Corporate venturing deal net: 12-16 November 2018
Each Friday the Global Corporate Venturing Deal Net rounds up the week’s smaller deals and tracks the emerging companies accessing corporate funds.
Fundraising
ComfortDelGro composes terms for $100m fund
The transportation services provider is eyeing mobility startups with $100m corporate venturing fund ComfortDelGro Capital Partners.
Schneider Electric recharges corporate VC vehicle
The corporate has resurrected the Schneider Electric Ventures unit it folded into Aster in 2010 and will invest up to $565m through the vehicle.
Talkdesk sets aside $10m for Innovation Fund
Call centre software provider Talkdesk has formed a $10m investment fund partially based on one of its investors, Salesforce Ventures.
Toyoda Gosei assembles corporate venturing fund
The automotive parts producer intends to invest $26.3m in robotics, semiconductor, advanced materials and car components technology in the next two years.
Vision Fund vies for $4bn in debt
SoftBank’s $97.7bn Vision Fund, which was recently reported to be seeking $9bn in debt financing, has hired Goldman Sachs and Mizuho to oversee a $4bn second facility.
People
Suennen to supervise Manatt’s venture capital activities
Lisa Suennen has joined law firm Manatt Phelps & Phillips two months after leaving GE Ventures, and will head its corporate venturing fund.
Exits
Blackberry seals $1.4bn Cylance purchase
Dell Ventures, Citi Ventures and Capital One Ventures are all set to exit endpoint security software provider after Blackberry agreed an acquisition.
Citrix syncs with Sapho in $200m acquisition
Workplace micro app platform developer Sapho has been acquired by Citrix Systems having previously raised more than $26m from investors including Bloomberg Beta.
Vitec onboards Amimon in $55m deal
Vitec has purchased Motorola and Hantech-backed wireless semiconductor producer Amimon in a $55m acquisition that followed some $69m of funding.
Kaiser Permanente-backed respiratory device provider Vapotherm floated at the bottom of its range but raised $56m in its initial public offering.
Moderna models $500m IPO filing
Merck & Co, AstraZeneca and Alexion are all in line for exits after Moderna Therapeutics, valued at $7.5bn earlier this year, filed for its initial public offering.
Mogu makes for public markets in $200m IPO
The Tencent, Bertelsmann and Ping An-backed owner of social commerce platform Mogujie is looking to raise $200m in the offering.
Symantec gains Appthority in acquisition deal
Symantec Ventures has exited mobile cybersecurity platform developer Appthority in an acquisition of undisclosed size by its parent company.
IT
UiPath reaches $265m series C close
Enterprise automation software provider UiPath has added $40m to a round co-led by existing investor CapitalG that values it at $3bn.
XM Cyber secures $22m in series A funding
Nasdaq Ventures, Macquarie Capital and UST Global have helped cybersecurity technology developer XM Cyber close a series A round, bringing its total funding to $32m.
Spin Memory turns to corporates to raise $52m
Memory technology supplier and New York University spinout Spin Memory has secured $52m in a round featuring Applied Ventures and Arm.
Forescout successfully tracks SecurityMatters in $113m deal
Forescout Technologies has paid approximately $113m to acquire operational technology security provider SecurityMatters, allowing KPN, Bosch and Phoenix Contact to exit.
Health
Ribometrix rips $30m in Merck-led round
Merck Group’s M Ventures unit led the RNA therapy startup’s series A round, which featured Amgen, Illumina, AbbVie and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma.
NextCure looks forward with $93m
Strategic partner Eli Lilly invested $15m while Pfizer, Ping An Ventures and Taiho Ventures also contributed to the immunotherapy developer’s series B round.
Pfizer Ventures and 6 Dimensions Capital joined Merck & Co, Sanofi, Eli Lilly and Amgen in Kymera’s series B round, taking the protein degradation drug developer’s total funding to more than $95m.
Existing investors SoftBank Vision Fund and Dexxon both returned for a $200m round that will help drug developer Roivant Sciences expand its range of subsidiaries.
Amal Therapeutics amplifies series B round
Boehringer Ingelheim and Helsinn helped oncology vaccine developer Amal reach the second close of a series B round that now totals $32.7m.
Harpoon shoots to $70m series C round
Lilly Asia Ventures and existing investor Taiho Ventures both contributed to a round for immunotherapy developer Harpoon Therapeutics following a $45m series B last year.
Media
Baidu lifts XinChao’s latest round to $302m
XinChao, the owner of a network of more than 700,000 elevator advertising screens, has secured funding in a round led by strategic partner Baidu.
37 Interactive Entertainment and existing backer TAL Education both invested in a $14.4m round for the children’s literature platform.
Consumer
Instacart increases series F funding to $871m
Amex, Comcast and Amazon-backed grocery delivery platform Instacart has added $271m to its latest round and is now valued at almost $7.9bn.
Corporates help dish up $500m for iFood
Online food delivery platform iFood has secured another $500m in a round featuring majority owner Movile and fellow corporate Naspers.
SoftBank helps hand $4bn to Ele.me-Koubei venture
SoftBank was among the investors in a round for Alibaba’s recently merged local services platforms Ele.me and Koubei that valued it at $30bn.
Rael rolls into series A round
SoftBank Ventures Korea, which previously led a $2.1m seed round for Rael six months ago, has returned to contribute to a $17.5m series A alongside GS Retail Fund.
Financial
Corporates help Hippo cover $70m round
The home insurance provider boosted its overall funding to $109m in a round co-led by Lennar and backed by Comcast and Munich Re.
Axoni racks up $36m in series B
HSBC added $4m to a series B round for blockchain financial product developer Axoni that includes NEX Group, Citi and Wells Fargo.
NAB and US Bancorp reach Poynt for $100m
NAB and US Bancorp subsidiary Evalon invested in a series C round that increased payment technology developer Poynt’s overall funding to more than $130m.
Alibaba accepts $25m Shengong007 mission
Furniture renovation and services platform Shengong007 has received $25m in series C funding from Alibaba, with which it is building offline retail stores.
Fraugster uncorks $14m series B round
The e-commerce anti-fraud platform developer secured $14m in a CommerzVentures-led round that also featured Munich Re/HSB Ventures.
Industrial
Altana and existing investor Evonik both contributed to a round for the printing technology developer that was co-led by ORT Technologies.
Transport
Nikola inflates series C round to $210m
Nikola Corporation has doubled the size of a Nel-backed round to $210m, valuing it at $1.3bn post-money as it gears up to launch its hydrogen-powered semi-truck.
Ridecell drives away with $60m
LG, Sony, Munich Re, BNP Paribas and Denso have helped the mobility software developer reach a second close following a $28m first tranche in June.
Blackberry glances at $1.5bn Cylance acquisition
Cylance is in talks to be acquired by Blackberry in a $1.5bn deal that would enable Citi Ventures, Dell Ventures and Capital One Ventures to exit.
SNCF gets in BlaBlaCar for $114m round
SNCF has invested in BlaBlaCar, the buyer of its bus transport subsidiary, Ouibus, in a round that took the carpooling platform’s total funding to $450m.
Services
EdX enrols in Unicaf’s $28m series B
Online higher education platform Unicaf has raised series B funding from a consortium including Goldman Sachs, EdX and CDC Group as it gears up to target more students.
Ucommune absorbs $200m of series D cash
Ucommune, a China-based workspace provider backed by corporates including Prosperity Holdings, Junfa Group and Dahong Group, has now raised $715m altogether.
SoftBank goes to WeWork with another $3bn
Work and living space provider WeWork will receive warrant financing from Vision Fund at a valuation of at least $42bn through two $1.5bn tranches in 2019.