Renegade Brands, USA, a US-based developer of a high-performance cleaning system for sporting apparel called Sweat X, completed a $5m funding round on Tuesday led by diversified holding group Eldridge Industries and backed by Elysian Park Ventures, the venture capital vehicle formed by the ownership group of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team. Renegade is also part of the 2016 batch of Los Angeles Dodgers Sports Accelerator.
Vertical Mass, the US-based creator of a data management and marketing platform for the music, entertainment and sports industries, raised $5m on Tuesday in a series A round featuring American football franchise the San Francisco 49ers. Greycroft, Formation 8, Sierra Wasatch, Canyon Creek Capital and Magnetar Capital also took part in the round, which came after a $3m in seed capital from investors including Formation 8 and SV Angel.
Hewlett Packard Pathfinder, the corporate venturing arm of enterprise IT product supplier Hewlett Packard Enterprise, added an undisclosed amount on Monday to the series C round being raised by US-based enterprise analytics technology developer ThoughtSpot. The round, which already includes General Catalyst Partners, Geodesic Capital, Lightspeed Ventures and Khosla Ventures, totalled $50m as of May this year, and follows $10.7m in series A funding in 2012 and a $30m series B round in June 2014.
Kayentis, a France-based developer of data management tools for medical clinical trials, has raised €3.6m ($4m) in a round led by VC firm Innovation Capital that included electronics producer KCE. Extens and Lenapart also took part in the round, which followed a €6.2m round backed by Xange Private Equity and Seventure Partners in 2007 and €2m from Xange the year before.
Automotive manufacturer PSA Group formed a “strategic capital agreement” with France-based online used car marketplace Aramisauto on Monday that will involve PSA supplying financing, insurance, warranty and used-car maintenance services to Aramisauto customers. Founded in 2001, Aramisauto had previously received funding from Serena Capital and 360 Capital Partners in 2009.
Ravelin, a UK-based startup working on fraud detection software that utilises machine learning, secured £3m ($3.7m) on Tuesday in a round led by Playfair Capital that included Amadeus Capital, Passion Capital and angel investors Errol Damelin and Paul Foster, all of which had backed a £1.3m round in September 2014. Passion Capital had supplied the initial seed funding to Ravelin, a graduate of financial services firm Barclays’ fintech accelerator, in early 2014.
Premium alcohol producer Beam Suntory has invested an undisclosed amount in Bartesian, the Canada-based creator of an at-home, on-demand cocktail machine. Suntory is also Bartesian’s spirits partner, meaning its brands will feature in the company’s cocktail ingredients capsules. Bartesian is also a graduate of the China-situated Hax hardware accelerator.
Energy utility ESB Group has provided €2.5m ($2.7m) in funding for Ireland-based energy-efficient solar module developer Terra Solar, The Irish Times reported yesterday. The deal follows a €125,000 investment by angel investor Kay Cranwell in May this year that valued the startup at about €1.9m, less than half its current valuation.
Joy, the US-based creator of an interactive electronic photo album, emerged from stealth on Tuesday with $2.5m in seed capital from investors including digital media company The Chernin Group. Obvious Ventures, BoxGroup, and Maywic Select Investments also contributed to the round, and Joy, which was founded in February this year, plans to begin shipping the device in summer 2017.
Biome Makers, a US-based developer of bioinformatics technology for the vineyard industry, has secured $2.2m in seed funding from Illumina Accelerator, a subsidiary of genomics technology producer Illumina, as well as investment firm Viking Global Investors and unnamed family offices, AgFunder News reported on Tuesday. It will spend the capital on additional testing as it looks to grow its microbe database for a commercial launch planned for 2017.
Conglomerate Gruppo Bertoldi has paid an undisclosed amount for a 17% stake in Starteed, an Italy-based developer of technology for the crowdfunding industry, buying stock from unnamed past investors, Startup Italia reported on Wednesday. Starteed received an undisclosed sum from backers including angel investors Alessandro Chiaffredo and Paolo Sbuttoni in 2014.
India-based children’s health and wellness product developer Good Parents has raised $2m in a seed round led by Jungle Ventures that included medical device maker Biosensors International, Fireside Ventures, Gaja Ventures and undisclosed angel investors from the US and Asia, Techseen has reported. Its first product is Kiddo, a wearable health tracker for children aged four to 10 years old.
Citi Ventures, the strategic investment arm of financial services firm Citi, invested an undisclosed amount in US-based financial fraud detection startup Feedzai on Wednesday. Feedzai had previously raised more than $22m from investors including energy utility EDP and Novabase Capital, which invests as the corporate venturing vehicle for IT company Novabase, as well as Sapphire Ventures, Espírito Santo Ventures, Data Collective and Oak HC/FT
US-based connected countertop oven developer Tovala has received $1.6m in a seed round led by Origin Ventures and backed by internet media group Gree, the Chicago Tribune reported on Tuesday. New Stack Ventures, Service Provider Capital and undisclosed angel investors also took part in the round, which followed a stint on Y Combinator’s accelerator program and a $255,000 Kickstarter campaign.
Telecommunications firm Deutsche Telekom signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Germany-based cloud communication technology developer Swyx on Monday, investing an undisclosed amount in the process. Deutsche Telekom had previously taken part in a $9.3m round for Swyx in 2005, investing through its now retired T-Venture unit, alongside ABN-Amro Capital, a subsidiary of financial services provider ABN Amro, and Wellington Partners.
Hyper Anna, the Australia-based creator of a virtual assistant for corporate information enquiries, has secured A$1.25m ($960,000) in seed funding from financial services firm Westpac’s Reinventure fund and AirTree Ventures, Australian Financial Review reported on Monday. The startup will put the funds toward hiring data scientists and developers as it prepares to launch in the US.
Restaurant engagement technology provider Mobikon has led a round of undisclosed size for Hipcask, the India-based creator of an online gifting service for high-grade alcohol and coffee, the Economic Times reported on Wednesday. The round also featured angel investors including Rajesh Sawhney and Japan Vyas, and comes after Mobikon and Bold Capital provided an undisclosed amount of funding for Hipcask earlier in the startup’s life.
VRize, the Japan-based developer of a content management network for virtual reality advertising, has received an undisclosed six-figure dollar amount of seed capital from online marketing firm Speee and multicorporate-backed VC firm B Dash Ventures, The Bridge reported on Monday. It plans to now add features like livestreaming and in-app analysis to its platform, which helps businesses create VR videos.
Digital media technology group Tritech Media has paid an undisclosed amount for a 20% stake in South Africa-based smart mobility technology startup GoMetro, Ventureburn has reported. GoMetro’s existing investors include early-stage investment vehicles AngelHub Ventures and 4Decades Capital.
Talent management firm Kwan Entertainment has contributed to a seed round of undisclosed size for India-based sports-focused social platform Rooter, the Economic Times reported on Monday. Bollywood actor Boman Irani also participated in the round, as did fellow angel investors Dhruv Chitgopekar, a partner at Kwan Entertainment, and Prantik Dasgupta.
– Image courtesy of Renegade Brands