Funds
US-based investment firm Partech has secured €245m ($264m) for the first close of its Partech Africa II fund, from limited partners including media conglomerate Bertelsmann. German development bank KfW anchored the fund and was also joined by European Investment Bank, World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation unit, FMO, BPIfrance Investissement, British International Investment, DEG, Proparco and South Suez Capital.
Germany-based impact investment firm Planet A Ventures has closed its debut fund at €160m ($172m) with backing from carmaker BMW and supermarket chain operator Rewe. The LP roster was filled out by KfW, Vaekstfonden/EIFO, Rolf Schrömgens, Maximilian Backhaus and Rubin Ritter.
US-based startup accelerator operator Nex Cubed has formed a $40m accelerator called HBCU Founders Fund which is targeted at historically black colleges and universities. The fund is backed by $5m from retail group Costco Wholesale.
Public markets
Structure Therapeutics, a US-based chronic disease therapy developer backed by drug development software provider Schrodinger and pharmaceutical firms WuXi AppTec and Eli Lilly, raised $161m in an initial public offering on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange. It sold 10.74 million American depositary shares at $15 each and is currently trading at $23.00, giving it a market capitalisation of approximately $841m.
M&A
Utility bill management platform Billing Better has acquired Homebox, a UK-based utility comparison service provider that counts by advertising group R/GA as an investor, for an undisclosed amount. The company was part of R/GA Ventures’ R/GA IoT Venture Studio in 2018.
Searchmetrics, the Germany-based creator of an enterprise-focused search engine optimisation platform, has been acquired by business marketing firm Conductor for an undisclosed sum, allowing media group Georg von Holtzbrinck to exit. The corporate’s Holtzbrinck Digital subsidiary was part of an $18.4m round in 2014 and added an undisclosed amount later that year.
Funding
China-based silicon carbide epitaxial wafer producer Tian Yu Semiconductor Energy has received RMB1.2bn ($177m) from investors including copper foil manufacturer Guangdong Jia Yuan Technology. The round also featured China-Belgium Direct Equity Investment Fund, Technology Financial Group, China Merchants Capital and Qianchuang Capital.
| Company | Company description | Sector | Country | Round | Round size($m) | Deal date | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| InfluxData | Analytics platform for time series data | IT | US | E | 81 | 08/02/2023 | Citi (Citi Ventures) (co-lead); Princeville Capital (co-lead), Battery Ventures, Mayfield Fund, Trinity Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners, Sorenson Capital, Harmony Partners, Sapphire Ventures |
| FreshToHome | Online meat and seafood retailer | Consumer | India | D | 50.1 | 09/02/2023 | Amazon; Investcorp |
| Light Field Lab | Holographic display technology producer | IT | US | N/A | 50 | 08/02/2023 | NCSoft (lead), Corning, LG (LG Tech Ventures), Samsung (Samsung Ventures), Verizon (Verizon Ventures), Robert Bosch (Robert Bosch Venture Capital), Liberty Global (Liberty Global Ventures), Otoy, Forvia; Gates Frontier, Khosla Ventures, Taiwania Capital |
| Ionblox | Lithium-ion battery developer | Energy and Natural Resources | US | B | 32 | 08/02/2023 | Lilium, Applied Materials (Applied Ventures); Temasek, Catalus Capital |
| Zypp Electric | Electric vehicle-based last-mile delivery service | Services | India | B | 25 | 08/02/2023 | Gogoro (lead), Goodyear Tire & Rubber (Goodyear Ventures); 9Unicorns, Venture Catalysts, Indian Angel Network, Ivygrowth, Grip, We Founder Circle |
| Fabrum | Modular cryogenics system provider | Industrial | New Zealand | A | 23 | 08/02/2023 | Fortescue Metals Group (Fortescue Future Industries), Obayashi Corporation; AP Ventures (lead), K1W1 |
| TDGA | Space entertainment services provider | Media | UK | Seed | 20 | 08/02/2023 | NewMedia Holding (lead) |
| Tazapay | Cross-border payment platform | Financial | Singapore | A | 16.9 | 09/02/2023 | Escape Velocity, PayPal (PayPal Alumni Fund), Credit Saison (Saison Capital); Sequoia Capital Southeast Asia, Foundamental, January Capital, RTP Global, Gokul Rajaram |
| Yodawy | Pharmacy benefits manager | Healthcare | Egypt | B | 16 | 09/02/2023 | Delivery Hero (Delivery Hero Ventures) (co-lead); Global Ventures (co-lead), AAIC Investment, Dallah Al-Baraka, Middle East Venture Partners, C Ventures, P1 Ventures |
| Fierce | Financial asset management platform | Financial | US | Seed | 10 | 08/02/2023 | Pendrell; AP Capital, Wheelhouse Digital Studios, Space Whale Capital |
| Wevnal | Digital marketing platform | Media | Japan | B1 | 7.6 | 08/02/2023 | Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (Mitsubishi UFJ Capital), Mizuho Bank (Mizuho Capital); JIC Venture Growth Investments, Archetype Ventures |
| Sesame Labs | Web3 marketing platform | Media | US | Seed | 4.5 | 08/02/2023 | Samsung; Wing Venture Capital (co-lead), Vinay Jain (co-lead), Aman Jain, (co-lead), Double Jump Capital, Moonfire, Twin Ventures, Balaji Srinivasan, Robin Chan, Ryan Spoon, Forte Ventures |
| Nagasuna Mayu | Silk protein material producer | Industrial | Japan | N/A | <1 ($570,000) | 08/02/2023 | Mitsubishi UFJ (Mitsubishi UFJ Capital); Rheos Capital Partners, Light Up Ventures |
| Enmacc | Energy trading digitalisation platform | Energy and Natural Resources | Germany | B | N/A | 08/02/2023 | Enagás/Alantra Group (Klima Energy Transition Fund) (lead), Chevron (Chevron Technology Ventures); Bayern Kapital, 10x Group, Piton Capital, Illuminate Financial |
| APK | Solvent-based recycling technology producer | Energy and Natural Resources | Germany | N/A | N/A | 08/02/2023 | LyondellBasell, Kirkbi |
| Globe Ing | Strategic consulting service | Services | Japan | N/A | N/A | 09/02/2023 | Persol (Persol Technology) |
| Delizmart | Food retail digitalisation platform | Consumer | Japan | Angel & Seed | N/A | 09/02/2023 | Gree (Gree Ventures); East Ventures |
| Peers | Metaverse-based live entertainment and fan community operator | Media | Japan | N/A | N/A | 09/02/2023 | Super Massive Global (unnamed CVC unit) |
