| | | | | Institutional demand buoys socially conscious SPACs | |  | | Car charging network operator EVgo plans to merge with Climate Real Impact Solutions, an ESG-oriented SPAC. (Courtesy of EVgo) | | | SPACs are eyeing companies that fulfill environmental, social and governance objectives—sensing that demand for publicly traded ESG companies has outstripped supply. - SPACs with ESG principles have raised more than $5 billion in the past year, according to PitchBook data.
- Investors piled into ESG funds last year, growing total assets 67% year-over-year to over $1.6 trillion, Morningstar data shows.
- Blank-check companies are looking beyond electric vehicles, snapping up leaders in car charging and hydrogen fuel cells, as well as sizing up greenfield opportunities.
| | | | | | | | | | Insurtech investment declines in 2020, but outlook remains strong | | The insurtech sector raised $6.1 billion in VC funding in 2020, down from $6.3 billion in the year prior. Health and life insurtech companies drove a significant share of deal value, accounting for more than 40% of the total invested capital.
Several startups hit unicorn status as the pandemic accelerated a shift to digital insurance sales, according to our Q4 installment of Emerging Tech Research on insurtech. Although deal activity was restrained early in the COVID-19 crisis, the second half of the year saw strong funding activity, which is expected to carry over into 2021. Other takeaways from the report include: - Valuations for late-stage insurtech companies stood at a median of $80 million, compared with a record high of $235 million in 2019.
- Cyber insurance proved highly attractive to investors, fueling multiple major deals in 2020.
- Reinsurance and underwriting technology are poised for significant growth as the world emerges from the pandemic.
| | | | | | | | | | | | Middle-market M&A: Expectations for 2021 | | After a tumultuous 2020, expectations are for a more balanced 2021 for the M&A market. In the current issue of Transaction Trends, BMO takes a look back at last year's highlights and what to anticipate for the year ahead. The issue also dives into the market for capitated primary care providers and the automotive aftermarket.
To learn more, download the full issue of Transaction Trends. You can also contact Stephen R. Isaacs, Managing Director and Head of BMO Sponsor Finance, at stephen.isaacs@bmo.com. | | | | | | | | | | UK investors publish diversity guidelines | |  | Camilla Richards, partner at UK VC firm Atomico
(Courtesy of the BVCA) | | | A UK investor group has issued a new set of guidelines for the venture capital and private equity industries to tackle their well-documented diversity problem. - The guide is a response to NatWest CEO Alison Rose's review of female entrepreneurship, first issued in 2019, which found that only 1% of UK VC funding goes to all-female founded teams, and only 4% of deals involve them.
- The best practice guide, published by the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA), covers topics including hiring practices, corporate culture, investment bias and portfolio management. Atomico, Pollen Street Capital, Ada Ventures, Adelpha, Astia, KPMG, Diversity VC and Diversio are among those who co-authored the document.
- Camilla Richards, an Atomico partner and head of investor relations who is also a member of the Council for Investing in Female Entrepreneurs, said: "The conversation on diversity and inclusion has gained momentum in recent years. However, we are still yet to see that translating into real action."
| | | | | | | | | | For the past two years, Facebook has been developing its version of a Supreme Court to rule on content moderation controversies. A reporter was following along. [The New Yorker]
On the field, Barcelona has been one of the most dominant soccer teams of this century. In the boardroom, though, the team's financial woes are becoming hard to overcome. [The New York Times]
Short sellers have covered more than $2 billion of GameStop shares over the past month. But the company is still the most-shorted stock on Wall Street. [Institutional Investor] | | | | | | | | | | | Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added: | | 323 Deals | 1264 People | 406 Companies | 25 Funds | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2018 Vintage Global PE Funds with $1B+ | | | | | | | | | | | | | Huron Capital announces succession plan | | | Huron Capital, a lower-middle-market private equity firm based in Detroit, has promoted Jim Mahoney from senior partner to managing partner. Mahoney will serve alongside firm co-founder Brian Demkowicz, managing day-to-day operations and investment opportunities. Demkowicz will also take on the role of chairman. | | | | | | | | | | | | Public.com eyes $1.2B valuation | | | Public.com is raising $200 million at a $1.2 billion valuation in a funding round led by Tiger Global, Business Insider reported. The news comes about two months after the company secured a $65 million Series C. Public.com, which provides a mobile investing app, is backed by investors including Accel and Will Smith's Dreamers VC. | | | | | | | | Cameo in talks to raise funds at $1B valuation | | | Cameo, which teams with celebrities to create birthday greetings and other personalized videos for customers, is planning to raise around $100 million at a $1 billion valuation, Bloomberg reported. In 2019, the Chicago-based company was valued at $300 million with a funding round, according to PitchBook data. Founded in 2017, Cameo is backed by investors including Kleiner Perkins, Bain Capital and Lightspeed. | | | | | | | | Data management startup Solidatus secures new funding | | | Solidatus, a provider of data management software, has secured a £14 million (around $19 million) Series A led by AlbionVC. The startup allows clients in sectors including financial services, healthcare and consulting to visualize, track and manage data to help with their digital transformation and regulatory compliance. The capital will go toward the London-based company's international expansion. | | | | | | | | | | Fintech company Calypso eyes $2B sale | | | Calypso Technology has begun a sale process that could value it at as much as $2 billion, Barron's reported. The company is fielding interest from private equity firms and strategic buyers including Blackstone, Vista Equity Partners and GTCR, the report said. In 2016, European buyout firm Bridgepoint and Boston-based PE firm Summit Partners bought Calypso, which provides software for financial markets. | | | | | | | | White Wolf-backed Consulting Solutions adds on TEK Connexion | | | Technology services provider Consulting Solutions, a portfolio company of White Wolf Capital, has acquired TEK Connexion, also a provider of technology services, as well as workforce solutions. In conjunction with the takeover, Consulting Solutions was also recapitalized. White Wolf acquired Florida-based Consulting Solutions, also known as CSI, in 2016. | | | | | | | | BPEA wraps up Virtusa takeover | | | Baring Private Equity Asia has completed its acquisition of Virtusa, a global provider of IT services and digital solutions. The deal, first announced in September, reportedly values the company at $2 billion. Virtusa went public in 2007 and traded on the Nasdaq under the symbol VRTU. | | | | | | | | RunTide Capital extends investment in ATSG | | | | | | | | | Northstar backs Alpaca Audiology | | | | | | | | | Aldrich invests $45M in ProcessMaker | | | Aldrich Capital Partners has funded ProcessMaker's $45 million Series A. The deal marks the first outside investment for ProcessMaker, which provides business process management software. The company mainly focuses on applications for banking, higher education and manufacturing companies. Its customers include community banks and over 150 universities. | | | | | | | | | | SoftBank's Oyo to go digital-only in Latin America | | | Hotel tech startup Oyo has ended a partnership with SoftBank in Latin America and plans to lay off most of its employees in the region, according to reports. Owing in part to travel restrictions that stemmed from the pandemic, Oyo's sprawling network of hotels has been reduced by nearly half, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Indian company is said to be pursuing a digital-only model in Latin America, and will focus on India, Europe and Southeast Asia. | | | | | | | | | | Ecommerce giant Coupang files for US IPO | | | South Korea's largest online retailer, Coupang, has filed for an IPO in the US. SoftBank invested $1 billion in the retailer in 2015, and its Vision Fund added another $2 billion in 2018. Other investors include Greenoaks Capital and Maverick Ventures. The IPO could value Coupang at more than $50 billion, The Wall Street Journal reported. | | | | | | | | Sharecare agrees to $3.9B deal with Mnuchin-backed SPAC | | | | | | | | | IWG takes control of WeWork-backed The Wing | | | International office supplier IWG has acquired a majority stake in coworking startup The Wing for an undisclosed sum, Bloomberg reported. New York-based The Wing, whose business caters toward women, was one of many flexible office space companies to lay off staff early in the pandemic. It was last valued at $375 million in 2018, according to PitchBook data, and has received backing from NEA, WeWork and Sequoia. | | | | | | | | MoneyLion to go public via $2.9B SPAC merger | | | | | | | | | Datadog buys security startup Sqreen | | | | | | | | | Clearing house Apex mulls SPAC merger | | | | | | | | | Samsara could file IPO next month | | | Samsara is planning to file for an initial public offering as soon as March, Bloomberg reported. The developer of a cloud-based fleet management platform has raised over $1.2 billion in prior funding from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Dragoneer Investment Group and General Atlantic. Last May, Samsara was valued at $5.4 billion, according to PitchBook data. | | | | | | | | | | Peloton Equity brings in $150M+ | | | Peloton Equity has closed its second flagship fund on $152.25 million. Based in Connecticut, the healthcare-focused PE firm targets high-growth companies with between $20 million and $200 million of revenue. Peloton has made three investments out of the new fund, backing rehabilitation provider ClearSky Health, insurance provider Friday Health Plans and AeroSafe Global, a packaging and logistics company. | | | | | | | | HighGear Ventures closes secondaries fund | | | HighGear Ventures has closed its second fund, gathering $43 million for its strategy focused on secondary investments that provide liquidity to limited partners and early investors. | | | | | | | | | | II-VI enters three-way deal battle for Coherent | | | Semiconductor maker II-VI has offered to buy Coherent for $260 per share, or about $6.4 billion. The bid consists of $130 in cash and about 1.3 II-VI shares for each Coherent share. Coherent, which makes lasers and other related products, already agreed to a $5.7 billion sale to Lumentum in January. And last week, MKS Instruments entered a bid of its own for Coherent, offering to buy the company for roughly $240 per share. | | | | | | | | GenMark weighs sale after buyer interest | | | GenMark Diagnostics has considered a sale after several potential buyers reached out, Bloomberg reported. The company is also playing the field and gauging interest from other medical diagnostic companies, the report said. GenMark makes medical diagnostic equipment to test for infectious diseases; its biggest shareholders are Fidelity, BlackRock and Consonance Capital. | | | | | | | | Czech gunmaker CZG to buy Colt | | | Prague-based Česká Zbrojovka Group has agreed to buy US firearms company Colt Holding Co. for $220 million in cash and about 1.1 million newly issued CZG shares, Reuters reported. Colt is the parent of US-based Colt's Manufacturing and Colt Canada, both of which supply weapons to their respective militaries. CZG president Lubomír Kovařík said the acquisition of the 175-year-old brand was a strategic step for CZG as it looks to position itself as an industry leader and a key partner for the US armed forces. The combined group will have revenue in excess of $500 million. | | | | | | | | | "Carveout activity has waned in recent years as corporations binged on cheap debt and bought companies far faster than they divested them. In 2020, there were 1,223 carveouts, totaling $188.9 billion, which marked the fifth consecutive year of lower deal counts and value. Carveouts come about for several reasons: to appease regulators during a merger or acquisition, to bolster a balance sheet with excessive debt, or to jettison underperforming business lines."
Source: PitchBook's 2020 Annual North American M&A Report | | | | | | | | | Who's in the newsletter today? | | People | | | | Investors | | | | Companies | | | | Service Providers | | | | | | | | | |
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