Silver Lake may have found a deep-pocketed investor to join a takeover effort for Dell. Microsoft, Dell’s longtime ally, is in talks to contribute up to several billion dollars to a potential bid, which could exceed $20 billion, a person briefed on the matter tells DealBook’s Michael J. de la Merced. Microsoft, which has not yet made a commitment, has more than $66 billion in cash on hand. The company has done business with Silver Lake in the past, including when Microsoft acquired Skype in 2011.
“A vibrant Dell is an important part of Microsoft’s plans to make Windows more relevant for the tablet era, when more and more devices come with touch screens,†Mr. de la Merced writes. Their partnership is especially important as Microsoft’s move into making hardware has strained the company’s relationships with PC makers. Shares of Dell rose 2. percent on Tuesday to $13.12, while shares of Microsoft fell 0.4 percent to $27.15 after CNBC reported Microsoft’s potential involvement in a deal.
MISSING AT DAVOS: TALK OF CRISIS, AND PARTIES  | The official agenda at the World Economic Forum includes few meetings on financial risk, creating the impression that the world’s leaders have other priorities. “This is a problem,†Steven M. Davidoff writes in the Deal Professor column. “We are five years past the beginnings of the financial crisis, and there is still no real explanation for what happened, let alone a solution.†He continues: “If the financial titans gathered there are really going to fight off the small but growing number of critics who are calling for the breakup of the big banks or even more likely ! a stronger Volcker Rule, they should put forth an alternative or an explanation for why these blowups keep occurring.â€
On Wednesday, there was some discussion about financial regulation. The hedge fund manager Paul Singer said defining proprietary trading â€" a major task of the Dodd-Frank law â€" was a “metaphysical exercise,†according to Lauren Tara LaCapra of Reuters. Axel Weber, the chairman of UBS, addressed the issue of overseeing so-called shadow banks.
This year’s World Economic Forum seems decidedly more sober than in the past. Gone are the big dinners and blowout parties, Andrew Ross Sorkin writes. Google, Accel Partners nd Nike, which usually host memorable bashes, are opting out this year. “Have those companies given up on Davos for good Is there something bigger here at play than just partiesâ€
PROSECUTING WALL STREET  | Should bankers have faced criminal action for events surrounding the financial crisis Why didn’t the government crack down more forcefully Those questions were tackled on Tuesday night in “The Untouchables,†a special on PBS’s “Frontline.†DealBook’s Peter Eavis is taking questions on the topic in a live chat that begins at 2 p.m.
ON THE AGENDA  | Amid reports of a possible weakeni! ng of dem! and for its products, Apple announces earnings after the market closes. Netflix and Amgen also report results on Wednesday evening, and United Technologies and US Airways report on Wednesday morning. The International Monetary Fund updates its world economic outlook at 10 a.m. George Soros is on CNBC at 10:10 a.m. James P. Gorman, Morgan Stanley’s chief executive, is on Bloomberg TV at 11:30 a.m. An interview with Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase airs on CNBC at 3:10 p.m. Jeffrey Gundlach of DoubleLine Capital is on CNBC at 5 p.m.
MORGAN STANLEY’S PAY LATER PLAN  | Morgan Stanley has been trying to cut expenses by shedding thousands of employees over the last year. But the firm is increasingly pushing bills into the future by deferring compensation for its employee â€" allowing it to wait before recording that expense. DealBook’s Susanne Craig reports: “In recent years, Morgan Stanley has been deferring its cash bonuses for top earnings for up to three years. Not surprisingly, the amount of deferred compensation â€" cash and stock â€" has risen sharply at Morgan Stanley, according to regulatory filings. In 2009, the firm deferred 40 percent of its total compensation. That percentage climbed to 60 percent in 2010 and 75 percent in 2011.â€
Morgan Stanley says the move amounts to good corporate governance. But “eventually that tab will come due,†said a rival Wall Street executive who asked not to be named. Morgan’s stock rose after the firm reported earnings on Friday, and it closed up 2.7 percent on Tuesday.
Allergan to Buy MAP Pharmaceuticals for $958 Million  | Allergan has agreed to pay nearly $1 billion to acquire MAP Pharmaceuticals and gain full control of its experimental treatment for migraine headaches. DealBook Â'
Apollo and Metropoulos Said to Lead Bidding for Hostess Unit  | A team of Apollo Global Management and C. Dean Metropoulos & Company “has emerged as a leading contender to make an opening bid for most of Hostess Brands Inc.’s cakes business, said people familiar with the negotiations,†The Wall Street Journal reports. WALL STREET JOURNAL
Yahoo Buys a Social News Start-Up  | Yahoo said it had acquired Snip.it, which lets people organize and share news articles. REUTERS
In Board Changes at EADS, Questions of Independence  | Reuters writes: “In theory, a new ownership structure means European plane maker EADS is no longer controlled by Paris and Berlin, free to pick the very best person in the world for the vacant job of board chairman. In practice, whoever it is, expect somebody French.†REUTERS
Dimon Opines on Aggressive Monetary Policy  | “If we do everything right, we could get out of this. If we don’t, it could very well go on for another 10 years,†Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase’s leader, said during a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum, according to Bloomberg News. Quantitative easing, he added, “is one of the greatest monetary experiments of all time, they’ll be writing books about it for a thousand years.†BLOOMBERG NEWS
Wells Fargo Raises Dividend 14% Â |Â The bank said it had increased its dividend 3 cents, to 25 cents a share, as part of a plan approved by the Federal Reserve in 2012. REUTERS
Urging Banks to Break Up  | Respondents to a Bloomberg News poll said that breaking up banks would help restore investors’ confidence. BLOOMBERG NEWS
Former CLSA Analyst Starts Bank Research Firm  | The Wall Street Journal reports: “Daniel Tabbush, a longtime head of Asian bank research at brokerage CL! SA, enjoy! s playing devil’s advocate, digging beneath the surface to uncover the details that tell the hidden story. Now he’s doing it for his own firm, launched this month with the goal of providing an independent voice on Asia’s banks.†WALL STREET JOURNAL
Creating Coalitions of Aggrieved Bondholders  | The Wall Street Journal writes: “Texas banking tycoon Andrew Beal is known for making unconventional moves, including gambling on high-stakes poker and a self-financed plan to launch rockets into space. His latest gambit: an attempt to wring money from giant banks by banding together aggrieved bondholders.†WALL STREET JOURNAL
Private Equity Hunts for Oil Start-Ups in Brazil  | A plan by Brazil to sell offshore oil licenses is attracting private equity firms like Denham Capital Management, which “is among funds in talks with start-ups before a government auction,†Bloomberg News reports. BLOOMBERG NEWS
South African Private Equity Firm Raises $800 Million Fund  |Â
BLOOMBERG NEWS
New Hedge Fund to Charge Lower Fees  | The Core Macro fund at Cantab Capital is avoiding the classic “2 and 20†structure, instead charging 0.5 percent of invested capital and 10 percent of profits, The Financial Times reports. FINANCIAL TIMES
Loeb Said to Bet Against Nu Skin  | Daniel S. Loeb’s Third Point, which said it had acquired a stake in Herbalife, has a short position in another multilevel marketing company, Nu Skin, according to The New York Post. NEW YORK POST /p>
A Hedge Fund Manager’s Theatrical Side  | David Tepper of Appaloosa Management sang some bars from “Bye Bye Birdie†on Bloomberg TV, explaining that in his younger days he performed in the show. BLOOMBERG TV
Indian Matchmaking Site Looks to Raise Up to $125 Million  | Reuters reports: “Consim Info Pvt. Ltd., owner of BharatMatrimony.com, a matchmaking portal, plans an initial public offering to raise between $100 million and $125 million later this year, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.†REUTERS
Ribbit Capital, New V.C. Firm, Raises $100 Million Fund  | Ribbit Capital is investing in start-ups focused on finance, including mobile payments and lending. ALLTHINGSD
Inside the Origins of Siri  | The original version of Siri, created by a start-up that Apple later acquired, offers a possible “blueprint for how a growing wave of artificially intelligent assistants will slot into our lives,†Bianca Bosker of The Hffington Post writes. HUFFINGTON POST
Deutsche Bank Agrees to Settle Energy Trading Inquiry  | Deutsche Bank has agreed to a settlement with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission over charges that the bank manipulated California’s energy markets in 2010. The bank will pay a $1.5 million fine and surrender profit of about $170,000. DealBook Â'
‘Robin Hood’ Trading Tax Moves Ahead in Europe  | A contested ta! x on fina! ncial trades has taken a big step forward after European Union finance ministers allowed several countries to proceed with the plan. The so-called Robin Hood tax would apply to trading in stocks, bonds and derivatives, and could bring in billions of euros for struggling European governments, James Kanter reports in The New York Times. NEW YORK TIMES
Federal Class-Action Securities Lawsuits Fell in 2012, Study Finds  | The number of federal class-action securities lawsuits filed in 2012 came to 152 cases last year, well below the level in 2011, according to a study by Cornerstone Research. DealBook Â'
Bank of Japan’s Bond-Buying Meets Criticism  | “With no more room left to cut interest rates and previous steps unsuccessful, the Bank of Japan is taking a page from the Federal Reserve’s playbook and will pump trillions more yen into the economy by directly buying government bonds and other assets,†but “as in the United States, there are doubts about just how much of an effect the move will have in Japan,†The New York Times reports. NEW YORK TIMES
How Companies Can Sue Defendants in Insider Trading Cases  | Two defendants convicted in insider trading cases face efforts by Wall Street firms to claw back legal fees and other expenses, Peter J. Henning writes in the White Collar Watch column. DealBook Â'
S.E.C. Fills Senior Enforcement Spot  | The Securities and Exchange Commission announced on Tuesday that Vincente L. Martinez, a veteran of the agency, would run a powerful unit that culls tips about Wall Street wrongdoing. DealBook Â'
