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SoftBank's 'Really Bad' Judgment; AstraZeneca's $1 Billion China Plans; Jim Lanzone Joins Benchmark; Coveo Adds $227 Million
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Good day. The venture industry has focused on enterprise software startups this year, with numerous big exits and large funding rounds. The latest is data analytics startup Coveo Solutions Inc., which raised $227 million at a $1.46 billion valuation.
Meanwhile, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son said he showed "really bad" judgment while investing in WeWork.
In health care, AstraZeneca plans to raise up to $1 billion to invest in Chinese health-care startups, and CODA Biotherapeutics Inc. has raised more funding to make gene therapy applicable to a broader group of patients.
Plus, Jim Lanzone, head of CBS Corp.'s Interactive unit, is leaving to join Benchmark Capital as an executive in residence.
And now on to the news...
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Coveo Solutions CEO Louis Tetu said, “We’re not in this to exit, we’re in this to build.” PHOTO: CHRISTINNE MUSCHI/BLOOMBERG NEWS
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Analytics funding. Coveo Solutions Inc., an enterprise and data analytics software startup, raised $227 million in new funding to expand its ability to use customer data in booming industries such as online retailing, WSJ Pro's Marc Vartabedian reports.
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Coveo aims to grow its personalization and recommendations platform, which, among other things, uses AI to cater search functions to specific customers, Chief Executive Louis Tetu said. The startup sells subscriptions to its software, which companies use to analyze data about customers to boost sales.
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Omers Growth Equity, part of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, led the equity round, which represents a 15.5% stake in Coveo at a valuation of $1.46 billion. Mark Shulgan, managing director and head of growth equity, will join Coveo’s board.
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Coveo’s primary customers are banks, technology companies and manufacturers and include Tesla Inc. and Visa Inc., Mr. Tetu said, adding that subscriptions account for roughly 90% of the company’s revenue.
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Betting on China. AstraZeneca PLC plans to raise up to $1 billion for a new fund that would invest in Chinese health-care startups, making it the latest drug giant to place a bet on the world’s second-largest pharmaceuticals market, the Journal's Preetika Rana reports. The fund—a joint venture between AstraZeneca and a Chinese investment bank—has drawn interest from investors such as Sequoia Capital, the drugmaker’s chief executive, Pascal Soriot, said in an interview.
'Really bad.' SoftBank Group Corp. said it lost at least $4.7 billion on U.S. office-sharing company WeWork, an investment Chief Executive Masayoshi Son called an error in judgment, the Journal reports. “My own investment judgment was really bad. I regret it in many ways,” Mr. Son said at a news conference in Tokyo after SoftBank released its earnings.
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EIR move. Jim Lanzone, the head of CBS Corp.’s Interactive unit and the architect of the broadcaster’s video streaming strategy, will leave CBS at the end of the year to join venture-capital firm Benchmark Capital as an executive in residence, the Journal’s Benjamin Mullin reports.
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Gene therapy. Venture capitalists are betting CODA Biotherapeutics Inc. can extend the promise of gene therapy to far more patients, WSJ Pro's Brian Gormley reports. CODA said it has tapped existing investors to increase a $19 million Series A round raised last year to $34 million. The new capital will fund South San Francisco, Calif.-based CODA through 2020 and help it move treatments for a type of epilepsy and a form of chronic pain toward clinical trials.
Privacy bill. Two lawmakers from Silicon Valley proposed a new U.S. agency to regulate the collection of Americans’ personal information, a signal of hometown support for heightened oversight of the technology industry. The proposed Democratic legislation unveiled Tuesday is one of many circulating on Capitol Hill as Congress discusses a federal online-privacy law.
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The Investor That Spent $1 Billion a Week
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Cracks are showing at the most influential investment fund in the world. WSJ's Liz Hoffman explains the workings and strife inside SoftBank's Vision Fund.
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Sales enablement company Seismic acquired content management platform Percolate for an undisclosed amount. San Diego-based Seismic is backed by investors including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Jackson Square Ventures and JMI Equity. Percolate, of New York, secured $32 million in March from GGV Capital, Sequoia Capital, Lightspeed and Capital IP Investment Partners.
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HarbourVest Partners said it has raised 300 million Canadian dollars ($228 million) for HarbourVest Canada Growth Fund II, a fund of funds formed under an initiative launched by the Canadian government to promote investment in Canada’s venture-capital and growth-equity industry. HarbourVest plans to invest the new vehicle in Canada-focused venture-capital and growth-equity funds as well as in direct co-investments in Canadian companies. So far HarbourVest has backed six funds out of the new offering and two co-investments, according to a news release.
Modus Capital launched its first regional fund with $75 million to invest in early- and growth-stage companies across the Middle East and North Africa. New York-based Modus makes investments through an incubation program starting at $50,000 to $250,000, and up to $1 million per company for seed and Series A rounds.
Foodtech and agtech investor AgFunder raised a $20 million alternative protein fund. The San Francisco-based firm recently participated in funding rounds for small-scale agriculture network WeFarm Ltd. and pest management software developer Fieldin.
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Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi in India on Oct. 23. He said while it is true that a lot of shares will become available Wednesday, there are a number of different holders who plan to keep their shares for a long time. PHOTO: SAMYUKTA LAKSHMI/BLOOMBERG NEWS
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Uber shares face more pressure as post-IPO lockup is set to expire. The ride-hailing giant’s stock has languished since its market debut.
Xerox considers takeover offer for HP. Bid for HP would be at a premium to the company’s market value of $27 billion.
CISOs search for startup gold in mountain of cybersecurity pitches. Talent shortage, startups’ AI prowess mean executives feel compelled to sort through vendor offers.
Didi restarts carpool service halted after passenger deaths. Didi had suspended the “Hitch” service after two female passengers were killed by their drivers last year.
Russia steps up efforts to shield its hackers from extradition to U.S. Kremlin resorts to prisoner swaps and coercion to keep potential cyber operatives out of U.S. hands, experts say.
For sale: SAT-takers’ names. Colleges buy student data and boost exclusivity. For 47 cents, the College Board will sell an individual’s information, feeding admissions frenzy.
Peloton shares fall as company puts growth ahead of profit. Exercise-equipment and subscription company posts higher-than-expected subscriber growth and revenue.
‘Just push the buttons.’ Seniors get smartphone lessons. Manhattan nonprofit connects older people with volunteers who give them lessons on how to text, use voice commands
Xerox to sell stake in joint venture to Fujifilm for about $2.3 billion. Companies agree to end 57-year-old joint venture after an attempt at a full merger soured.
Goodbye honey-do list, hello shared-labor app. Labor-sharing apps and shared calendars replace traditional to-do lists; "I can’t believe I don’t have to do that."
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HomeLight Inc., a San Francisco-based marketplace that connects home sellers with real estate agents, closed a $109 million funding round, $63 million of which is Series C equity. Zeev Ventures led the investment, with participation from Group 11, Menlo Ventures, Crosslink Capital, Stereo Capital and others.
A2 Biotherapeutics Inc., an Agoura Hills, Calif.-based developer of cell therapies for cancer patients, emerged from stealth with $57 million in Series A funding from investors including Column Group, Vida Ventures, Samsara BioCapital and Nextech Invest.
Papaya Global, a Tel Aviv-based payroll and payment management platform, closed a $45 million Series A funding round. Insight Partners led the investment, which included participation from Bessemer Venture Partners, New Era Capital Partners and Dynamic Loop Capital.
LeaseQuery LLC, an Atlanta-based developer of lease accounting software, picked up $40 million in Series A financing from Goldman Sachs’ Merchant Banking Division.
Shape Therapeutics Inc., a Seattle-based gene therapy startup, secured $35.5 million in Series A funding. New Enterprise Associates led the round, which included participation from CureDuchenne Ventures.
Medopad, a London-based digital health startup, landed $25 million in Series B funding led by Leaps by Bayer.
FirstVet, a Stockholm-based provider of on-demand video consultations with local veterinarians, completed an €18.5 million ($20.5 million) Series B round. Omers Ventures led the investment and was joined by Creandum. Henry Gladwyn, principal at Omers, will join the board.
Productiv Inc., a Palo Alto, Calif.-based enterprise software analytics platform, completed a $20 million Series B round of funding. Norwest Venture Partners led the investment, with participation from Okta Ventures and Accel.
Chronosphere Inc., a New York-based monitoring platform, raised $11 million in Series A funding. Greylock led the round, with participation from Lux Capital.
Super Evil Megacorp, a San Mateo, Calif.-based multiplayer gaming startup, closed a $10.5 million funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz. Other investors in the company include General Catalyst, Index Ventures, Signia Venture Partners and Initial Capital.
Mylo Financial Technologies, a Montreal-based provider of a savings and investment app, scored $10 million in Series A financing. NAventures led the round, which included contributions from Desjardins Capital, Ferst Capital Partners and Tactico.
RedMarlin, a Los Altos, Calif.-based fraud prevention startup, fetched a $10 million Series A round. Thomvest Ventures and Crosslink Capital led the funding, with participation from Cyber Mentor Fund, Nexxus Venture Partners and Rain Capital.
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General Atlantic is promoting three executives—Anton Levy, Gabriel Caillaux and Martín Escobari—to the newly created role of co-president, the latest in a recent spate of firms to lay the groundwork for leadership succession, the Journal’s Miriam Gottfried reports.
J.P. Morgan Commercial Banking is launching a venture-capital coverage initiative and has hired four executives to start its team. The group provides credit and financing, international banking, treasury and payment services. Pamela Aldsworth will lead the effort as managing director, based in Boston. She joins JPM from Silicon Valley Bank, where she was head of VC relationship management.
Carrot Inc., a digital-health startup focused on smoking cessation, named Busy Burr as president and chief commercial officer. She most recently was chief innovation officer and vice president of health-care trend and innovation at Humana Inc. Redwood City, Calif.-based Carrot is backed by investors including Khosla Ventures, R7 Ventures, New York Life Ventures and Valor Equity Partners.
Later-stage venture-capital and growth-equity firm IVP appointed Cack Wilhelm as a partner, where he will focus on growth-stage technology companies. He was previously a partner at Accomplice. IVP has offices in Menlo Park, Calif., and San Francisco.
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We cover venture capital and the global startup ecosystem. WSJ Pro Venture Capital is a premium service of The Wall Street Journal. Share your tips, comments and questions: vcnews@wsj.com
The Team: Tomio Geron, Yuliya Chernova, Brian Gormley, Heather Mack, Katie Roof and Marc Vartabedian.
Follow us on Twitter: @wsjvc, @tomiogeron, @ychernova, @BrianPGormley, @1heathermack, @katie_roof, @marcvarta.
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LEAVE THIS BOX EMPTY
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