Funding
US-based genomics-focused healthcare provider Genome Medical has completed a $60m series C round featuring GV, Amgen Ventures, Kaiser Permanente Ventures and Illumina Ventures – on behalf of internet technology group Alphabet, pharmaceutical firm Amgen, healthcare provider Kaiser Permanente and genomic medicine producer Illumina – as well as Echo Health Ventures, which is backed by health services provider Cambia Health. The round was led by Casdin Capital and included Perceptive Advisors, Canaan Partners, LRVHealth, Revelation Partners, HealthInvest Equity Partners, Avestria Ventures, Flywheel Ventures, Dreamers Fund and Blue Ivy Ventures. The company closed its series B round at $37m in July 2020, bringing its overall funding to $60m.
Alpaca, a US-based brokerage software provider backed by financial exchange operator Monex, securities and brokerage operator TradeStation and financial services firm Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, raised $50m yesterday in a series B round led by venture capital firm Tribe Capital. It was joined by Horizons Ventures, Eldridge, Positive Sum and existing backers Portage Ventures, Spark Capital and Social Leverage, all of which took part in Alpaca’s $6m series A round alongside Fathom Capital and Zillionize in late 2019, pushing its total funding to $11.8m.
Thailand-based insurance technology developer Sunday has secured more than $48m in funding from investors including Aflac Ventures, the VC arm of insurance firm Aflac, as well as financial services firm Siam Commercial Bank’s SCB10X unit, messaging platform developer Line’s investment arm, Line Ventures, and ZVC, the corporate venturing vehicle formed by Line Ventures and internet company Yahoo Japan, DealStreetAsia has reported. Investment firm HuangPu River Capital led the round, which included Vertex Ventures, Quona Capital, and OSK-SBI Dynamic Growth Fund, a vehicle for OSK Ventures and financial services provider SBI. The company had raised a total of $30m as of a $9m pre-series B round in September 2020.
Medical healing product manufacturer Bioventus is leading a series D round of undisclosed size for US-based imaging technology developer Trice Medical through a sales and distribution agreement. Trice closed its series C round at $37.6m in early 2019, raising the cash from medical device producer Smith & Nephew, Charter Capital Partners, Municipal Employees’ Retirement System and existing backers Safeguard Scientifics, HealthQuest Capital and BioStar Ventures. Its overall equity and debt financing now stands at almost $68m.
Zipmex, the Singapore-based operator of a digital asset exchange, raised over $41m yesterday in a series B round featuring financial services firm Ayudhya’s Krungsi Finnovate subsidiary, Plan B Media Public Company and Master Ad Public Company, the advertising firms that reportedly supplied over $9m for the round earlier this month. Infinity Blockchain Holdings led a $3m pre-series A round for Zipmex in September 2019 at an $18m valuation following a $1.9m seed round eight months earlier, before Jump Capital led a $6m round in January this year.
US-based social commerce platform developer Flip completed a $28m series A round yesterday that included BDMI, a corporate venturing vehicle for media group Bertelsmann. VC firm Streamlined Ventures led the round, which was also backed by Mubadala Capital Ventures, unnamed existing investors and individuals including Ruby Lu. Flip had raised $3.75m in seed capital from TLV Partners and Lool Ventures as of October 2019.
EV Growth, the VC firm backed by conglomerate Sinar Mas and internet company Yahoo Japan, has taken part in a $26.6m funding round for Singapore-based senior care provider Homage, DealStreetAsia reported yesterday. Temasek vehicle Caelum Healthcare Investments led the round, which also featured DG Daiwa Ventures’ DG Lab Fund II, Seeds Capital and HealthXCapital. Homage raised an undisclosed sum from information and communications technology provider Infocom in September 2020, following a total of $15.4m from EV Growth Alternate Ventures, KDV Capital and HealthXCapital.
Australia-based epilepsy diagnostics service provider Seer has received A$34m ($24.7m) in bridge funding from hearing aid producer Cochlear, multi-family office EWM Group, SG Hiscock and Giant Leap, Australian Financial Review has reported. Seer’s co-founders include University of Melbourne researchers and it use the funding to move into the cardiac diagnostics and sleep disorder subsectors.
Open, the Australia-based digital insurance marketplace backed by insurance firm Hollard, and media company SevenWest Media, raised A$31m ($22.6m) yesterday in a funding led by Movac that also featured Latitude and AirTree Ventures. Both corporates took part in a $19m series A round for the company – then known as Huddle – in 2018 alongside AirTree Ventures and Alium Capital, following $6m from Hollard two years earlier. It named Latitude as an existing investor in the latest round.
Investment firm Polychain Capital led a $22m series A round for US-headquartered decentralised finance protocol developer Parallel Finance that included quantitative trading firms Alameda Research and Capital Markets Trading, the latter through CMT Digital, The Block reported yesterday. The round reportedly valued Parallel at $150m and included Lightspeed Venture Partners, Slow Ventures, Blockchain Capital and Blockchange Ventures. It had received $2m in seed funding from Pantera Capital, Polychain Capital, Lightspeed, Breyer Capital, 8 Decimal Capital and Hypersphere Ventures two months ago.
US-based insurance brokerage marketplace Sayata has secured $17m in a series A round that included Kamet Ventures, the insurance technology fund backed by insurance group Axa. The round was co-led by Team8 Capital and Vertex Ventures and also featured industrial investment holding company Elron and OurCrowd. Sayata had emerged from stealth in early 2019 having received $6.5m in an Elron-led seed round.
China-based construction software developer Dalezhuang has raised over RMB100m ($15.5m) in a pre-series A round led by Bertelsmann Asia Investments, a vehicle for media group Bertelsmann, DealStreetAsia reported yesterday. Internet and gaming group Tencent also participated, as did China Merchants Capital, Eastern Bell Capital and Oriental Fortune Capital. The company had received undisclosed amounts from Oriental Fortune Capital in August 2020 and K2VC the following month.
US-based virtual concert and event promoter Moment House has completed a $12m series A round featuring design agency Ideo and UTA Ventures, the strategic investment arm of talent agency United Talent Agency, Pollstar has reported. VC firm Forerunner Ventures led the round, which included Defy Ventures, Work Life Ventures and multiple angel investors. Moment House emerged from Jimmy Iovine and Dr Dre’s Young Academy for Innovation at University of Southern California before raising $1.5m in seed funding from Forerunner Ventures and a range of individuals in October 2020.
Hanwha Hotels & Resorts, a subsidiary of diversified conglomerate Hanwha, has led an $11.1m series B-plus round for Urbanbase, the South Korea-based developer of a 3D software system for interior design, TechCrunch reported yesterday. CKD Venture Capital, Magellan Technology and Capstone Partners supplied $1.8m in series A funding for Urbanbase in 2017 to take its total funding to $3m. It added about $6m in series B financing from IT services firm Shinsegae Information & Communication, construction firm Woomi, CKD Venture Capital, SL Investment, KDB Capital, Shinhan Capital, Enlight Ventures and Breeze Investment in April 2020.
US-based productivity software developer Hive secured $10m yesterday in a series A round that included video communication software provider Zoom’s $100m Apps Fund. VC firm Rembrandt Venture Partners led the round, which also featured Tribeca Venture Partners and Angelpad. Hive had received $10.6m in a late 2019 series A round led by Comcast and backed by Tribeca Venture Partners, Rembrandt Venture Partners and Vocap Investment Partners following at least $5m of earlier funding.
Sastrify, the Germany-based operator of a virtual procurement service for software-as-a-service products, raised $7m yesterday from investors including HV Capital, the VC firm backed by media companies including Holtzbrinck Publishing. Undisclosed angel investors also participated in the round, which the company said followed a $1.3m pre-seed round in late 2020.
Video game publisher 37 Interactive Entertainment has provided an undisclosed amount of funding for Canada-based augmented reality game studio Archiact, China Money Network reported today. The corporate had previously invested nearly $3.2m in Archiact in 2016 in return for a 10% stake.
Game monetisation software provider Xsolla has put up $1.5m to lead a $4.5m series A round for Cubios, the US-based creator of a mixed reality gaming system, Acrofan reported today. Dobro Capital, Starta Capital, InvestFest Network VC, Quonota and undisclosed angel investors supplied the rest of the capital, and Cubios said it plans to close the round at the end of next month.
Consumer electronics producer Apple has disclosed investments of undisclosed size in US-based wound care material developer SweetBio and VC firm VamosVentures through its Racial Equity and Justice Initiative. SweetBio had raised $2.2m – including $1.15m from Innova, MB Venture Partners, The JumpFund and ZeroTo510 in 2016 – prior to a 2018 round sized at $3.1m according to a securities filing. It added $800,000 in September 2019 and another $590,000 in convertible note financing in October 2020, according to other filings.
Vietnam-based digital media network Vietcetera revealed $2.7m in funding across two rounds yesterday, from investors including publisher Summit Media, ride hailing service Gojek’s Go Ventures unit and Z Venture Capital, the investment vehicle formed by internet company Yahoo Japan and communications platform developer Line. The rounds were led by VC firm North Base Media and also featured East Ventures, Genesia Ventures and unnamed family offices. It followed an undisclosed amount of seed capital from Genesia Ventures, Hustle Fund and various individuals in March this year.
Prospeku, an Indonesia-based developer of software that helps estate agents manage sales leads, has received an undisclosed amount of funding from financial services firm OCBC NISP, Tech in Asia reported yesterday. The bank invested through its VC arm, OCBC NISP Ventura.
Shopping centre operator Aliansce Sonae has provided an undisclosed amount of funding for Box Delivery, a Brazil-based developer of last-mile delivery technology, Startupi has reported. The company’s technology will be utilised in Alliansce Sonae’s logistics hub, PEG.
