwealth Fusion Systems Raises $863m

Commonwealth Fusion Systems (aka CFS, founded in 2018) has raised money from investors including Nvidia's NVentures venture capital unit to complete a demo system to lead to construction of its first commercial plant (400MW) in Virginia (1MW is equivalent to 1 million Watts).

All added, Commonwealth has raised around $3bn, which is one-third of all capital raised in the fusion industry. Google has already agreed to buy half the power output from the project, estimated to complete in the early 2030s.

USA imposes Tariffs on Gold Imports; Futures Rise

The US has slapped tariffs on gold imports targeting 1 kilogram and 100 ounce gold bars (100 ounces = 2.8 kg). A 39% rate applies to imports from Switzerland (a major refining hub). The 400 ounce gold bars (11+ kilograms) from London are less popular in the US so need to be broken down into smaller bars.

US gold futures (August 2025 expiry) on COMEX have been on a tear, trading over $3400 per troy ounce (weight tolerance 5% higher or lower). The futures also breached $3400 in late April and early May. $3400 futures price translates to a notional of 100x the price i.e. $340,000 for 100 troy ounces.

For the avoidance of doubt, the tariffs as they currently stand apply to the unit specification of the COMEX contract.

Mark Carney "Disappointed" With New Trump Tariff

Donald Trump has raised trade tariffs on Canada from 25% to 35% - Mark Carney has expressed disappointment. Pakistan's tariffs have shrunk to 19% following Pakistan's nomination of Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize. India faces 25% tariffs.

Fed Holds Rates Steady as Trade War Rages On

The benchmark lending (or Policy) rate has been kept steady at a range of 4.25% to 4.5% ("Fed Funds Target Range"). This rate is influenced through monetary policy decisions and is used by banks to lend money overnight. It is set by the FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee).

Once set, the Fed steers the rate into the target range, through various mechanisms. 

The Fed has flagged a risk of stagflation - involving higher unemployment and higher inflation - a toxic combination. The US struggled with this in the 1970s and early 1980s; toxic because you need to prioritize which issue to address first. Paul Volcker, in his time, chose to fight inflation. The Fed has a dual mandate to manage both, and its current target is maximum employment at 2% inflation.

Hagerty extols virtues of the GENIUS (Stablecoin) Act

Senator William ("Bill") Hagerty (Republican), who had a pre-politics career at the Boston Consulting Group, is pushing for the GENIUS Act to be passed.

The GENIUS Act stands for Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins and per Hagerty "creates a strong, forward-looking regulatory framework to modernize our payment systems and affirms the dominance of the US dollar". 

The UK has been proactive in creating conditions for stablecoin development in the UK but has come under criticism for overly constraining market development.

As a sidebar, stablecoins are digital assets which can be used to make payments. These so-called "coins" can be created technology companies rather than traditional banks and are backed by equivalent currency in a 1:1 ratio. They are thus less volatile than traditional cryptocurrencies.

David Cameron joins Finback Investment Partners

David Cameron has joined private equity firm Finback Investment Partners, co-founded by ex Florida Governor Jeb Bush (Jeb's changes to Florida's economy led to his state gaining AAA credit ratings for the first time ever). The appointment was disclosed by the UK government's Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA).

Trump Tariffs on Mexico Could Hit Electronics

Nvidia has invested in Mexico, assembling its GB200 NVL72 server racks through a Foxconn factory in Guadalajara. Foxconn is part of the Taiwanese Hon Hai Technology Group founded by Terry Gou in 1974. Mexico is the second biggest source of electronics imports to the US after China. Chinese manufacturers like Lenovo and Hisense have also opened factories in Mexico in recent years.

Greenland Holds Promise of Rare Earths

Greenland, a self-governing territory of Denmark, is being eyed by the United States as a source of rare earths that could reduce reliance on China. It has the world's eighth largest store of rare earths. It also has supplies of key energy transition metals like lithium and cobalt. While Greenland has oil and gas deposits, new drilling for these resources is banned. Three quarters of the land is covered by ice sheet.

Biden's 2TR $ Infrastructure Plan includes $50bn for Domestic Semiconductor Manufacturing

Global semiconductor revenues grew 10% in 2020 with Intel (INTC), as usual, the largest vendor. Its stock price is up 37% YTD. MediaTek has also been doing well. 

NASDAQ traded Micron Technology (MU) that has traditionally focused on DRAM has also done well. It is part of the NASDAQ-GS (Global Select market) which is the highest "market tier" on NASDAQ. The other tiers are the "Global Market" and "Capital Market". Micron's President and CEO is Berkeley-educated Sanjay Mehrotra, co-founder of SanDisk (now Western Digital).

"Memory, GPUs and 5G chipsets" are leading the growth, according to Gartner data. US President Joe Biden wants to expand US production and also address China competition.

China Retorts US Tariffs As Yield Curve Inverts

China will place additional tariffs of between 5% to 10% on US goods starting September 1, 2019, according to the Finance Ministry. US automobiles and parts will also be specifically targeted. Soybeans, seafood and whisky will be similarly targeted. This has led to US farmers storing soybean instead of selling them as prices are hurt by tariffs.  In the US bond market, the yield curve has inverted. This means 10 year Treasuries are now below the 2 year Treasury rate (a historic predictor of a coming recession). The US Chamber of Commerce is urging parties to get "back to the table". The S&P 500 has dropped around 2.6%.

Apple's Big DC Plans - $10bn over 5 Years

Apple is investing big in US DCs.

This includes plans to build a 133 acre campus in Austin, Texas and another build-out in Waukee, Dallas County, Iowa. Tax breaks are helping incentivise investment.

Existing capacity in Maiden, North Carolina; Mesa, Arizona and Sparks, Nevada will be expanded.

Outside of the US, back in July 2017, Apple announced it was building a second DC in Denmark, after their initial one in Viborg (166,000 square metres), with go-live in Q2 2019, shortly after Facebook a similar announcement in January. The DC will be located in Aabenraa in Southern Denmark near the border with Germany and will be powered 100% from renewable energy from day one. The Danish Foreign Ministry was said to have worked with Apple for three years in line with its Invest in Denmark program prior to its investment.

Apple's additional DC capacity will be used to power the iTunes store, Maps, iMessage and Siri.

"US Consumer" credited for JP's 8.3bn USD Q2 2018 Profits

This is an 18% increase from 2017 and just shy of its record $8.7bn profit in Q1. Dimon said "consumer and business sentiment is high" in the US. There are concerns about "flattening of the yield curve", with the Fed raising short-term rates, but keeping long-term rates more or less stable, which could be a precursor to economic slowdown. Citi also posted strong results but Wells Fargo came in below expectations.

The Fed has a New Future Boss - Jerome Powell

Jerome Powell has been chosen by President Trump to head up the Federal Reserve, replacing Janet Yellen from February 2018 or thereabouts.

The Fed conducts American monetary policy and promotes a stable financial system.

Jerome Powell is a former partner in the Carlyle Group. He is currently a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. His undergraduate degree was in Politics at Princeton. He also has a JD from Georgetown, the second largest law school in the United States.

Republicans Push for Simplified Dodd-Frank, Democrats say "No Thanks"

The bill in question is the Financial CHOICE Act, a simplification of the post crisis Dodd Frank Act.

Repeal and Replace the Dodd Frank Act Message from Trump is a Boon for Banking Stocks (especially Goldmann Sachs)

"Dodd Frank is a disaster" said President Trump, on the law Obama signed into law in 2010, named partly after Connecticut native, and Democrat, Chris Dodd, and Barney Frank, a Harvard Law School alumnus and also a Democrat.

Swap Execution Facilities (or SEFs) came about as a direct result of the Dodd-Frank Act.

The market response has been positive.

Goldman stock rose 4.2% (NYSE:GS) and Bank of America 2.5% (NYSE:BAC). This is despite the stocks having very similar betas of 1.5 and 1.47 respectively.

Gary Cohn, formerly Chief Operating Officer of Goldman Sachs, former options dealer and now chief economic advisor to Donald Trump, waxed lyrical to the Wall Street Journal regarding the move.

Donald Trump Becomes 45th US President

Donald Trump has become the 45th US President, the first President without prior military or government service. He has returned the Winston Churchill bust to the Oval Office. The White House has been the residence of American presidents since John Adams (second President of the United States after George Washington) in 1800. One of the first changes made was to change Obama's crimson curtains for gold ones. The Resolute desk in the Oval Office is built from the timbers of HMS Resolute which was trapped in the Arctic. The desk plans are kept in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, UK.