The world started the new year with hopes of fighting off the covid-19 pandemic. The enthusiasm stemming from vaccine rollout has permeated the investment world and investing is in full swing. So much so that March registered record highs, which few would have expected a year ago when the pandemic broke out.
According to GCV Analytics, the number of corporate-backed deals from around the world was 430 in March, nearly 62% higher than the 226 rounds from the same month last year and considerably higher than any month from the past year. Investment value stood at nearly $25.27bn in total estimated capital – more than 2.5 times the $9.49bn in March 2020.
The US came first in the number of corporate-backed deals, hosting 205 rounds, while Japan was second with 51 and China – third with 37.
The leading corporate investors by number of deals were investment and financial services group Fidelity, diversified internet conglomerate Alphabet and telecoms and internet conglomerate SoftBank. In terms of involvement in the largest, Fidelity, SoftBank and Alphabet were on the top of the list as well.
GCV Analytics reported 33 corporate-backed funding initiatives in March, including VC funds, new venturing units, incubators, accelerators and other. This figure is higher than the one from March 2020, which registered 25 initiatives. The estimated capital raised in those initiatives amounted to $4.85bn, slightly more than double the $2.36bn raised during the same month last year.
Deals
Emerging businesses from the health, IT, financial, services and consumer sectors led in raising the largest number of rounds in March 2021. The most active corporate venturers came from the financial, IT, health, media and consumer sectors.
US-headquartered cold chain services provider Lineage Logistics secured $1.9bn in equity funding from investors including real estate developer Oxford Properties and investment bank Morgan Stanley’s MS Tactical Value and Conversant Capital vehicle.
The funding was raised alongside a $2.8bn revolving credit facility and term loan, and will support the construction of new facilities and the expansion of the company’s existing warehouses. Real estate investment firms CenterSquare Investment Management, BentallGreenOak and Cohen & Steers, hedge fund manager D1 Capital Partners and pension fund manager OP Trust also participated in the round.
Founded in 2008, Lineage provides chilled transportation for food and temperature-controlled storage through a network of 340 warehouses across five continents, using technology to make its activities more efficient.
GoPuff, the US-based operator of a personal services app, received $1.15bn from investors including telecoms and internet group SoftBank’s Vision Fund I at an $8.9bn valuation. Fidelity Management and Research also took part in the round, among other investors.
Founded in 2013, GoPuff runs an online platform that allows users to order products such as food and drink, cleaning, baby and pet products, over-the-counter medications and, in some places, alcohol, for delivery.
The company operates from a network of fulfilment centres and charges a flat $1.95 fee per delivery. It will use the funding to expand geographically, extend its product range, grow its team and bolster its technology.
E-commerce firm Alibaba and investment firm DST Global co-led a $750m series D round for China-based grocery platform Nice Tuan. Anatole Investment, CDH Investments, Cygnus Equity and DE Shaw took part in the round, as did Dragoneer, Franchise Capital, GGV Capital, Jeneration Capital and Kunlun Capital.
Founded in 2018 and also known as Shihuituan in Chinese, Nice Tuan runs an online community marketplace that helps users bulk-buy grocery items such as fruit and vegetables, meat and packaged goods at discount rates. The cash will go towards improving its shipping operations and expanding its fresh produce business.
US-based digital payment technology producer Stripe received $600m from investors including insurers Axa and Allianz – the latter through its Allianz X vehicle – at a $95bn valuation. Fidelity Management & Research also participated in the round, as did investment management firm Baillie Gifford, venture capital firm Sequoia Capital and Ireland’s National Treasury Management Agency. Stripe provides digital payment processing and business management software. The funding will support European growth, as well as the expansion of its software, services and Global Payments and Treasury Network, which helps customers grow internationally.
US-based gene therapy developer ElevateBio secured $525m in a series C round that included SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2 and diversified trading firm Itochu. The round was led by investment manager Matrix Capital Management and also featured Fidelity Management & Research Company in addition to a large undisclosed insurance firm. Launched in 2019, ElevateBio is working on cell, gene and regenerative therapies which are being developed by its research and development and manufacturing unit, ElevateBio BaseCamp, for a wide range of potential illnesses.
China-based autonomous driving technology developer Momenta.ai raised $500m in a series C round co-led by industrial technology and appliance producer Bosch and automotive manufacturers SAIC Motor and Toyota. Singaporean government-backed Temasek and Yunfeng Capital, a private equity firm formed by e-commerce group Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma, also co-led the round, which included carmaker Mercedes-Benz, internet group Tencent, Cathay Capital, GGV Capital and Shunwei Capital. Founded in 2016, Momenta is developing a data analytics and deep learning-equipped software tool designed to help driverless cars achieve full autonomy through automatic route planning and prediction technology.
Dataminr, the information discovery software provider backed by financial services firm Credit Suisse, completed a $475m financing round valuing it at $4.1bn. Diversified conglomerate Eldridge, Valor Equity Partners, MSD Capital, Reinvent Capital, ArrowMark Partners, IVP and Eden Global provided the funding along with investment funds managed by investment banking firm Morgan Stanley’s Tactical Value subsidiary.
Founded in 2009, Dataminr has built a software platform that analyses public data from sources including social media, blogs, web forums, the deep and dark web, internet-of-things sensors, audio and radio transmissions in real time in order to detect patterns and unearth information
US-headquartered drug discovery technology provider Insitro received $400m in a series C round featuring GV and Softbank Investment Advisers, on behalf of Alphabet and SoftBank. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) led the round, which included Alexandria Venture Investments, the VC arm of life sciences real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities, as well as an unnamed healthcare provider and undisclosed investment group.
Insitro uses machine learning technology to support drug development through enhanced medicine design, the creation of predictive cell-based disease models and the deployment of statistical genetics in locating druggable targets.
Hopin, the US-based developer of a virtual events platform, hiked its valuation to $5.65bn in a $400m series C round featuring enterprise software provider Salesforce’s corporate venturing subsidiary, Salesforce Ventures.
VC firms IVP, Andreessen Horowitz and General Catalyst co-led the round, which included Coatue, DFJ Growth, Northzone and Tiger Global Management. Sriram Krishnan, general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, is joining the company’s board of directors.
Founded in June 2019, Hopin has built a software platform that enables users to create immersive virtual live events using live video technology and interactive tools.
Starling Bank, the UK-based digital bank backed by financial, real estate and consulting services provider JTC Group, received £272m ($377m) in series D funding. The round was led by Fidelity and included RPMI Railpen, the investment manager of the UK Railways Pension Scheme, as well as sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority and investment firm Millennium Management. The round valued Starling at $1.53bn pre-money according to the company.
Founded in 2014, Starling offers personal, business and joint accounts through a mobile app. In addition to British pounds, users can open euro and US dollar-denominated checking accounts, and the company also offers a range of loans. The app includes a marketplace allowing users to connect to third-party financial offerings such as pension funds and insurance products to their bank account. Starling also operates a business-to-business service, marketing its technology platform to financial services firms.
Exits
Record highs were also registered in exits. GCV Analytics tracked 58 exits involving corporate venturers as either acquirers or exiting investors in March. The transactions included 28 acquisitions, 15 initial public offerings (IPOs), 13 other transactions (mostly reverse mergers with SPACs), one merger and one stake sale.
The exit count figure was more than double that from March 2020 (24). The total estimated exited capital stood at $31.39bn, nearly 14 times more than the $2.34bn recorded in same month last year and nearly double the estimated $18.11bn in February this year.
Authentication technology provider Okta agreed to purchase US-based identity verification platform developer Auth0 in a $6.5bn deal enabling corporates telecoms firms NTT Docomo, Telstra and Deutsche Telekom as well as cloud enterprise software provider Salesforce to exit.
Salesforce Ventures, a subsidiary of enterprise software producer Salesforce, led a $120m series F round in July 2020 valuing Auth0 at $1.92bn that included DTCP and Telstra Ventures, which represented Deutsche Telekom and Telstra.
Founded in 2013, Auth0’s software platform enables app development teams to secure and authorise access for users, mobile devices and other applications. The acquisition is an all-share deal and is expected to close by the end of 2021.
Coupang, the South Korea-based online marketplace backed by SoftBank, floated on the New York Stock Exchange in an upsized $4.55bn IPO. The company priced 130 million shares at $35 each. It had set a price range of $32 to $34 for 120 million shares, 100 million of which were set to be issued by the company and 20 million sold by its investors.
Founded in 2010, Coupang runs an e-commerce platform that offers a wide range of consumer goods through a same-day delivery service. It increased revenue 91% year on year to almost $12bn in 2020 and cut its net loss from $699m to $475m.
IronSource, the Israel-based app monetisation software provider backed by conglomerate Access Industries, agreed a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company at an $11.1bn pro forma equity valuation. The company joined forces with Thoma Bravo Advantage, which is sponsored by private equity firm Thoma Bravo, and obtained the listing on the New York Stock Exchange, from which the latter received in a $900m IPO in January 2021.
A Thoma Bravo affiliate also led a $1.3bn private investment in public equity (PIPE) deal supporting the transaction, investing with Morgan Stanley’s Counterpoint Global unit, Tiger Global Management, Nuveen, Hedosophia, Wellington Management, Baupost Group and funds managed by investors including Fidelity Investments Canada. IronSource provides software tools that help app developers – particularly mobile game developers – monetise their products and engage more effectively with their users, by adding specific touchpoints where relevant content can be delivered.
UK-based online food delivery service Deliveroo floated on the London Stock Exchange in a £1.5bn ($2.07bn) IPO, scoring an exit for e-commerce group Amazon. The company issued about 256 million shares while its shareholders sold a further 128 million. They were priced at £3.90 each – at the foot of the IPO’s £3.90 to £4.60 range but had fallen by the end of the day, adjusting its market capitalisation to less than $5.6 bn.
Deliveroo runs an app-based online platform that allows users to order food from nearby restaurants and eateries that is delivered by its riders. It has added a subscription service called Deliveroo Plus to its offering, its own kitchens under the Editions brand and delivery software platform Signature.
Cazoo, the UK-based online automotive marketplace that counts media group Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) as an investor, agreed a reverse merger with special purpose acquisition company Ajax I. The combined company took the New York Stock Exchange listing obtained by Ajax through its $750m blank cheque IPO in October 2020. The deal was boosted by $800m in PIPE financing at a $7bn valuation. Ajax’s sponsors and D1 Capital Partners anchored the PIPE, which includes Fidelity, Morgan Stanley’s Counterpoint Global unit, Altimeter, Marcho Partners, Mubadala Capital, Pelham Capital, Senator Investment Group, Spruce House Partnership and funds and accounts managed by BlackRock.
Cazoo operates an e-commerce platform where customers in the UK, Germany, France and Portugal can buy and sell vehicles. The company has also built a monthly car subscription business with the purchases of Drover and Cluno in the past four months, and said it expects to book near to $1bn in revenue this year.
US-based digital health insurance provider Oscar Health went public in a $1.44bn IPO that scored an exit for Alphabet and insurer Ping An. The offering consisted of approximately 37 million shares issued on the New York Stock Exchange priced at $39 each, approximately 650,000 of which were divested by Oscar’s shareholders. The amount of shares was increased from 31 million and the price was above the $32 to $34m range set by the company.
Founded in 2012, Oscar operates a health insurance platform with 529,000 members that helps its customers navigate the healthcare system while using data technology to help promote healthy personal behaviour. Its net loss increased from $261m to $407 in 2020, though its revenue rose more than 60% year on year to $1.67bn.
WeWork, the US-headquartered workspace provider which counts SoftBank as its largest investor, agreed a reverse takeover with special purpose acquisition company BowX Acquisition Corp. The deal granted WeWork an initial enterprise value of about $9bn and a stock exchange listing secured by BowX through a $420m initial public offering on the Nasdaq Capital Market in August 2020.
Fidelity Management & Research joined Insight Partners, funds managed by Starwood Capital Group, Centaurus Capital and funds and accounts managed by BlackRock in an $800m private placement supporting the transaction.
Founded in 2010, WeWork runs a network of co-working spaces spanning 118 cities across the world. It failed in an attempt to go public in 2019 and required an extensive bailout from SoftBank to remain operational but has since restructured and divested non-core holdings. The company has a $4bn sales pipeline and $1.5bn in committed revenue for 2021 despite the covid-19 pandemic, which it said has increased demand for flexible workspaces. SoftBank has provided a $550m senior secured notes facility.
Hippo Enterprises, a US-based online home insurance provider backed by media company Comcast, construction company Lennar, insurers MS&AD, Munich Re and home maintenance services provider Standard Industries, agreed to a reverse merger with special purpose acquisition company Reinvent Technology Partners Z.
Homebuilder Lennar joined fellow existing backers Dragoneer and Ribbit Capital to co-lead a $550m PIPE together with Reinvent Capital and unnamed mutual funds. Hippo will have access to approximately $1.2bn in cash once the transaction closes, also including some $230m held in Reinvent’s trust account. The merger is expected to close in mid-2021, subject to customary closing conditions, and Hippo will then trade on the New York Stock Exchange. The business is expected to be valued at $5bn.
Founded in 2015, Hippo uses real-time data and smart home technology to provide an end-to-end home protection and insurance platform. It has built an underwriting engine that relies on artificial intelligence to prefill applications and to assess and price risk in under a minute. Hippo’s offering is currently available in 32 US states – the equivalent of 72% of the country’s population – and the company hopes to be available to 95% of the population by the end of this year.
US-listed drugs group Amgen agreed to acquire Rodeo Therapeutics, a US-based small-molecule therapy developer for tissue, for up to $721m. Amgen will pay an initial $55m and up to $666m in cash subject to milestones. Rodeo’s previous corporate backers include pharmaceutical firms AbbVie, Eli Lilly, Johnson & Johnson and WuXi AppTec as well as real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities. Rodeo is developing small-molecule therapies, including its lead 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-PGDH) modulators, that will help regenerate and repair various types of tissue, for use in dealing with conditions such as ulcerative colitis and, for recovery after bone marrow transplants.
IonQ, a US-based quantum computing technology developer backed by electronics manufacturers Samsung, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, aircraft maker Airbus, Alphabet and Amazon, agreed to list through a reverse takeover. It will merge with dMY Technology Group, a special purpose acquisition company that floated on the New York Stock Exchange in a $275m initial public offering in November 2020.
The combined business will have a pro forma implied valuation of $2bn. The transaction will be supported by $350m in private investment in public equity (PIPE) financing from investors including carmaker Hyundai Motor Company, its Kia subsidiary and GV, a corporate venturing subsidiary of Alphabet.
IonQ has created a 32-qubit quantum computer it claims is the world’s most powerful quantum system, based on research at the University of Maryland and Duke University. It had disclosed a total of $77m in funding as of a $55m round co-led by consumer electronics producer Samsung’s Catalyst Fund in late 2019.
Note: Monthly data can fluctuate as additional data are reported after each issue of GCV magazine goes to press.