Good evening,

Deal activity is springing to life: anything put on hold for COVID-19 is back on the agenda, battling companies are looking for "stronger together" merger partners, and initial public offering contenders are readying for their shots at the ASX boards.

Despite the pick-up in activity, bankers always have a bit of time for gossip. And who better to gossip with than their recruiter?

And recruiters are reporting back that the investment banking start-up — Blackwattle or Barrenjoey, depending on the day of the week — is back on the cards and readying its launch.

It'll be a soft launch at first, so the whispers go, and a full-on assault in the first quarter of next year. Magellan is on board, so too Barclays. But Matthew Grounds is sidelined for the rest of the year. Some initial signings are expected shortly.

Back to deals, and Bank of America has ramped up its pitch for Crescent Capital's pathology unit ACL. We've got our hands on the flyer — and have had a look at the numbers.

In equity capital markets, attention is back on gold tearaway De Grey Mining, and the IPO contenders.

Happy reading,
Sarah Thompson, Anthony Macdonald and Tim Boyd
Street Talk Editors