Funding
US-headquartered blockchain node infrastructure developer Blockdaemon completed a $207m series C round yesterday featuring telecommunications and internet group SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2. Venture capital firm Sapphire Ventures co-led the round with investment firm Tiger Global Management at a $3.25bn valuation, and it included Boldstart Ventures, StepStone Group, Matrix Capital Management, Lerer Hippeau and Galaxy Digital.
Semiconductor technology producer Intel led a $103m series B round for US-based data storage software provider MinIO yesterday through corporate VC subsidiary Intel Capital, valuing the company at $1bn. SoftBank Vision Fund 2 also took part in the round, as did Dell Technologies Capital, the strategic investment arm of computing technology provider Dell, in addition to General Catalyst and Nexus Venture Partners.
Investment banking firm JP Morgan agreed on Tuesday to pay an undisclosed amount for a 49% stake in Greece-headquartered neobank Viva Wallet. Internet group Tencent had joined Hedosophia, Breyer Capital and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in an $80m series D round in April 2021 reportedly valuing Viva at about $1.8bn. Diorama Investments had provided $18.4m for the company in 2018.
Yellow Swan, the China-based fresh egg brand also known as Huang Tian Er, has secured RMB600m ($94.2m) in a series C round featuring supply chain services firm C&D and an undisclosed investment vehicle for state-backed media company People’s Daily, DealStreetAsia reported today. Kun & Young Capital, Fengshion Capital, Meridian Capital China, Green Harbor Investment and EverYi Capital also participated, and DealStreetAsia named Utimco and Proterra Investment Partners as earlier investors.
Nexeon, a UK-headquartered developer of silicon anode battery technology, received $80m in funding yesterday from investors including chemicals and advanced materials producer SKC and carmaker BMW, through subsidiary BNW Investment. The round was also backed by SJL Partners and Kiwoom Private Equity and it came five years after the company raised $43m in its last round.
Automotive manufacturer Mercedes-Benz agreed today to provide an eight-digit amount of euros (€10m = $11.1m) for Taiwan-based solid-state battery developer ProLogium as part of a technology cooperation agreement. The deal came three months after ProLogium raised $326m from investors including telecoms and internet group SoftBank’s SBCVC Navitas vehicle.
US-based automated warehouse robotics developer Vecna Robotics raised $65m yesterday in a series C round backed by warehousing and logistics manager Lineage Logistics. Investment firm Tiger Global Management led the round, which included Proficio Capital Partners and Impulse VC. The company had secured $13.5m in a 2018 round featuring Drive Capital and Tectonic Ventures, both returning for a $50m series B in January 2020 alongside Blackhorn Ventures, Highland Capital and Fontinalis Partners.
Internet and telecoms group SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2 led China-based medical exoskeleton developer Fourier Intelligence’s RMB400m ($63.2m) series D round yesterday. Oil and gas supplier Saudi Aramco’s Prosperity7 Ventures fund also contributed to the round along with VC firm Vision Plus Capital.
Cheetah, the US-based operator of an online marketplace for restaurant supplies and food, has completed a $60m series C round backed by warehousing manager Lineage Logistics and packaged food producer Grupo Nutresa, it revealed yesterday. Investment firm Manna Tree led the round, which included Sator Grove Holdings, Eclipse Ventures and Hanaco Growth Ventures.
PortalOne, the US-headquartered creator of a hybrid mobile gaming platform, secured $60m yesterday in a series A round featuring blockchain entertainment app developer Animoca Brands and conglomerate Access Industries. The round was led by Tiger Global Management and also backed by TQ Ventures, Temasek, Avenir Growth, Connect Ventures, Nordstar, Socii Capital, Founders Fund, Coatue Management, Talis Capital, Rogue Capital Partners, Snӧ Ventures and multiple individuals.
Recruitment firm Seek has co-led a $40m series B round for Cialfo, the Singapore-based operator of an online higher education and career progression exploration platform, through corporate VC vehicle Seek Investments, TechCrunch reported today. The round was co-led by VC firm Square Peg and included hospitality software provider SIG Global, DLF Ventures, January Capital and private investor Lim Teck Lee.
T-Rex Group, a US-based producer of software for the asset-backed space, took in $40m in series C funding yesterday from investors including financial services group Citi. Investment firm Riverstone Holdings led the round along with unnamed affiliates and was also joined by ClearSky, Westly Group, Viola FinTech and Partnership Fund for New York City.
India-based retail intelligence and distribution services provider Shopkirana rebranded to Direct today having received $38m in a funding round co-led by classified listings operator Info Edge with Oman India Joint Investment Fund and Sixth Sense Ventures. They invested alongside Gunosy Capital, the corporate VC arm of news aggregator Gunosy, as well as mobile game publisher Akatsuki, Trifecta Capital, Incubate Fund, Ajanta and 9Unicorns.
US-headquartered mortgage software producer Polly secured $37m in series B funding yesterday from investors including home loan provider Movement Mortgage and homebuyer insurance provider First American Financial. VC firm Menlo Ventures led the round, which also featured FinVC and existing investors 8VC, Khosla Ventures and Fifth Wall. It followed a $15m series A round in March 2021 led by 8VC and backed by Menlo Ventures, Fifth Wall, Conversion Capital, Meritech Capital and Base10 Partners.
Artficial intelligence technology producer iFlytek’s investment arm, iFlytek Ventures, and an undisclosed investment vehicle for electronics producer Keysida have taken part in a RMB200m ($31.6m) series B1 round for China-based memory storage technology provider Witinmem, DealStreetAsia reported yesterday. LH Ventures led the round, which also featured China Merchants Capital, Puhua Capital, Silicon Paradise and Ruixin Investment.
Internet group Prosus, conglomerate Sinar Mas and quantitative trading firm Susquehanna International Group were among the investors in a $30m series A round today for Aruna, the Indonesia-based operator of a supply chain aggregator for the marine and fishery industry, yesterday through Prosus Ventures, SMDV and SIG Venture Capital respectively. The round was led by Vertex Ventures and also featured East Ventures’ Growth Fund, AC Ventures and Indogen Capital.
Indonesia-based online education provider CoLearn increased its series A round to $27m today with $17m from investors including education firm Binus Group, TNB Aura, KTB Network, Alpha Wave Incubation, Sequoia Capital India’s Surge fund, GSV Ventures, AC Ventures, Leo Capital and January Capital. The first $10m came from Alpha Wave, GSV Ventures, Surge and AC Ventures in April 2021.
Advanced battery manufacturer Novonix signed a letter of intent on Tuesday to invest $25m in US-headquartered battery cell technology developer Kore Power in connection with a supply agreement. The deal would involve it buying approximately 3.33 million shares for $7.50 each.
SiteAware, a US-based provider of construction verification software, completed a $15m series B round yesterday featuring Robert Bosch Venture Capital, which invested on behalf of industrial technology producer Robert Bosch. VC firm Vertex Ventures Israel led the round, which included Axon Ventures, Oryzn Capital, The Flying Object and Lool Ventures.
Insurance firm State Farm led a $15m series A round for Owl Autonomous Imaging, a US-based creator of 3D thermal imaging and ranging technology for use in automotive safety systems, through subsidiary State Farm Ventures on Tuesday. Excell Partners, Luminate NY Accelerator, Empire State Development, MHNW Consortium and angel investor Sanjay Jha also participated in the round.
Ayoconnect, an Indonesia-headquartered provider of application programming interfaces for financial software products, has secured $15m in a series B round featuring PayU, the payment technology subsidiary of internet group Prosus, DealStreetAsia reported today, citing regulatory filings. Tiger Global Management led the round and was also joined by Muir Capital, Ephesus United Corp, Watiga Trust and Northeast2.
Enterprise software producer SAP supplied an undisclosed amount of funding for US-headquartered contract management technology provider Icertis on Tuesday through an expanded partnership agreement. Icertis had raised at least $211m as of a $115m series E round in 2019 valuing it at $1bn. Internet and telecommunications group SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2 bought shares from Eight Roads Ventures – part of investment and financial services group Fidelity – in September 2021 at a $5bn valuation, according to the Economic Times.
Dell Technologies Capital, the investment arm of computing technology producer Dell, led a $10m series A round on Tuesday for Tag-n-Trac, a US-based developer of internet-of-things tracking technology. Cold chain services provider Aerosafe Global also contributed to the round, as did pharmaceutical firm Merck & Co’s Global Innovation Fund.
CloudApp, the US-based creator of a visual workplace communication app, raised $9.3m on Tuesday in a series A round featuring Bloomberg Beta, the VC firm sponsored by media group Bloomberg. The round was co-led by Grayhawk Capital and Nordic Eye and included Kickstart Seed Fund, Cervin Ventures, New Ground Ventures, Peninsula Ventures and Forward VC.
ChickP, the Israel-based developer of a chickpea protein isolate, closed an $8m series A round yesterday that included plant-based food producer Growthwell Foods. Singaporean state-owned investment firm Temasek also invested in the round, which was led by undisclosed private executives through the Genisys Capital Private vehicle. ChickP said its overall funding stands at $18m, Growthwell having previously supplied an undisclosed amount in April 2020.
US-based distributed cloud infrastructure startup Sync Computing emerged from stealth on Tuesday with $6.1m, raised through a round co-led by energy provider National Grid’s strategic investment arm, National Grid Partners. Investment firm Moore Strategic Ventures co-led the round, which was also backed by existing investor The Engine.
Internet technology provider Google’s artificial intelligence fund, Gradient Ventures, has led a $6m funding round for Dyspatch, the Canada-based developer of a no-code software platform enabling dynamic emails to be created, VentureBeat reported on Tuesday. The company – then known as Sendwithus – had secured $5m from BlueRun Ventures, Initialized Capital, Acequía Capital and existing backers Baseline Ventures, SV Angel, Maiden Lane, Y Combinator and angel investor Scott Banister in a 2017 series A round.
Atomic Form, a US-headquartered developer of non-fungible token hardware and software products, raised an undisclosed amount of seed funding on Tuesday from investors including blockchain entertainment product developer Animoca Brands, business finance software provider Wave Financial and Samsung Next, on behalf of consumer electronics manufacturer Samsung. They joined Sino Global Capital, Mechanism Capital and assorted angel investors in the round.
Philippines-headquartered e-commerce services startup Etaily increased its seed round to $5.9m yesterday, adding $4.3m in an extension co-led by conglomerate JG Summit’s JG Digital Equity Ventures unit and VC firm Gobi Partners’ Gobi-Core PH Fund. The round included conglomerate Ayala Corporation’s Ayala Ventures fund, Foxmont Capital Partners and undisclosed individuals. The round’s first tranche closed in August 2021.
Hatch Work, a Japan-based provider of digitisation services for the car park industry, secured ¥600m ($5.2m) today from investors including Eneos Innovation Partners and Nanto Capital Partners, on behalf of petroleum producer Eneos and financial services firm Nanto Bank respectively. They were joined by Mercuria Investment, Innovation Engine and Venture Labo Investment, and the company said its total funding stands at approximately $13.4m.
Mirai-Labo, the Japan-based creator of an autonomous solar power system, received ¥500m ($4.3m) in funding from agricultural and outdoor power equipment producer Yamabiko today. The companies plan to partner on the development of a hybrid autonomous energy system.
Payment encryption and tokenisation technology producer Payfactory invested an undisclosed amount in US-based digital payment software provider Bluefin on Tuesday. Bluefin had previously received $6m in a 2016 round co-led by Napier Park Global Capital’s Financial Partners vehicle and and Camden Partners, and $25m in an October 2020 round led by financial services firm Macquarie Group’s Macquarie Capital Principal Finance subsidiary.
TechBowl, the Japan-based owner of engineer recruitment and training service TechTrain, raised ¥130m ($1.1m) today in a pre-series A round featuring Hakuhodo DY Ventures and SMBC Venture Capital, subsidiaries of marketing group Hakuhodo DY and financial services provider Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation respectively, as well as corporate joint venture Design for Ventures (DV4). The company had received an eight-digit yen amount from XTech Ventures and angel investor Ayataro Nakagawa in 2018.
Mobile game publisher Akatsuki’s Heart Driven Fund provided an undisclosed amount of series C funding today for Wed, the Japan-based operator of receipt purchase app One. Wed had secured an undisclosed amount from East Ventures before Incubate Fund and D4V added $900,000 in 2017. Design software provider Goodpatch’s Design Fund then invested an undisclosed sum in late 2020.
Questar, a Japan-based provider of digital safety signage for construction sites, secured ¥50m ($430,000) in funding today from storage tank manufacturer Toyo Kanetsu’s Corporate Venture Fund 2. The company had previously received $100,000 from financial services firm Saitama Resona Bank in 2016.
Public relations firm Public Media Solution has supplied an undisclosed amount of funding for India-based musical instrument retailer F Sharp, VCCircle reported yesterday. The corporate invested through its seed funding service scheme.
Public Markets
Imagine Marketing, the India-headquartered parent company of earphone and wearable device brand BoAt, filed for a $246m initial public offering today that would allow mobile semiconductor producer Qualcomm to exit. The corporate’s Qualcomm Ventures unit invested $6.7m in BoAt in April 2021 following $100m from Warburg Pincus three months earlier. The IPO is set to consist of about $120m in new shares and $146m in sales from existing investors, just over $106m from an entity known as South Lake Investment.
Funds
UK-headquartered, Africa-focused venture capital firm TLcom Capital has secured $70m from limited partners including media group Bertelsmann and AfricaGrow, a joint venture between insurer Allianz and DEG Impact, for the first close of its latest fund, TechCrunch reported today. The vehicle has a $150m target for its final close and FBNQuest, Sango Capital, King Philanthropies, CDC Group, International Finance Corporation, Proparco and Swedfund-Caio are also among its LPs so far.
Additional reporting by Liwen-Edison Fu.
