Never ever getting back together?

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Hello readers,

Breakups are tough at the best of times but when it’s a very public split up? Expect sparks to fly.

Artists like Taylor Swift make a living from plowing the furrow of this very relatable kind of sadness but the rest of us tend to be losers when heartbreak is involved.

In the case of the US and China’s very public trading breakup, there are plenty more losers than winners.

The US-China trade war’s messy reverberations have touched investors and VC firms across the world as they are forced to pick a side. The Taylor song on this breakup is sure to be a banger.

Today we look at:

• The investors catching shrapnel in the US-China trade war
• The Saison Capital founding partner who’s moving into Web3
• Other newsy highlights such as turbulence in India’s gaming sector and Trip.com’s restaurant play.

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Bad blood

Image credit: Timmy Loen

It can be hard to wrap your head around something with consequences as far-ranging as the US-China trade war. After all, the two largest economies in the world are increasingly interlinked.

Just as the flap of a butterfly’s wings in Texas can cause a tornado in China, the salvos in the trade war are causing change across the world. Today’s featured premium story attempts to unpack some of those consequences.

• When a tree falls: Sequoia Capital splitting its business into three different branches is perhaps the most high-profile example of a tech investor caught up in the trade war. While the size of the firm’s China business meant the move didn’t surprise everyone, it still felt like a marker had been laid down.
• Exit stage left: Some firms don’t have the luxury of continuing to operate in both markets. Several American, Canadian, and Australian investors have all pulled out of China in recent years.
• Two-way street: At least one Chinese investor has also shuttered its US operations in recent years. More could follow if American legislation continues down an anti-China path.

Read more: A watch list of tech investors caught in the US-China trade war

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