Some research on tattoos in the workplace has shown that men with tattoos were 7 per cent more likely to be employed than men without them. Causation? Perhaps not, but as someone with an unfortunate tattoo, if I can see it as an investment in my future job prospects rather than as just a skull and snake, maybe it is kind of cool after all.

The lowdown

• ⚓️ Research shows that tattoos have reached a turning point in the office and will no longer harm job prospects ($).

• 🪹 Elon Musk says Twitter will rebrand as ‘X’ and get rid of its iconic blue bird logo.

• 💃 Barbenheimer sets post pandemic box office records, with $235 million opening and Barbie slightly ahead.

Flex your finance muscle 💪

Merger arbitrage

When a merger is announced, the share price of the acquiring company often falls, while that of the target company will almost certainly rise. However, the target company's share price typically remains below the proposed acquisition price. This price difference usually represents the risk the merger won't close and that the target's stock price falls back to its pre-announcement level.

Merger arbitrageurs buy shares in the target company (or short shares in the acquiring company) to exploit this price difference. If the deal closes, the target's share price will rise to the acquisition price, and the arbitrageur can profit from the spread. If the merger falls through, the investor can face significant losses.

As we mentioned last week, Berkshire Hathaway appeared to withdraw from its bet on the Microsoft Activision deal closing, just as a US judge ruled in favor of the deal. Merger arbitrageurs now believe the tide is turning in their favor ($).

Featured story

EY seeks advice on why planned split failed

Big Four accounting firm EY has hired corporate crisis adviser Lord David Gold ($) to review its failed attempt at separating its audit and consulting businesses – the now infamous Project Everest.

The collapse of Project Everest resulted in disappointment and embarrassment among the firm's leadership and incurred a cost of $600 million. The key driver of the split and EY’s global boss Carmine Di Sibio announced he will step down in June 2024 ($) but expressed pride in the firm's attempts and claimed it set a new direction for the sector.

The hired adviser Lord David Gold is known for his work advising large corporations facing issues with ethics, governance, and corruption. Sometimes even consultants need consultants.

The content we're consuming today

• Money: Inside and Out: Saudi Arabia's PIF and the new petrodollar recycling ($).

• Odd Lots podcast: How to build the ultimate GPU cloud to power AI.

• FT on YouTube: Crispin Odey: the fall of a hedge fund maverick.

Off-balance sheet items

• If you’ve been looking for a show that is as good as Succession, this isn’t it, but I still highly recommend season 2 of kitchen drama The Bear. A side effect of watching may be trying to cook something beyond your skill set.

The bottom line

Sorry in advance for all the Barbenheimer memes we will be sending this week.