| New Zealand-based software company Xero has agreed to buy Melio Payments for $2.5 billion in an effort to accelerate US revenue growth, confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg News.
Virgin Australia Chief Executive Officer Dave Emerson brushed away concerns the Middle East conflict will disrupt demand for travel. Emerson’s comments came as the Bain Capital-backed carrier finally completed a A$685 million initial public offering. Australia’s online regulator called on the government to reverse its controversial exemption for YouTube from a social media ban for under-16s, an unusual intervention that echoes similar pleas from rival platforms including Facebook and TikTok. Australian policymakers are weighing the implications of Abu Dhabi National Oil Co.'s $19 billion bid for Santos, one of the biggest foreign takeovers in the country's history. EnergyQuest CEO and former Santos executive Rick Wilkinson says maintaining domestic gas supply will be a top priority for Canberra on Bloomberg Television’s Australia Ahead. Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s market value hit a fresh milestone, with the stock seemingly undeterred by recent geopolitical tensions that have rattled equity markets. Australia confronts a “guns or butter” choice between a bigger defense budget and expanding national disability insurance and other social programs, according to Rabobank. New Zealand farmers are finding it harder to interest their children in taking over the family business amid high costs and the waning lure of living on the land, according to a new report. | 
