Pulse 2.0

Mitsubishi Electric has agreed to acquire PCI Energy Solutions for $1.4 billion, expanding the Japanese industrial technology company’s presence in enterprise software used to manage increasingly complex electricity markets and power systems. Under the agreement, Mitsubishi Electric will acquire all outstanding equity interests in PCI, a U.S.-based provider of energy management and optimization software. The agreement was executed on August 20, 2026.

Ipsen has completed its acquisition of Kartos Therapeutics, adding the late-stage oncology drug navtemadlin to its pipeline as the company expands its presence in myelofibrosis. Kartos is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing navtemadlin, an oral MDM2 inhibitor currently in Phase III clinical development. Navtemadlin is being developed as an add-on treatment to ruxolitinib for patients with myelofibrosis who have a suboptimal response to the standard therapy.

Steadfast Group has entered into a binding scheme implementation deed for a consortium backed by KKR, Dragoneer Investment Group and Amwins Group to acquire the Australian insurance distribution company in a transaction carrying an enterprise value of approximately A$7.7 billion, or about $5.5 billion according to Insurance Journal. Under the transaction, Steadfast shareholders will receive A$6 per share in cash, less any permitted dividends or distributions paid before implementation.

Monte dei Paschi di Siena has launched separate all-share offers valued at approximately €34 billion, or $40 billion, for Banco BPM and Banca Generali as the Italian lender seeks to remain independent and fend off a €36 billion takeover bid from Intesa Sanpaolo, according to Reuters. MPS CEO Luigi Lovaglio is pursuing the two acquisitions as an alternative to Intesa’s cash-and-share proposal, which would ultimately break up substantial portions of MPS.

BILL reported sharply improving non-GAAP profitability in its fiscal fourth quarter of 2026, but its GAAP operating loss moved in the opposite direction as restructuring and other excluded costs created a substantial gap between the two measures. Non-GAAP operating income increased 80% to $101.6 million from $56.4 million. And non-GAAP operating margin expanded to 23% from 15%, an improvement of 800 basis points.

Nordson’s Advanced Technology Solutions business delivered the company’s fastest growth in the fiscal third quarter of 2026, with organic sales climbing 31% and segment EBITDA increasing 58%. Advanced Technology Solutions generated record quarterly sales of approximately $220 million, up 28% from $171 million in the prior-year period. Organic sales increased 30.9%, partially offset by a roughly 3% unfavorable currency impact.

Banco Macro reported significantly higher sequential earnings in the second quarter of 2026, but its headline non-performing financing ratio continued to deteriorate and reached more than three times its year-earlier level. Net income totaled Ps.206.8 billion, up 39% from the first quarter and 4% from the prior-year period.

SQM reported record quarterly lithium sales volume in the second quarter of 2026 as sharply higher realized pricing and strong energy-storage demand drove a major acceleration in its lithium business. Total lithium sales exceeded 84,100 metric tons of lithium carbonate equivalent, up 59% from 53,100 metric tons in the prior-year period. Approximately 75,800 metric tons came from SQM’s operations in Chile through Novandino, while another 8,300 metric tons came from its Australian operations.

Full Truck Alliance’s transaction-service business continued to take a larger share of its revenue mix during the second quarter of 2026, growing substantially faster than the digital freight platform’s overall top line. Transaction-service revenue increased 33.1% to RMB1.77 billion, or approximately $260.3 million, from RMB1.33 billion a year earlier.

Rezolv has raised $12.5 million in Series A funding to scale its AI-native debt collection platform, bringing total funding to $16 million. Norwest led the round, with participation from Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India and existing investor 3one4 Capital. Founded in Mumbai in 2024 by Sonali Jindal and Karan Mehta, Rezolv is developing a full-stack platform designed to modernize collections across digital outreach, calling, field visits and legal escalation.