ROBINHOOD SEEKS MORE BANK CREDIT AHEAD OF PLANNED IPO — Bloomberg’s Matthew Monks and Michelle F. Davis: “Robinhood Markets Inc. is seeking to boost its bank loans ahead of an initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter." “The company, which pitches its trading platform to novice investors, has been holding talks with lenders about adding to its revolving credit lines, said the people, who asked to not be identified because the matter isn’t public. It isn’t clear how much the company is seeking.” BIDEN’S TAX PLAN AIMS TO RAISE $2.5T, END PROFIT-SHIFTING — NYT’s Jim Tankersley and Alan Rappeport: “Large companies like Apple and Bristol Myers Squibb have long employed complicated maneuvers to reduce or eliminate their tax bills by shifting income on paper between countries. The strategy has enriched accountants and shareholders, while driving down corporate tax receipts for the federal government." “President Biden sees ending that practice as central to his $2 trillion infrastructure package, pushing changes to the tax code that his administration says will ensure American companies are contributing tax dollars to help invest in the country’s roads, bridges, water pipes and other parts of his economic agenda.” FED MINUTES SHOW EXPECTATIONS FOR STRONGER ECONOMIC RECOVERY — WSJ’s Paul Kiernan and Michael S. Derby: “Federal Reserve officials pointed to a brighter outlook for the economy at their most recent meeting while agreeing to provide continued support through ultralow interest rates and large monthly bond purchases.” But the minutes also show that the U.S. is still far from the Fed’s goals and support is still needed — Reuters’ Howard Schneider: “Even as the U.S. economy gathered steam this year Federal Reserve officials remained cautious about the continuing risks of the pandemic and committed to pouring on monetary policy support until a rebound was more secure.” MAJOR ECONOMIES SUPPORT $650B BOOST IN IMF RESOURCES — AP’s Martin Crutsinger: “Finance officials of the world’s major economies on Wednesday agreed on a proposal to boost the resources of the International Monetary Fund by $650 billion as a way to provide more support to vulnerable countries struggling to deal with a global pandemic." "The Group of 20 major industrial countries issued a joint statement saying the increase in IMF resources would provide countries with greater resources to fight the pandemic.” DIMON PREDICTS ECONOMIC BOOM THAT COULD ‘EASILY RUN INTO 2023’ — NYT’s Lauren Hirsch: “The annual letter to shareholders by JPMorgan Chase’s chief executive, Jamie Dimon, was published early Wednesday. The letter, which is widely read on Wall Street, is not just an overview of the bank’s business but also covers Mr. Dimon’s thoughts on everything from leadership lessons to public policy prescriptions." “‘The U.S. economy will likely boom.' A combination of excess savings, deficit spending, vaccinations and ‘euphoria around the end of the pandemic,’ Mr. Dimon wrote, 'may create a boom that ‘could easily run into 2023.’ That could justify high stock valuations, but not the price of U.S. debt, given the ‘huge supply’ soon to hit the market.” SEC OFFICIAL WARNS ON GROWTH OF BLANK-CHECK FIRMS — WSJ’s Dave Michaels: “A top securities regulator warned about the surge in fundraising by blank-check companies known as special-purpose acquisition companies." “Speaking at a legal conference Wednesday, Securities and Exchange Commission official John Coates said there are ‘some significant and yet undiscovered issues’ with SPACs, which allow private companies to go public with a structure that offers outsize potential rewards to backers while bypassing some safeguards of a traditional initial public offering.” ANALYSIS: CREDIT SUISSE IN SEARCH OF NEW MAP AFTER LOSING WAY WITH ARCHEGOS — Reuters’ Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi and Oliver Hirt: “Thomas Gottstein may have acted decisively enough this week to stay as Credit Suisse chief executive, but investors are likely to want more radical action after the bank’s $4.7 billion loss from the Archegos hedge fund scandal." “Credit Suisse shares have dropped by 25 percent in the space of a month, with Switzerland’s second biggest bank reeling from its exposure to the collapse first of Greensill Capital and then Archegos Capital Management. This has left 57-year-old Swiss citizen Gottstein facing the daunting task of limiting the longer-term damage to the bank’s reputation and retaining both clients and staff.” TRANSITIONS: MFA ADDS FORMER DCCC STAFFER — "The Managed Funds Association, which represents the hedge fund industry in Washington, has hired Ryan Hedgepeth as vice president for U.S. government affairs. Hedgepeth was most recently at the DCCC, where he served as deputy executive director for member engagement.” | 
