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Tuesday, 30 June 2026

Compiled with AI from public news sources. Folio is editorial commentary for commercial-awareness practice, not legal advice. Verify any detail against the linked sources before relying on it professionally.

All M&A Capital Markets Banking & Finance Energy & Tech Regulation Disputes International AI & Law

Top Story/Capital Markets

SpaceX's $25bn bond sale pushes US share and debt issuance to record levels at mid-year 2026

US IPOs and share sales reached a record $251 billion through 26 June 2026, excluding blank-check companies, driven largely by SpaceX's listing and Alphabet's $85 billion equity fundraise, according to Bloomberg data. SpaceX followed its IPO — described as the largest in history — by tapping debt markets with a $25 billion senior unsecured notes offering, initially targeted at $20 billion before being upsized. Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs were lead banks on the SpaceX IPO. Analysts at Morgan Stanley project that AI-driven demand for capital could push total investment-grade bond issuance above $2 trillion for the first time ever in 2026, as hyperscalers (large technology companies operating cloud and data centre infrastructure) diversify bond issuance into euros, Canadian dollars, and Asian currencies to avoid saturation of the US dollar market. Alphabet's CFO noted the company holds $100 billion in outstanding debt across six major currencies. The volume and pace of issuance is prompting concern about investor diversification challenges.

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Also Today

FCA publishes final crypto rulebook with diluted stablecoin capital requirements after industry pushback, and separately proposes removing non-UK business from Consumer Duty scope

Ashurst and Perkins Coie merger goes live, creating a 950-partner transatlantic firm with ~$2.8bn revenue

US Supreme Court rules president can freely fire independent agency board members, raising new questions for the NLRB

Legal AI governance gap widens as firms deploy tools without audit trails, approval records, or defensible oversight structures

AI Debt Boom Pushes Investment-Grade Issuance Toward Record $2 Trillion as Hyperscalers Diversify into Multi-Currency Bonds

The surge in AI infrastructure spending is reshaping global investment-grade debt markets, with Morgan Stanley projecting issuance could exceed $2 trillion for the first time in…

“AI debt volumes are forcing banks and lawyers to operate across six currencies simultaneously.”

Energy & Tech

UK trade body BEAMA warns that weakening the ZEV Mandate could cost the UK at least £2.9bn in lost VAT revenue through 2034

BEAMA, the UK trade association for manufacturers and providers of energy infrastructure technologies, published analysis on 29 June estimating that weakening the existing Zero…

“Mandate dilution isn't just a policy question — it reprices EV investment cases and disrupts supply chain c…”

International

White & Case hires former Kirkland duo from Broadfield to rebuild Hong Kong disputes capability after recent team loss

White & Case has hired Fergus Saurin and Grace Zhu — both formerly of Kirkland & Ellis and most recently at Broadfield — to strengthen its Hong Kong disputes and investigations…

White & CaseKirkland & Ellis

“Private capital disputes are reshaping the Hong Kong legal market — disputes teams without PE fluency are l…”

Bigger Picture

Sector Watch

FCA Crypto Perimeter Expansion

The FCA's publication of its final crypto rulebook on 30 June marks the single most significant expansion of UK financial regulation in the digital assets space since the post-Brexit regulatory rebuild began. Stablecoin issuers face a 1% capital requirement (halved from the proposed 2% after industry lobbying), while exchanges face tailored trading rules. The simultaneous Consumer Duty scoping changes for overseas insurance business confirm the FCA's dual agenda: expanding the regulatory perimeter into crypto while pruning compliance costs for internationally active traditional financial firms. Watch for the first wave of FCA authorisation applications and rejections from crypto firms — both outcomes will generate advisory and disputes work.

One to Follow

FCA enforcement timeline against unregistered or non-compliant cryptoasset firms following the go-live of the final crypto rulebook

With the regulatory perimeter now formally extended to cover cryptoasset exchanges and stablecoin issuers, firms that have been operating in a grey zone face an imminent compliance deadline — enforcement action against the first high-profile non-compliant firm will set the tone for the entire sector. Regulatory, disputes, and financial crime practice groups at City firms should be preparing now for what is likely to be the most active crypto enforcement cycle since the FCA's 2021 registration crackdown.

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