Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav‘s potential payout of more than $800 million from the Paramount Skydance deal highlights an obscure tax rule originally designed to limit CEO pay.

According to SEC filings, Zaslav could collect hundreds of millions of dollars in severance and other stock awards and payments following Paramount’s acquisition of WBD. The payments include about $500 million in share awards, about $115 million in vested stock awards and $34 million in cash, according to the filings.

The deal also includes up to $335 million in potential payments to Zaslav for what’s known as the “golden parachute” excise tax. The tax was originally created by Congress in the 1980s to limit what many considered to be outsized payouts to chief executives upon a change of control or sale of their companies. The tax, of 20%, kicks in when an executive’s payout exceeds three times their typical base salary and target annual bonus.

As part of the acquisition, Paramount agreed to pay Zaslav’s excise tax if his other payments trigger the tax. The reimbursement declines over time and drops to zero if the deal closes in 2027. Paramount has said it is aiming to close the deal, pending regulatory approval, by this fall.

The Paramount board said the reimbursement would be paid by Paramount, not Warner shareholders.

Without the payment, known as a “gross up,” the board said “Mr. Zaslav would be at a substantial disadvantage in terms of excise tax exposure relative to the previously proposed transaction with Netflix,” which wouldn’t have involved a golden parachute tax.

Zaslav’s payout from the deal is expected to be around $667 million without the tax.

Management experts have said that rather than limiting pay, the golden parachute rules have instead incentivized CEOs to sell their companies and reap ever-higher rewards. The tax has also led companies, and their shareholders, to spend even more to pay the special taxes.

“Over time, especially as executive compensation radically shifted toward stock-based pay, golden parachutes have become increasingly lucrative, platinum in many cases,” Jeffrey Gordon, co-director of Columbia Law School’s Ira M. Millstein Center for Global Markets and Corporate Ownership, wrote in a paper. “Even if there is pain among those who are laid off when the firm is sold and layoffs occur, there is plainly one winner: the CEO with a golden parachute.”

Correction: Paramount Skydance is acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery. A previous version of this story mischaracterized the deal.

Wall Street banks may finally be getting a long-awaited opening to claw back market share from private credit lenders.

After a decade in which private credit lenders grew rapidly and took over a large share of financing for leveraged buyouts, signs of strain in that sector, along with easing bank rules, may now be shifting the balance.

“This is an opportune time for banks to regain market share from private credit funds,” Moody’s chief economist Mark Zandi told CNBC in an email.

“Interest rates have declined and banking regulation has eased. Private credit lenders are also struggling with the fallout from their previously aggressive lending,” he highlighted.

Private credit’s rapid ascent was fueled in part by banks’ retreat. Following the Federal Reserve’s aggressive rate hikes and the 2023 banking crisis, lenders tightened underwriting and pulled back from riskier deals. Borrowers, particularly private equity firms, increasingly turned to direct lenders offering faster execution and looser terms.

At its peak, the shift was dramatic. According to PitchBook data, banks’ share of buyout financings above $1 billion fell to just 39% in 2023, down from about 80% in the five years prior. That share has since recovered to just over 50% in 2025.

And the tide may be turning further.

Private credit is facing mounting challenges. Years of aggressive lending are starting to backfire, as higher interest rates make it harder for heavily indebted borrowers to repay loans and increase default risks. Investor demand for liquidity is also rising, with some clients seeking to pull money after years of locking up capital.

Moody’s Zandi expects the sector to “experience more credit problems in the coming months,” citing fallout from geopolitical tensions, higher borrowing costs and structural pressures in industries such as software. Consumer and healthcare borrowers may also come under strain.

Blackstone and Ares, for example, were among 33 lenders that reportedly provided about $5 billion in financing to back investment firm Thoma Bravo’s acquisition of logistics company WWEX Group, underscoring how private credit firms can still fund large buyout deals even as banks begin to re-enter the market.

Pitchbook’s global head of credit and U.S. private equity Marina Lukatsky noted that the expected rebound in buyouts and dealmaking has yet to materialize this year, as uncertainty around trade policy, interest rates and geopolitics has slowed activity. With fewer deals taking place, demand for financing has declined across both banks and private credit.

For banks to make a meaningful comeback, borrowing costs in syndicated loans, which are large loans arranged by banks and funded by a group of lenders, need to become more competitive, she added. Additionally, large buyout activity needs to pick up, and the broader economic outlook needs to improve.

Crucially, private credit retains structural advantages that are difficult for banks to replicate, including speed, certainty of execution and flexible conditions, which some borrowers may continue to value in volatile markets, noted some experts.

That said, a comeback is on the cards.

“The tug of war is just starting,” said Jeffrey Hooke, senior lecturer in finance at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School 

“The rules have been relaxed, so it’s only natural that banks want to get back some of their market share in private credit.”

FedEx on Thursday reported strong fiscal third-quarter results that beat Wall Street’s expectations.

The company also raised its guidance for fiscal 2026, projecting revenue growth of 6% to 6.5% compared with analyst estimates of up 5.6%.

Shares of FedEx rose roughly 9% in extended trading.

Here’s how the company performed in the fiscal third quarter, compared with what analysts were expecting, according to LSEG:

• Earnings per share: $5.25 adjusted vs. $4.09 expected
• Revenue: $24 billion vs. $23.43 billion

For the quarter, FedEx reported adjusted operating income of $1.68 billion, beating estimates of $1.39 billion. It reported net income of $1.06 billion, or $4.41 a share, up from $909 million, or $3.76 a share, a year ago. Adjusted for spin-off costs and other one-time items, FedEx reported EPS of $5.25.

The company also raised its fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS expectations, now projecting earnings of $19.30 to $20.10 per share compared with previous guidance of between $17.80 and $19 a share.

“Team FedEx delivered another quarter of strong financial results and excellent service for our customers, powered by disciplined operational execution, the resilience of our global network, and the accelerating impact of our advanced digital solutions,” CEO Raj Subramaniam said in a statement.

The company previously said it expected roughly $1 billion in cost reductions from its “Network 2.0” initiative, which is focused on optimizing efficiency of its package processes by leveraging automation and artificial intelligence. FedEx now expects those savings to exceed $1 billion.

FedEx said its freight business, FedEx Freight, remains on track to be spun off into a separate publicly traded company on June 1.

Subramaniam said on a call with analysts that the company expects “modest” headwinds from disruptions from the Iran war and that the Middle East is a “relatively small part” of total revenue.