| | | | | The Daily Pitch: VC, PE and M&A | February 25, 2021 ![]() | | Like our newsletter? The data comes from the PitchBook Platform — our data software for VC, PE and M&A | | | | | | | | | | VC fundraising soared, emerging managers struggled in a strange 2020 | | LPs allocated more than $870 billion to private market funds during 2020. On one hand, that marks a 20.7% decline from the year prior. On the other, it's a sign of astonishing market resilience in the middle of a pandemic.
PitchBook's 2020 Annual Private Fund Strategies Report, sponsored by Altvia, drills down much deeper to examine how fundraising trends shifted across several different strategies, with key takeaways including: - Capital raised for VC funds increased 20.4% in 2020, while capital raised for PE funds declined 31.8%.
- The secondaries market surged, with capital raised soaring to $96.6 billion, up 278.3% year-over-year.
- The number of funds and amount of capital raised by emerging managers both fell to their lowest points since the global financial crisis.
| | | | | | | | | | Reid Hoffman-led SPAC to merge with Joby Aviation | |  | | (Courtesy of Joby Aviation) | | | Air taxi specialist Joby Aviation has agreed to go public through a merger with Reinvent Technology Partners, the latest in a growing list of SPAC deals for electric aviation companies. - The blank-check company is sponsored by LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, who will join the new company's board of directors, and Zynga founder Mark Pincus.
- The combined company is valued at $6.6 billion in the deal, which includes $1.6 billion in cash. Santa Cruz, Calif.-based Joby reached a $2.6 billion valuation early last year, according to PitchBook data.
- Uber invested in an $835 million PIPE round that was part of the deal, joining the Baupost Group, BlackRock, Fidelity Management & Research and Baillie Gifford. Joby acquired the ridehailing giant's flying car business, Uber Elevate, in December.
- Joby is teaming up with Toyota to produce its aircraft and plans to launch an electric air taxi service in 2024. Toyota led the company's $620 million Series C last year, with other investors including Intel Capital and JetBlue Technology Ventures.
| | | | | | | | | | Ex-LSE head urges London to join SPAC 'revolution' | |  | | Former LSE CEO Xavier Rolet is the director of a new blank-check company. (Oli Scarff/Getty Images) | | | The UK should do more to attract its share of the current surge in blank-check companies, said Xavier Rolet, the former CEO of the London Stock Exchange and the director of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. - The remarks came in a paper co-authored by Rolet, Shore Capital research head Clive Black and pro-Brexit campaign leader Matthew Elliott.
- The trio argue that the UK's current review of its regulations presents a "golden opportunity" to draw companies to London's stock exchanges over New York or Amsterdam.
- SPAC activity has been negligible in Europe compared to the US, but recent announcements of significant SPACs may signal a change.
| | | | | | | | | | Typically, lower-income countries are hit hardest by infectious diseases. With COVID-19, the opposite has been true. It's an epidemiological mystery experts are still attempting to unravel. [The New Yorker]
Before anyone talked about influencers, celebrity endorsements were a key part of Fubu's rise to fame. Now, the apparel brand is eyeing a revival led by a new generation. [The Wall Street Journal]
When NASA's Perseverance rover arrived on Mars last week, it carried a code. It didn't take long for someone to crack it. [The New York Times] | | | | | | | | | | | Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added: | | 457 Deals | 1503 People | 541 Companies | 17 Funds | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2016 Vintage Global Real Assets Funds | | | | | | | | | | | | | Paul Ryan moves into private equity | | | | | | | | | WCAS announces promotions | | | | | | | | | York Capital brings on new MD | | | York Capital Management has hired Seth Pearson as managing director of its private equity group. He will also join the investment committee for York's third special opportunities fund. Pearson previously spent more than 13 years at Wellspring Capital Management, most recently as a partner. He led Wellspring's investments in the healthcare, niche manufacturing and specialty distribution spaces. | | | | | | | | | | | | Yuanfudao aims to line up $1B in new funding | | | Yuanfudao has held talks with investors like Boyu Capital and DCP Capital to raise at least $1 billion, Bloomberg reported. The Chinese operator of an online education platform is targeting a valuation of over $20 billion, the report said. Yuanfudao closed a $2.2 billion round last October that valued it at $15.5 billion, making it the world's most valuable private edtech company, according to PitchBook data. Tencent and DST Global are among Yuanfudao's backers. | | | | | | | | Orna Therapeutics picks up $80M Series A | | | | | | | | | Bitwise books $50M Series B | | | | | | | | | Energy storage provider lights up with $50M | | | Malta has raised a $50 million Series B led by Proman, with participation from Dustin Moskovitz, Alfa Laval and Breakthrough Energy Ventures. Based near Boston, the company is the developer of a long-duration electro-thermal energy storage system that's designed to expand renewable energy capacity and improve grid stability. Malta raised $26 million in 2018 at a $43 million valuation, according to PitchBook data. | | | | | | | | Blueshift brings in $30M Series C | | | | | | | | | | | | | CVC Capital to conduct MedRisk SBO | | | CVC Capital Partners has agreed to acquire MedRisk, a Pennsylvania-based provider of managed healthcare services for workers' compensation patients, from The Carlyle Group, which will retain a significant stake and joint control in the business. Capital for the deal will come via CVC's seventh flagship fund, which brought in over €16 billion (about $19.5 billion) in 2017. | | | | | | | | PE investors circle as German soccer league launches media sale | | | Private equity investors are being courted by Germany's top soccer league, Deutsche Fußball Liga, as it looks to sell a stake in its media enterprise, Bloomberg reported. DFL is said to be contacting as many as 30 potential suitors regarding a stake in the subsidiary, Bundesliga International. It was reported in November that DFL had been approached by Advent International and BC Partners, among others. | | | | | | | | Yellow Wood to purchase Scholl | | | | | | | | | Buildertrend adds on CoConstruct | | | | | | | | | IT security company Kaseya buys RocketCyber | | | Kaseya, an IT management and security software provider, has purchased RocketCyber. Backed by TPG Capital and Insight Partners, Kaseya plans to add the company's managed-security operations platform into its suite. Dallas-based RocketCyber will operate as an independent unit of Kaseya. | | | | | | | | Abry Partners backs Kingland | | | | | | | | | | | Berkshire Grey to go public via merger with Steve Case SPAC | | | | | | | | | EQT set for $1B software exit | | | EQT has agreed to sell Innovyze, a developer of water infrastructure software, to software company Autodesk for $1 billion. Innovyze is based in Portland, Ore. EQT has owned the company since 2017. | | | | | | | | Babylon Health explores going public at $4B+ valuation | | | Babylon Health is considering options to go public that could value it at over $4 billion, Bloomberg reported. The London-based telehealth company is exploring a traditional IPO, and several SPACs have reached out about a reverse merger, the report said. Babylon was valued at $1.9 billion in 2019 after raising $450 million. Its investors include Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, VNV Global and Kinnevik. | | | | | | | | TSG's Duckhorn readies wine IPO | | | | | | | | | | | Boyu Capital seeks up to $6B for China fund | | | Chinese PE firm Boyu Capital is looking to raise as much as $6 billion for its fifth China-focused fund, Reuters reported. If it nears such a target, the vehicle would dwarf its $3.6 billion predecessor, which reached a final close in 2019. Boyu is an investor in Chinese fintech giant Ant Group, which saw its planned $34 billion-plus Hong Kong-Shanghai dual listing postponed in November. | | | | | | | | Primary Venture Partners raises $200M across two new funds | | | Primary Venture Partners, which targets seed-stage startups based in New York, has raised $150 million for its third core seed fund. The firm has also collected $50 million for its second opportunities fund, which will make Series B and late-stage investments in existing portfolio companies. The firm has previously backed telehealth startup K Health and Alloy, the creator of an identity verification platform. | | | | | | | | | | Icon to buy PRA in $12B transaction | | | Icon, a provider of outsourced drug and device development and commercialization services for the healthcare sector, has agreed to purchase PRA Health Sciences in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about $12 billion. Based in North Carolina, PRA is a contract research organization providing outsourced services for biotech and pharmaceutical companies. The deal represents a 30% premium to the closing price of PRA's shares on Tuesday. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Who's in the newsletter today? | | People | | | | Investors | | | | Companies | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment