Reverse merger
Circle, the US-based blockchain payment platform backed by corporates FTX, Baidu, Bitmain, CreditEase and Wanxiang, has terminated a reverse merger agreement with New York-listed special purpose acquisition company Concord Acquisition Corp. The deal was first announced in July 2021, potentially valuing the merged entity at $4.5bn, before Circle managed to double its valuation seven months later.
M&A
Cryptocurrency group Animoca Brands has acquired a majority stake in US-based portfolio company Pixelynx, the operator of a music-focused metaverse gaming platform, for an undisclosed amount. Animoca led a $4.5m seed round for Pixelynx in December 2021, investing with Solana Ventures, a subsidiary of crypto app developer Solana, as well as quantitative trading firm Alameda Research, Alumni Ventures’ Blockchain Fund, Hyperedge Capital, Republic Realm, SevenX and Sfermion.
Funding
| Company | Company description | Sector | Country | Round | Round size($m) | Deal date | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pulmocide | Respiratory disease therapeutics developer | Healthcare | UK | C | 144 (updated) | 06/12/2022 | GlaxoSmithKline (SR One), Johnson & Johnson (Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC), Asahi Kasei Pharma; Pictet Group (Pictet Alternative Advisors) (lead), IP Group, Vivo Capital, SV Health Investors, Jeito Capital, Fidelity (F-Prime Capital), Adjuvant Capital, Longwood Fund, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation |
| Slingshot Aerospace | Space-focused data analytics technology developer | Industrial | US | A2 | 40.8 | 06/12/2022 | Lockheed Martin (Lockheed Martin Ventures); Sway Ventures (lead), C16 Ventures, ATX Venture Partners, Valor Equity Partners, Draper Associates (equity), Horizon Technology Finance (debt) |
| NeuReality | AI-equipped semiconductor manufacturer | IT | Israel | A | 35 | 06/12/2022 | Samsung (Samsung Ventures) (co-lead), XT Holdings (XT Hi-Tech) (co-lead), SK Group (SK Hynix); Cardumen Capital (co-lead), Varana Capital (co-lead), OurCrowd (co-lead), Cleveland Avenue, Korean Investment Partners, StoneBridge, Glory Ventures |
| LongPath Technologies | Carbon emissions detection and quantification technology producer | Industrial | US | A | 22 | 05/12/2022 | ProFrac, Williams; White Deer (lead), Buff Gold Ventures, unnamed existing investors |
| Virgio | Fast fashion brand | Consumer | India | A | 17.4 (updated) | 06/12/2022 | Prosus (Prosus Ventures) (lead); Accel India, Bhavish Aggarwal, Sri Harsha Majety, Kunal Shah, Vidit Atrey, Mekin Mahesh |
| Cacheflow | Zero-code enterprise software provider | IT | US | Seed+ | 10 | 06/12/2022 | Alphabet (GV) (lead); GGV Capital, Pelion Venture Partners |
| Treble Technologies | Sound simulation technology developer | Media | Iceland | Seed | 8.4 | 06/12/2022 | Saint-Gobain (Nova); Frumtak Ventures (lead), undisclosed angel investors (equity), European Innovation Council (grant) |
| Highcon | Digital packaging equipment maker | Industrial | Israel | N/A | 8 | 06/12/2022 | Sealed Air Corporation |
| Natee | Creators’ marketing support provider | Media | Japan | N/A | 3 | 07/12/2022 | Cuebic (Cuebic Ventures), Benesse Holdings, Shizuoka Bank (Shizuoka Capital), GMO Nikko; XTech Ventures, unnamed angel investors |
| SafeStack | Cybersecurity training platform developer | IT | New Zealand | N/A | 2.5 | 05/12/2022 | National Australia Bank (NAB Ventures); Blackbird Ventures (lead), Jelix Ventures, Carthona Capital, K1W1, New Zealand Growth Capital Partners (Aspire NZ Seed Fund) |
| Accacia | Real estate decarbonisation platform | Services | India | Seed | 2.5 | 06/12/2022 | Zerodha (Rainmatter Fund); Accel, Blume Ventures, Good Capital, Loyal VC, unnamed angel investors |
| Sollective | Online freelancer marketplace | Services | Japan | Pre-A | 2.3 | 07/12/2022 | Coconala (Coconala Skill Partners); Kusabi (lead), Chiba Dojo Fund, Kepple Capital (DX Fund), 90s, Masaki Yamamoto |
| Algobulls | Algorithmic trading platform developer | Financial | India | Pre-A | 2 | 06/12/2022 | DSP Group; Venture Catalysts, Findoc Finvest, Nitin Shahi, Dishant Milan Parikh, Yuvraj Thakker, Sharath Kumar |
| Abscint | Molecular imaging technology developer | Healthcare | Belgium | N/A | 1 | 05/12/2022 | Trasis; Noshaq (co-lead), Qbic (co-lead), UZ Brussel, Kazoku |
| Jetti Resources | Developer of a sustainable copper extraction system | Energy and Natural Resources | Us | N/A | N/A | 01/12/2022 | BMW (BMW i Ventures) |
