Bit Stew Systems, a Canada-based developer of data integration technology for the internet of things, reached the first close of a series C round featuring GE Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of industrial product maker General Electric, Yaletown Partners, BDC Capital and Kensington Capital Partners yesterday, having raised an undisclosed amount. It raised $17.2m in… Continue reading Weekly corporate venturing deal net: 16-20 May 2016
Month: May 2016
Celebrating the industry: GCV Awards 2016
The sixth annual Global Corporate Venturing awards are a celebration of the industry and how it helps entrepreneurs, the venture ecosystem and parent companies make the world a better place and deliver on their strategic and financial goals.
GCV Award: New Entrant of the Year – JetBlue
Formed in February this year, JetBlue’s corporate venturing offshoot is headed by Bonny Simi, a former pilot with the airline as well as a three-time Olympian. Simi hopes that her unit can help give JetBlue a significant strategic advantage over its competitors, particularly if aviation faces the same disruptive forces as those currently reshaping the… Continue reading GCV Award: New Entrant of the Year – JetBlue
GCV Award: The Intramezzo Talent of the Year – Bertelsmann
Germany-based media conglomerate Bertelsmann has a number of corporate venturing units spanning the world since Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (BDMI) was set up in 2006 to explore opportunities to work with innovative new businesses in the digital media landscape.
GCV Award: Consultancy of the Year – PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
Since 2014, the firm has placed a renewed focus on building its corporate venturing capabilities: this area of its business is complemented by PwC’s long-standing experience and expertise in advising on private equity and mergers and acquisitions activity. PwC’s shift of emphasis was marked by the recruitment of former Unilever Ventures director Mark Muth to… Continue reading GCV Award: Consultancy of the Year – PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
GCV Award: Software Service Provider of the Year – Salesforce
Since it was founded just before the turn of the millennium, cloud-computing company Salesforce has gone from strength to strength. Its success has, over the past couple of years, led to a high degree of speculation about a potential takeover, with Microsoft thought to have come closest to agreeing a deal with the San Francisco-based firm last spring.
GCV Award: Financial Services Provider of the Year – Silicon Valley Bank
Given where it is headquartered, it should come as little surprise that Silicon Valley Bank has continued to lead the field when it comes to catering for the venture capital and corporate venturing markets.
GCV Award: Legal Firm of the Year – DLA Piper
US-based law firm DLA Piper has a specialised international practice dedicated to emerging growth and venture capital, with 200 lawyers in the US and 400 around the world who specifically serve entrepreneurs, technology companies and venture funds by focusing on private equity and venture capital transactions.
Kaspersky Labs seeks good result from corporate venturing
The Russia-based cybersecurity software producer, which launched an accelerator last year, will invest up to $1m in strategically relevant startups.
GCV Award: Sub-$50m Investment of the Year – Cruise Automation
In the world of venture capital, where relationships and professional networks have a hugely important role, it might come as a surprise to learn that cold calling still has a part to play.
GCV Award: Large Investment of the Year – Magic Leap
In February, the business raised almost $800m in a round which was led by Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba and included VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, financial services firms Fidelity and JP Morgan, and corporate venturing units from chip maker Qualcomm and media group Warner Brothers Entertainment. This valued Magic Leap, which was founded by the firm’s… Continue reading GCV Award: Large Investment of the Year – Magic Leap
GCV Award: IPO of the Year – Fitbit
Investors, including Qualcomm Ventures, SoftBank Capital, SVB Financial and Sapphire Ventures – formerly SAP Ventures, made huge paper gains in the immediate aftermath of FitBit’s listing on the New York Stock Exchange, with shares initially priced at $20 each, surging 20% on their first day of trading and almost doubling in value within a week.… Continue reading GCV Award: IPO of the Year – Fitbit
GCV Award: M&A of the Year – Ganji
Writing at the time of the deal last spring, NGP’s Anupam Rastogi said: “NGP was an early investor in Ganji, and co-led a €18m [$20m] series A investment in 2010. As reported in the media, the deal values Ganji at over $3bn. This is a tremendous validation of Ganji’s founder Mark Yang and his talented… Continue reading GCV Award: M&A of the Year – Ganji
Merus goes public with $55m IPO
The immuno-oncology drug developer, backed by several pharmaceutical firms, has raised $55m in an IPO that saw it float substantially below its $14 to $16 range.