News aggregation platform SmartNews took its overall funding to about $90m, having previously received investments from Gree and Mixi.
Month: July 2016
Europe plans venture fund and regulatory change
Government house
Investing from deep pockets
Innovative region: Flanders, Belgium
Oyo to welcome back investors for $61m round
Budget hotel booking platform Oyo Rooms plans to raise $61m from existing investors, which include SoftBank, at a $460m valuation.
Uber move reveals Saudi has the world’s largest VC fund
If you have not heard the news yet, you must be living under a rock. Ride-hailing giant Uber has just received a $3.5bn cash injection from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. This follow’s last month’s undisclosed amount of funding from Toyota – including a partnership to provide drivers with more affordable car purchasing and lease… Continue reading Uber move reveals Saudi has the world’s largest VC fund
Pointer to Persian promise
“The country is still in a fragile state, at the crux of several opposing forces.”
Why entrepreneurs are vital to emerging markets
Comment from Judith Pryor, vice-president, office of external affairs, the US Overseas Private Investment Corporation
Qudian installs Liaison Interactive as investor in $449m round
The app and smart device maker co-led the round for Qudian, the instalment buying platform founded as Qufenqi, doubling its overall funding.
Venturing from the core – risky, hard, and necessary
“Venturing away from the core in more exploratory investments can bring even greater strategic gains to the corporation.”
The missing piece of the VC gender inclusion puzzle – LPs
Women invented windshield wipers, the first computer program, life rafts, wireless transmissions technology, the paper bag, Kevlar, fire escapes and, mind you, chocolate chip cookies. If good ideas had come only from people who looked like America’s founding fathers, then a wealth of advances and joys might have been delayed or missed entirely. Today many… Continue reading The missing piece of the VC gender inclusion puzzle – LPs
‘Ventures reimagined’
Nagraj Kashyap, corporate vice-president of Microsoft Ventures, at the GCV Symposium in May Ventures reimagined was the title of a May blog post by Nagraj Kashyap, corporate vice-president of Microsoft Ventures (see Powerlist profile). In it he said: “While we have aspirations to have global impact in new and different ways, we do not believe we need a… Continue reading ‘Ventures reimagined’
GV’s Miner aims to strike gold with edtech unit
Rich Miner, a general partner at GV when it was founded as Google Ventures in 2009, is moving down to venture partner so he can work on a new edtech venture within the company.
Growth pathways for growing businesses
Comment from Ben Armstrong, partner, Telstra Ventures
Patient capital and university venture funds in the UK
The term “patient capital” has been bouncing around with increasing frequency in the past couple of years – most recently with the flotation of venture capital firm Draper Esprit last month – but what is it and why has it gained such traction in the UK? Patient capital means different things to different people, but… Continue reading Patient capital and university venture funds in the UK