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Question: How Are VCs Gauging the IPO Market?
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By Marc Vartabedian, WSJ Pro
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Good day. Last week, we asked what technology has the most potential to affect people’s lives this year.
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Brian Smiga, managing partner at growth equity firm Alpha Partners said that tech including AI, automation, batteries, precision medicine and sensors will affect lives. "Tech that expands markets/economies by democratizing access to essential services and goods in health, finance, education, transportation.”
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Rahul Bammi, chief business officer of smart building startup View Inc., said technology that can assure safe air quality will allow people to return to the office and benefit from increased social interaction.
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Marceau Michel, managing director of Black Founders Matter, a venture fund focused on Black founders, said, “Environmentally friendly growing practices that safely make use of localized food waste is the unknown technology that has the potential to save all of our lives and our planet."
This week’s question: How are VCs gauging the IPO market this year considering the public market jitters?
Please email responses to marc.vartabedian@wsj.com.
Note: We won’t have a newsletter Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
And now on to the news...
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Amy Wu leads FTX Ventures. PHOTO: FTX TRADING LTD.
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New venture fund. Crypto exchange FTX Trading Ltd. has launched a $2 billion venture fund, one of the largest vehicles to date aiming to tap into the crypto market’s startups, WSJ Pro’s Yuliya Chernova reports. The large size of FTX Ventures will allow it to invest flexibly across startup stages, with check sizes that could range from as little as $100,000 to hundreds of millions of dollars, said Amy Wu, the fund’s chief.
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Ms. Wu joined FTX this month from Lightspeed Venture Partners, where she led investments in gaming, crypto and other startups, including Nassau, Bahamas-based FTX. She will head FTX’s mergers and acquisitions, partnerships and gaming initiatives in addition to leading FTX Ventures.
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The $2 billion for FTX Ventures came from FTX, which was recently valued at $25 billion, and its founder Sam Bankman-Fried, Ms. Wu said.
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3.45%
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The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate loan for the week ended Thursday, according to Freddie Mac. Mortgage rates have hit their highest level since March 2020. (WSJ)
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U.A.E. Sovereign-Wealth Fund Invests $100 Million in Israel Venture-Capital Firms
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A major United Arab Emirates sovereign-wealth fund has invested roughly $100 million in venture-capital firms in Israel’s technology sector, according to people familiar with the investments, a fresh sign of deepening business and investment ties between the countries at the forefront of the Abraham Accords, WSJ reports. A year and a half since the deal that normalized diplomatic ties between Israel and the U.A.E., business is growing, with trade between the two counties forecast to reach $2 billion this year, up from roughly $250 million annually before the accords, according to the U.A.E.-Israel Business Council, a trade body representing 6,000 Emirati and Israel businesspeople.
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Welsh Carson Targets $5 Billion for New Buyout Fund
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Welsh Carson Anderson & Stowe is back on the fundraising trail with a goal of collecting at least $5 billion to invest in healthcare and technology companies, Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds documents show, WSJ Pro’s Preeti Singh reports. The private-equity firm hasn’t set an upper limit for the latest fund, WCAS XIV LP, and expects to hold a first close later this month, according to public documents prepared for a Wednesday meeting of the pension overseer’s investment council. The firm expects to commit at least $200 million to the fund, the documents show.
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Databricks Launches Analytics Platform for Retailers
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Data analytics company Databricks Inc. said Thursday it launched a platform that helps retailers draw faster insights from their data, WSJ’s Isabelle Bousquette reports. The platform, called Lakehouse for Retail, has industry-specific tools that help users tackle challenges with inventory management, demand forecasting and recommendation modeling, the company said. “The vision of Lakehouse helps solve many of the challenges retail organizations have told us they’re facing,” said Ali Ghodsi, chief executive and co-founder of Databricks.
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Funds
Menlo Park, Calif.-based The Westly Group raised $300 million for its fourth fund to continue its focus on the digitization and sustainability of energy, mobility, buildings, industrial technology and cybersecurity. The new fund, which intends to invest $5 million to $15 million per company, has so far backed supply chain traceability startup Circulor and cybersecurity provider CyCognito.
Early-stage alternative protein investor Clear Current Capital is targeting $50 million for its second fund. The new vehicle, which has a $75 million hard cap, has made four investments to date.
People
Genesys Capital appointed Maxime Ranger as a venture partner. Later this year, Mr. Ranger will transition from this role into the role of general partner of Genesys Ventures IV LP. He is also currently chief executive of Giiant Pharma.
Thrive Capital, which invests in internet, software and technology-enabled companies, said Nitin Nohria joined the firm as partner and executive chairman. He was dean of Harvard Business School from 2010 to 2020.
UNest, which helps parents to invest and save for their kids’ future, appointed Jon Walker as president. He was previously on the leadership team at KPMG Spark. Los Angeles-based UNest is backed by investors including AltaIR Capital, Anthos Capital, OneWay Ventures, Unlock Venture Partners and The Artemis Fund.
OfferUp Inc., a mobile marketplace for local buyers and sellers, named Melissa Binde to the post of chief technology officer. She was most recently at Splunk. Bellevue, Wash.-based OfferUp is backed by Andreessen Horowitz, Warburg Pincus, Jackson Square Ventures and GGV Capital.
Exits
Forte, which is building a blockchain-based economic platform for video games, acquired N3twork’s technology platform for an undisclosed sum. Forte recently scored a $725 million Series B round from investors including Sea Capital, Kora Management, zVentures, Griffin Gaming Partners, Andreessen Horowitz and Tiger Global Management. Griffin Gaming Partners is also an investor in N3twork, along with Korea Investment Partners and others.
Online fundraising company GoFundMe agreed to purchase Classy, a creator of fundraising software for nonprofits, for an undisclosed amount. Last year, San Diego-based Classy raised funding from investors including Norwest Venture Partners, Salesforce Ventures and Hinge Capital.
Home buying and selling platform Reali Inc. is expanding into the San Diego market with the acquisition of TXR Homes. Terms weren’t disclosed. San Mateo, Calif.-based Reali is backed by investors including Zeev Ventures, Akkadian Ventures and Signia Ventures.
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Checkout.com, a London-based digital-payments processor, raised $1 billion in a share sale that valued the company at $40 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal. New investors including Franklin Templeton and Qatar Investment Authority participated in the funding, along with existing backers including Insight Partners and Tiger Global Management.
Highspot Inc., a Seattle-based sales software platform, scored $248 million in Series F funding at a $3.5 billion post-money valuation. New investors B Capital Group and D1 Capital Partners led the round, which included participation from existing backers Iconiq Growth, Madrona Venture Group, Salesforce Ventures, Sapphire Ventures and Tiger Global Management.
Accelerant, an Atlanta-based insurtech startup, picked up more than $190 million in funding at a $2 billion pre-money valuation. Led by Eldridge, the round included participation from Altamont Capital Partners, Deer Park Road, Marshall Wace, MS&AD Ventures and others.
Arc, a San Francisco-based full-service finance platform for software-as-a-service, emerged from stealth with $161 million in equity and debt funding. NFX, Y Combinator, Bain Capital Ventures, Clocktower Technology Ventures, Torch Capital, Dreamers VC, Soma Capital, Alumni Ventures, Pioneer Fund and Atalaya Capital Management provided the equity portion, with debt coming from Atalaya. NFX founder James Currier joined Arc’s board.
Verana Health, a San Francisco-based startup using real-world data to help drug and life sciences companies learn more about their products once they reach the market, landed $150 million in Series E funding led by Johnson & Johnson Innovation - JJDC Inc. and Novo Growth. New investors Merck Global Health Innovation Fund, THVC and Breyer Capital also participated in the round, alongside previous backers including GV and Casdin Capital. Jeffrey Low, principal at Novo Growth, joined the company’s board.
MycoWorks, a San Francisco-based biomaterials company, secured $126 million in Series C financing led by Prime Movers Lab.
SeekOut, a Bellevue, Wash.-based recruitment platform, landed $115 million in Series C funding, valuing the company at more than $1.2 billion. Tiger Global Management led the round, which included additional support from Founders Circle Capital, Madrona Venture Group and Mayfield.
TravelPerk, a Barcelona-based business-travel startup, added $115 million in Series D funding, bringing the round total to $275 million. New investor General Catalyst and existing backer Kinnevik co-led the investment. Gillian Tans, who also invested in the round, joins the company’s board alongside General Catalyst’s Joel Cutler. TravelPerk is now valued at $1.3 billion.
Zero Hash, a Chicago-based embedded crypto infrastructure provider, nabbed a $105 million Series D round from investors including Bain Capital, NYCA Partners and Point72 Ventures.
Flipdish, a Dublin-based online ordering and digital experience platform for the hospitality industry, snagged about $100 million in funding led by Tencent Holdings, giving the company a valuation of more than $1.25 billion. Tiger Global Management also joined in the round. Previous backers of the company include Global Founders Capital, Elkstone Partners, Enterprise Ireland and Growing Capital.
Global Processing Services Ltd., a London-based payment technology platform, added $100 million to close its latest funding round at $400 million. Investors in the round included Temasek Holdings, MissionOG, Advent International and Viking Global Investors. Gene Lockhart, chair and general partner of MissionOG, was appointed chair of the GPS board.
LEAD, an Indian edtech startup, raised a $100 million Series E round at a valuation of $1.1 billion. Lead investor WestBridge Capital was joined by GSV Ventures in the funding.
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Philip Rosedale is returning to the company he left in 2010.
PHOTO: LIZ HAFALIA/THE SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE/GETTY IMAGES
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