Private equity deals where the seller is also the buyer
FT News Briefing
Forhecz Topher
4.4 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 28 April 2026
⏱️ 11 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The number of countries cutting energy taxes in response to the Iran war has doubled over the past month, and China blocked Meta’s $2bn purchase of the AI group Manus. Plus, big private equity backers have raised concerns that some firms may be waving through controversial deals.
Mentioned in this podcast:
Energy tax cuts spread across 39 economies as prices jump
China blocks Meta’s $2bn purchase of AI group Manus
Private equity backers raise new conflict concerns over sweetheart deals
Note: The FT does not use generative AI to voice its podcasts
Today’s FT News Briefing was hosted and edited by Marc Filippino, and produced by Saffeya Ahmed, Fiona Symon, and Sonja Hutson. Our show was mixed by Sam Giovinco. Additional help from Gavin Kallmann, Michael Lello and David da Silva. Our executive producer is Topher Forhecz. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s Global Head of Audio. The show’s theme music is by Metaphor Music.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Good morning from the Financial Times. |
| 0:04.4 | Today is Tuesday, April 28th, and this is your FT News briefing. |
| 0:08.8 | More and more countries are cutting energy taxes, and Beijing just broke up a massive artificial intelligence deal. |
| 0:16.5 | Plus, private equity funds are using a tactic that's raising some eyebrows. |
| 0:20.5 | We'll talk about what it means for investors. |
| 0:23.1 | I'm Mark Filipino, and here's the news you need to start your day. |
| 0:42.1 | The number of governments that have cut energy taxes has doubled over the past month. |
| 0:46.5 | The total is now at 39, and about half of those countries are in Europe. |
| 0:50.9 | That's according to an FT analysis of data from the International Energy Agency. |
| 0:56.2 | This is a widespread attempt to curb the effect of high prices caused by the Iran war. The price of Brent crude was at $108 a barrel on Monday, and Goldman Sachs says that could reach |
| 1:02.1 | 120 if the conflict drags on. But cutting taxes isn't an easy answer. It addresses the energy |
| 1:09.9 | price shock in the short term, but as the |
| 1:12.4 | International Monetary Fund points out, it'll also test public finances that are under stress. |
| 1:17.8 | The fund warned this month that because many countries already have a lot of debt, they should |
| 1:22.2 | take a cautious approach to fiscal policy. |
| 1:30.9 | China is ordering meta to unwind a major acquisition. |
| 1:34.9 | Beijing is taking issue with the U.S. tech giant's purchase of the AI app Manus. |
| 1:39.7 | It bought it earlier this year for $2 billion. |
| 1:42.7 | Now, this is a big deal for two reasons. |
| 1:44.9 | One, Beijing went beyond its borders to break up that deal. |
| 1:48.6 | Manus was founded in China but moved to Singapore last year. |
| 1:52.3 | And two, this is an unusually late stage intervention for China. |
... |
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