The Dig Newsletter

Source: Loïs Mailou Jones, Challenge—America, 1964. Collage of printed papers and paint on canvas. Hirshhorn Museum purchase, 1977. https://hirshhorn.si.edu/explore/collage-for-change/ It’s midweek, midsummer, nearly the summer solstice. Here are a few stories I am noting. The Dig is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Introduction MarketWatch’s MW Brett Arends does a very good SpaceX “red flags” preview column. In it he mentions many of the obvious things like the fact that SpaceX loses a lot of money. He also mentions another funny strange, not funny ha ha, thing: In case you missed it, jumbo Wall Street bank JPMorgan had a stock analyst covering Musk’s other publicly traded company, Tesla, who was resolutely bearish. By an absolutely amazing coincidence, JPMorgan a month ago suddenly reallocated that analyst.

O, what a tangled web we weave, When first we practise to deceive! Marmion, Sir Walter Scott The crisis for KPMG, not only in Australia, just got worse. The Dig is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. I wrote about the preliminary reports here. Auditor independence: What's behind the SEC's latest push to relax the rules, again?

We dig in on the SpaceX pre-public filing info "leaks". There are legal, ethical, and practical reasons why investors should be wary of "open secrets", gabby pre-IPO companies, and media enablers. This is a continuation of our discussion from May 27 of the SpaceX public prospectus compared to the earlier “confidential” drafts.

Let's look at some history and context and, then, I'll tell you what I think is really behind the push this time, supported by some data. No punishment has ever possessed enough power of deterrence to prevent the commission of crimes. On the contrary, whatever the punishment, once a specific crime has appeared for the first time, its reappearance is more likely than its initial emergence could ever have been. Hannah Arendt (1906-75), German-born U.S. political philosopher.

SEC comment letters are confidential until after the IPO, but changes made by SpaceX based on the SEC's review may provide insights into the SEC's disclosure priorities.

We're facing another round of efforts to "modernize" auditor independence rules, but it's just more of the same opportunistic deregulation. This is Part 1 of my update on the latest push by the deregulators to reduce the constraints on auditors, and their clients, regarding auditor independence. Part 1 is intended to bring everyone up to date on the issues. Today’s newsletter is free for all.

Playback speed × Share post Share post at current time Share from 0:00 0:00 / Transcript Chatting with The Activist Investor Mike Levin Mike Levin and I get together in Chicago to talk about the role and responsibility of independent directors, especially on the Audit Committee. The Dig is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

They're intent on tearing it all down and letting the fraud flags fly! In the news at the Wall Street Journal: Exclusive CFO Journal KPMG Taps Anthropic to Revamp Global Tax, Advisory Platforms The Big Four firm will embed Claude on a platform that will house the majority of its nonaudit services By Mark Maurer May 19, 2026 “KPMG is revamping how its global workforce will use artificial intelligence through a new deal with Anthropic that aims to make its tax and consulting services...

Super Micro was struggling to stay listed, fend off short-sellers, satisfy auditors and investigate itself. But now its working capital is under pressure and the disclosure leaves open questions. This is collaborative effort, co-authored with Deep Quarry the newsletter from Olga Usvyatsky. If you value our work, please subscribe! The Dig is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. They say cats have nine lives.