Good day. Venture-capital investment in electric-vehicle startups will gain steam, according to an analysis by data provider Preqin.

Consumer tax credits included in the Inflation Reduction Act, which came into law in August, will boost private-capital investment and merger-and-acquisition activity in the sector, the Preqin analysis says. As the automotive industry spends more on electric-vehicle production and infrastructure, traditional venture and corporate firms alike will ramp up investment and collaborate on deals, the firm adds.

So far this year, venture firms have invested $13 billion in electric-vehicle startups, according to Preqin. Electric-vehicle startups raised nearly $25 billion in 2021.

Last week, for instance, Xeal, a New York-based electric-vehicle charging technology provider, said it raised a $40 million Series B round, along with a $10 million line of credit. Keyframe Capital led the deal while other investors, including ArcTern Ventures and Moderne Ventures, participated in the round. Bridge Bank provided the debt.

Last month, battery startup AM Batteries said it raised a $25 million Series A financing round that was led by Anzu Partners. TDK Ventures and Toyota Ventures also participated in the deal.

Preqin’s analysis also noted that China has been driving a significant chunk of the growth. Startups based there were responsible for seven of the world’s 10 largest electric-vehicle venture deals so far this year. Last year, the U.S. held that title.

And now on to the news...

Forgoing flamboyant earnings presentation. Following sharp losses, SoftBank Group Corp. Chief Executive Masayoshi Son this Friday is expected to forgo the flamboyant presentations that have characterized the startup investor’s past quarterly earnings reports, which have included a goose laying multibillion-dollar golden eggs and a flock of unicorns flying upward along a chart of growth in artificial intelligence, The Wall Street Journal reports. 

• SoftBank’s Vision Fund unit alone posted $19.9 billion in losses last quarter, following plunging share prices of its portfolio startups, including ride-hailing company Grab Holdings Ltd. and real-estate brokerage Compass.
   
• In his slide presentation in August, Mr. Son included an image of a Samurai warrior after losing a battle. “I am quite embarrassed and remorseful,” he said.

Foxconn Technology Group, the world’s biggest contract manufacturer for electronics, is deepening its investment in Lordstown Motors Corp., a once-troubled EV startup that recently began building its first all-electric pickup truck at a former General Motors Co. plant in Ohio, WSJ reports. The two companies said Monday that Taipei-based Foxconn plans to spend $170 million to buy both common stock and newly created preferred shares, providing Lordstown Motors with a fresh injection of capital as it works to increase production of its debut model, the Endurance.

Invictus Growth Partners has raised $322 million to invest in software, cybersecurity and financial-technology companies, as the private-equity firm gets set to take advantage of reduced enterprise values in the technology sector, WSJ Pro reports. The San Francisco-based firm said it collected $216 million for its debut commingled pool, Invictus Growth Fund I LP, and an additional $106 million for co-investments. The firm had set a $200 million target for the growth-equity fund. Invictus seeks to differentiate itself by using an artificial intelligence-powered system called Deal Intelligence Assessment Neural Engine, or Diane, to find deals and help Invictus-backed companies expand, said Managing Partner John DeLoche, who also co-founded the firm.

A unit of Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. struck a deal to combine with a big owner of medical practices and urgent-care centers in a transaction worth roughly $9 billion including debt, the latest in a string of acquisitions by big consumer-focused companies aiming to delve deeper into medical care, WSJ reports. The drugstore giant’s primary-care-center subsidiary, Village Practice Management, agreed to acquire Summit Health, the parent company of CityMD urgent-care centers, the companies said Monday. Health insurer Cigna Corp. is also investing in the combined company through its Evernorth unit, which will be a minority owner.

Funds

Quona Capital held the final close of its Fund III at $332 million, significantly exceeding the original $250 million target. The firm invests in technology companies that are expanding access to financial services for underserved consumers and businesses across Latin America, India, Southeast Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

People

Facet Wealth Inc., a provider of personalized financial advice, appointed Vince Maniago as chief product officer. He was most recently CPO at Personal Capital. In January, Baltimore-based Facet Wealth said it secured a $100 million Series C round from Durable Capital Partners, Warburg Pincus, TeleSoft Partners and Green Cow Venture Capital.

Digital analytics company Contentsquare named Martin Decrême to the post of chief information officer. Paris-based Contentsquare has raised $1.4 billion from investors including funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Bpifrance, Canaan, Eurazeo, Highland Europe, KKR & Co., LionTree, Sixth Street Partners and SoftBank Vision Fund 2.

Exits

Ontra, a provider of contract automation and intelligence for asset managers, acquired alternative investment software provider Captain for an undisclosed amount. Last year, San Francisco-based Ontra said it raised a $200 million Series B round led by funds managed by Blackstone, with participation from Battery Ventures.

OutSystems acquired fellow application development company Ionic for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 2001, Boston-based OutSystems landed a $150 million investment last year co-led by Abdiel Capital and Tiger Global Management. Ionic counted Arthur Ventures and General Catalyst as investors.

Klaviyo, a customer data and marketing platform for online businesses, purchased Napkin.io, whose technology enables developers to write and deploy code directly from a browser. Terms weren’t disclosed. Boston-based Klaviyo is backed by investors including Accel, Summit Partners and Glynn Capital.

Yassir, an Algeria-based marketplace offering on-demand services such as ride hailing, grocery delivery and banking, scored $150 million in Series B funding. Led by BOND, the round included participation from DN Capital, Dorsal Capital, Quiet Capital, Spike Ventures and Y Combinator.

Hopper, a travel  app, picked up a $96 million investment from Capital One. Last year, Hopper secured a $170 million Series G round from GPI Capital, Glade Brook Capital, WestCap, Goldman Sachs Growth and Accomplice.

Eliyan Corp., a Santa Clara, Calif.-based chiplet interconnect technology startup, completed a $40 million Series A round. Tracker Capital Management led the investment, with additional participation from Celesta Capital, Intel Capital and Micron Ventures.

Ernesta, a New York-based direct-to-consumer custom rug startup, grabbed $25 million in Series A funding. Led by Addition, the round saw additional participation from True Ventures and others.

PhotoRoom Inc., a Paris-based photo-editing platform, secured $19 million in Series A financing. Balderton Capital led the round, which included support from Adjacent and others. 

EdgeDB Inc., a San Francisco-based open-source database startup, landed $15 million in Series A funding led by Nava Ventures and Accel. Daniel Levine of Accel and Freddie Martignetti of Nava Ventures will join the company’s board.

Biofire, a Broomfield, Colo.-based smart-gun startup, raised $14 million in Series A funding. Lead investor Founders Fund was joined by 10X Capital, Gaingels, Draper Associates, Structure Capital, Service Provider Capital and others in the round.

Exotanium, an Ithaca, N.Y.-based startup offering a cloud resource optimization and management platform, secured $12 million in Series A financing led by Cambium Capital and Celesta Capital. 

Worldr, a U.K.-based data-security startup, was seeded with an $11 million investment. Molten Ventures led the funding, which saw participation from IQ Capital Partners, Playfair Capital, Pretiosum Ventures, Navigate Ventures and MD One Ventures.

Vizit, a Boston-based image-analytics platform for e-commerce brands, snagged $10 million in Series A funding. Lead investors Infinity Ventures and Brand Foundry Ventures were joined by eGateway Capital, Lakefront Partners and others in the round.

StretchSense, a New Zealand-based provider of motion-capture technology for the gaming and animation sectors, closed a $7.6 million Series A round. Par Equity led the investment, which included support from GD1 and Scottish Enterprise.

Teamraderie, a Los Altos, Calif.-based team-building software startup, nabbed $7 million in Series A funding. Founders Fund led the round, which included contributions from Heroic Ventures, Moving Capital and Overtime.vc.

• Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. to notify employees of large-scale layoffs this week
   
• Elon Musk says Twitter will permanently ban users who impersonate others
   
• Tensions between crypto giants FTX, Binance spill into public view
   
• Apple warns iPhone production disrupted by China Covid-19 restrictions 

• Peloton Ex-CEO John Foley is back with a custom rug startup and $25 million (Forbes) 
   
• Web Summit CEO: Venture capital in the midst of ‘uncontrolled demolition’ (Axios) 

This newsletter was compiled by Angus Loten and Zachary Cole.

WSJ Pro Venture Capital is a premium service of The Wall Street Journal. We cover venture capital and the global startup ecosystem. Share your tips, comments and questions: vcnews@wsj.com

The Team: Matthew Strozier, Yuliya Chernova, Brian Gormley, Angus Loten, Eric Sylvers and Marc Vartabedian.

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