SCOOP with Jessica Toonkel: Media executive Edgar Bronfman Jr. is preparing a bid for Paramount Global and National Amusements that could come together in the coming days. He's talking to possible backers including Hollywood producer Steven Paul. $PARA wsj.com/business/media…

“We hire people who are winners in life,” the always modest Ken Griffin tells ⁦Peter Rudegeair⁩. “Winners in finance is often not enough.” wsj.com/finance/invest…

Private-equity firms eager to pay their investors are returning to an old habit: loading up companies with risky debt. ⁦Laura Cooper⁩ wsj.com/finance/invest…

Private equity could soon own a piece of your favorite NFL team. ⁦Andrew Beaton⁩ ⁦Miriam Gottfried⁩ wsj.com/sports/footbal…

One of the popular windows for companies to go public is in the weeks following Labor Day. But probably not this year. ⁦Corrie Driebusch⁩ wsj.com/finance/stocks…

Scoop from ⁦Lauren Thomas⁩: Goldman Sachs recently began its annual culling process and is expected to lay off over 1,300 workers by the end of the fall. $GS wsj.com/finance/bankin…

Big telco deal scoop with Jessica Toonkel: Verizon is in advanced talks to acquire Frontier Communications. $FYBR wsj.com/business/deals…

Not long ago, private-equity firms were on top of the world. Today, not so much. ⁦Laura Cooper⁩ wsj.com/finance/buyout…

Scoop: Bank of America has opened an internal investigation after a whistleblower reported that bankers shared nonpublic information with investors before they sold hundreds of millions of dollars of stock in Asia. wsj.com/finance/bank-o…

an exclusive follow-up to my stories with Tom McGinty last year about failed bank execs selling shares ahead of the crisis. wsj.com/finance/regula…

JPMorgan is investigating thousands of incidents of possible check fraud committed as part of a TikTok craze and plans to share the evidence it gathers with police departments around the country. Scoop from ⁦alexander saeedy⁩ wsj.com/finance/bankin…

Republicans and Democrats agree on very little these days. But officials from both parties are intrigued by the idea of a sovereign-wealth fund. Why? Smart piece from ⁦Greg Ip⁩ & ⁦Miriam Gottfried⁩ wsj.com/politics/polic…

Scoop with ⁦Esther Fung⁩: Norfolk Southern Chief Executive Alan Shaw is expected to depart the company as soon as this week amid a board investigation into an alleged relationship he had with an employee at the railroad. $NSC wsj.com/business/logis…

The Federal Reserve is walking back a plan to raise the amount of capital America’s biggest banks are required to hold following intense pushback from the banking industry. wsj.com/finance/fed-ba…

Goldman Sachs is anticipating a $400 million hit as it exits lending programs including its GM credit-card business. A big part of the issue: lax underwriting standards. Scoop from ⁦AnnaMaria Andriotis⁩: wsj.com/finance/goldma…

Investors in hedge funds often pay high fees for mediocre returns. Now, many are demanding that change. Scoop from ⁦Peter Rudegeair⁩: wsj.com/finance/invest…

JPMorgan and Bank of America are limiting and more closely tracking young bankers’ hours following a The Wall Street Journal investigation that detailed a dangerous culture of overwork on Wall Street. Another big scoop from ⁦alexander saeedy⁩: wsj.com/finance/bankin…

BlackRock is joining with private-equity firm Partners Group to offer wealthy investors a way to tap in to the opaque world of private markets on.wsj.com/3znXFtm on.wsj.com/3znXFtm

New with ⁦Esther Fung⁩: Norfolk Southern’s CEO Alan Shaw survived an activist attack that was seeking his ouster. Then rumblings started swirling about an affair. $NSC wsj.com/business/logis…

Donald Trump’s allies have big ideas about what to do with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Larry Kudlow and John McEntee are among those on the case. Scoop from ⁦AnnaMaria Andriotis⁩ & ⁦Gina Heeb⁩: wsj.com/politics/polic…