The Next Generation at Goldman

The Next Generation at Goldman  |  Goldman Sachs is passing the torch to the next generation, as the investment bank announced that the longtime chief financial officer, David A. Viniar, would retire in January and Harvey M. Schwartz would take over.

The move may be the first sign that Goldman is readying the next generation of leaders. The change also prompted speculation about the succession plan for Lloyd C. Blankfein, Goldman's chief executive, and whether Gary D. Cohn, the firm's second-in-command, is next in line. Kate Kelly of CNBC tweeted: “New Goldman CFO Schwartz is tight with Gary Cohn. Could signal that Cohn is solidifying power base, might actually succeed Blankfein.”

Mr. Schwartz will step into the role at a relatively stable period for Goldman, which has emerged from the financial crisis relatively unscathed and avoi ded some of the latest scandals. As the Deal Professor writes:

“The remarkable story will be that Goldman, despite the controversies it has faced, has put itself in a position to not only profit but continue its dominance. It's a case study in business survival and reputational repair.”

Still, Goldman faces its share of challenges. On a conference call on Tuesday, the analyst Mike Mayo noted that Goldman's stock price was still relatively low, as investors fret over new regulations and the economic outlook. Mr. Viniar, who owns about $225 million of Goldman shares, said, “As C.F.O., Harvey will be able to get the stock price higher than I have been able to.”

IPhone Frenzy  |  Apple closed above $700 a share for the first time. The technology giant is riding the wave from the iPhone 5, which has generated strong sales and decent reviews. As The Washington Post notes, it's a somewhat “arbitrary” milestone that represents “little more than a nice round number and a record high trading level.” But then again it's Apple, the most valuable public company in the world. And even at $700 a share, it's not overvalued, argues Felix Salmon of Reuters.

The Billionaires' Building  |  The new 1,004-foot tower known as One57, in Midtown Manhattan, may be the new haven for billionaires, The New York Times reports. According to The Times: “The buyers of the nine full-floor apartments near the top that have sold so far - among them two duplexes under contract for more than $90 million each - are all billionaires, Gary Barnett, the president of the Extell Development Company, the building's developer, said this week.” Mr. Barnett added that the group includes some “significant Forbes billionaires.”

Even owners at 15 Central Park West, t he Robert A. M. Stern-designed tower that is home to big Wall Street names like Lloyd C. Blankfein and Daniel S. Loeb, are buying into One57, according to The Times.

On the Agenda  |  The bond investor Jeffrey Gundlach, of DoubleLine Capital, who recently expressed an interest in equities, is on CNBC today at 11 a.m. Andrew Mason, Groupon's chief executive, is on CNBC at 1:30. (With the stock down 11 percent over the past two days, one wonders if Mr. Mason will be his usual wacky self.) Steve Case, the investor and AOL co-founder whose firm, Revolution, raised a venture capital fund last year, is on Bloomberg TV at 6. William Blair, the investment banking and asset management firm, is hosting its 15th annual private equity conference in Chicago on Wednesday and Thursday. Ben Bernanke, the Fed chairman, is having a private meeting today with the Senat e Finance committee, to discuss policy issues related to the “fiscal cliff.”

Help for Housing  |  Economists have been hopeful that the housing market is on a slow and meandering path to recovery. Data released today include housing starts, out at 8:30 a.m., and existing home sales at 10 a.m.

The housing market could eventually get a lift from new bond purchases by the Federal Reserve, which Mr. Bernanke announced last week. But it's not clear those moves will actually help lower mortgage rates. DealBook's Peter Eavis wrote on Tuesday that pricing on home loans has “gotten stuck.” He wrote: “The banks aren't fully passing on the low rates in the bond market to borrowers. Instead, they are taking bigger gains, and increasing the size of their cut.”

Coming to Market  |  The I.P. O. markets are facing another test, and the early results don't look good.

Japan Airlines, making a return to the stock market after a $4.4 billion bailout, raised $8.5 billion in an offering, marking the biggest debut since Facebook. But the carrier failed to sustain investors' enthusiasm when it began trading in Tokyo on Wednesday. It closed barely above its offering price, Hiroko Tabuchi reports for DealBook.

In the United States, Trulia, the real estate search site, is set to price its I.P.O. on Wednesday. The company plans to sell 6 million shares at a price of $14 to $16 a share.

The Romney Fumble  |  Despite the latest gaffe by Mitt Romney, some Wall Street types don't think the race is over. Given the moribund economy, Dan Greenhaus of BTIG told Business Insider that Mr. Romney should be leading in the polls. “The notion that his campaign is dead is not shared by everyone,” said Michael Block of Phoenix Partners.

The Republican presidential candidate's latest headache - the video showing him at a fund-raising event talking dismissively about “47 percent” of voters - has dragged another financier, Marc J. Leder, into an uncomfortable spotlight. Mr. Leder, of the private equity firm Sun Capital Partners, hosted the event earlier this year. On Tuesday, his spokesman issued a statement, according to Fortune:

“I hosted a fundraiser for an old friend in May. I believe all Americans should have the opportunity to succeed, to improve their lives, and to build even better lives for their children. I have supported people from both political parties who share this view and make it a priority, even though their ideas on how to achieve it may differ.”

Mergers & Acquisitions '

Anschutz to Explore Sale of Entertai nment Group  |  The Anschutz Corporation is weighing a sale of Anschutz Entertainment Group, a sports and entertainment company.
DealBook '

Blackstone to Buy Control of Vivint, a Home Security Provider  |  The Blackstone Group has agreed to buy control of Vivint, a provider of home security services, for more than $2 billion, Vivint's chief executive said in an interview on Tuesday.
DealBook '

In Buyback Deal, Alibaba Gets Half of Yahoo's Stake  |  The Alibaba Group said that it had closed on the repurchase of a 20 percent stake in itself from Yahoo, taking the first major step toward a long-held goal.
DealBook '

Heineken Moves Closer to Asian Brewery Deal  |  Heineken struck a truce with Thai Beverage, which said it would vote in favor of Heineken's plan to buy a stake in Asia Pacific Breweries, Reuters reports.
REUTERS

Morgan Stanley Completes Purchase of Additional Brokerage Stake  | 
WALL STREET JOURNAL

Peugeot Said to Be in Talks to Sell Gefco Stake  | 
WALL STREET JOURNAL

INVESTMENT BANKING '

Do Exchanges Give High-Speed Traders an Edge?  |  Haim Bodek, a trader who formerly worked at Goldman Sachs and UBS, approached the Securities and Exchange Commission last year with the allegation that stock exchanges “had worked with rapid-fire trading firms to give them an unfair edge over everyday investors,” The Wall Street Journal reports.
WALL STREET JOURNAL

Morgan Stanley Funds Bought Into Facebook I.P.O.  |  Morgan Stanley, which underwrote Facebook's I.P.O., said its money-management unit invested about $380 million in Facebook's I.P.O., buying about 2 percent of the shares, Bloomberg News reports.
BLOOMBERG NEWS

Withdrawals Weigh on European Banks  |  With depositors pulling their money from banks in Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Greece, the run is “leading to a fragmentation of credit and a tw o-tiered banking system blocking economic recovery and blunting European Central Bank policy,” Bloomberg News reports.
BLOOMBERG NEWS

UBS Said to Be Planning Investment Bank Job Cuts  |  The Swiss bank plans to cut 80 to 90 jobs in its European investment banking division, Bloomberg News reports, citing two unidentified people familiar with the matter.
BLOOMBERG NEWS

PRIVATE EQUITY '

CVC Said to Be Selling a Stake in Itself  |  The private equity firm CVC Capital Partners agreed to sell a 10 percent stake to three sovereign wealth funds, Bloomberg News reports, citing two unidentified people with knowledge of the move. According to The Financial Times, the buy ers are long-term investors in funds run by CVC.
BLOOMBERG NEWS  |  FINANCIAL TIMES

Providence Equity's Nelson and Netflix's Hastings Join the Giving Pledge  |  Jonathan M. Nelson of Providence Equity Partners and Reed Hastings, the chief executive of Netflix and a Facebook board member, are among the latest signatories to the Giving Pledge, joining a growing number of billionaires who plan to give away most of their wealth.
DealBook '

Private Equity Firms Eye European Real Estate  |  With asset prices in Europe weighed down by the Continent's crisis, American real estate investors are taking notice. Private equity firms looking to buy troubled commercial real estate mortgages are hoping “to earn generous returns of 12 to 18 percent, investors and advisers say,” according to The New York Times.
NEW YORK TIMES

Carlyle to Buy Stake in Turkish Lingerie Maker Penti  | 
REUTERS

CIC Finds Partners Overseas  |  The Chinese sovereign wealth fund has been co-investing with foreign private equity firms like Brookfield Asset Management of Canada, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing unidentified people with direct knowledge of the fund.
WALL STREET JOURNAL

HEDGE FUNDS '

Louis Bacon, Environmental Conservationist  |  Mr. Bacon, the founder of Moore Capital Management, is on what he calls a “righteous battle” to save a stretch of land in Colorado, Forbes reports.
FORBES

Soros Fund Invests in Ethanol Project  |  The Soros Economic Development Fund said it would get a 19 percent stake in a $20 million ethanol project in Mozambique.
WALL STREET JOURNAL

Ex-MF Global Executive to Start Hedge Fund  |  No, it's not Jon Corzine. Daniel Bystrom, the former head of equity derivatives trading at MF Global, and another partner are starting Hawksfield Capital, Bloomberg News reports.
BLOOMBERG NEWS

Mason Capital Can Appeal Rulin g in Canada  |  The American hedge fund Mason Capital, the largest shareholder of the Telus Corporation, said it was given permission to appeal an unfavorable ruling in its dispute with the Canadian telecommunications company, Reuters reports.
REUTERS

I.P.O./OFFERINGS '

Sale of Sberbank Shares Raises $5.1 Billion for Russia  | 
WALL STREET JOURNAL

Manchester United's 4th-Quarter Loss Widens  |  Manchester United's net loss for its fourth quarter widened significantly from the year-ago period, the soccer club said on Tuesday in its first earnings report as a publicly traded company.
DealBook '

Berry Plastics May Look to Raise $2 Billion  |  Berry Plastics, which is owned by funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management, was said to be considering setting terms of an I.P.O. this week, Bloomberg News reports.
BLOOMBERG NEWS

Astro of Malaysia Sets Range for I.P.O.  | 
REUTERS

VENTURE CAPITAL '

Media Moguls in Partnership With Start-Up Publisher  |  The producer Scott Rudin, the publishing executive Frances Coady and Barry Diller, the chairman of IAC/InterActiveCorp, are forming a new publishing venture that will partner with Atavist, a Brooklyn start-up, T he New York Times reports. Mr. Diller and Mr. Rudin had informal discussions this summer about paying as much as $10 million for a controlling interest in Atavist, The Times says.
NEW YORK TIMES

Haven for Coders Meets Fund-Raising Goal  |  Hacker Dojo, a warehouse in Mountain View, Calif., raised the money that will allow it to make repairs and comply with city regulations, so it can avoid being shut down, the Bits blog reports.
NEW YORK TIMES BITS

LEGAL/REGULATORY '

Tech Companies Form Lobbyist Group  |  Technology giants like Google, Amazon, Yahoo, eBay and Facebook, as well as Zynga, LinkedIn, Expedia and Monster Worldwide, are forming a group called the Inte rnet Association, Reuters reports.
REUTERS

Spain Sells $6 Billion of Short-Term Debt  |  Borrowing costs remained elevated, though they were slightly lower than in the previous sale.
NEW YORK TIMES

Japan Plans More Monetary Easing  |  The Japanese central bank is following the lead of the United States.
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Bank of England Expected to Increase Stimulus  | 
WALL STREET JOURNAL