July 16, 2021
Editor's Note
I’m going to start out this week’s editor’s note with a prediction. Specifically, over the next few years, the number of women-led companies having noteworthy liquidity events will increase significantly. To see why this will be the case, one only needs to go through this week’s Women’s PE Briefs, which features a slew of stories about women-led companies raising follow-on rounds, often sizable ones. You’ll also read about personnel moves at Vista Equity Partners, Health Enterprise Partners, Avante Capital Partners, Long Ridge Equity Partners, Wheelhouse, North Sky Capital, Antin Infrastructure Partners, GSV Ventures and Relay Ventures, as well as new investments by Warburg Pincus’ Stephanie Geveda, Sofinnova Partners’ Henrijette Richter, Sanofi Ventures’ Laia Crespo, Blossom Capital’s Ophelia Brown, Ares Management Corp.’s Natasha Li, S Capital’s Aya Peterburg, Chrysalix Venture Capital’s Alicia Lenis, True Beauty Ventures’ Cristina Nuñez, Fable Investments’ Paola Felipak, EQT Ventures’ Sandra Malmberg, M Ventures’ Therese Liechtenstein, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan’s Olivia Steedman, Core Innovation Capital’s Kathleen Utecht, L2 Capital Partners’ Lorin Wolfe, Hollie Haynes’ Luminate Capital Partners, and SoftBank Investment Advisers’ Kristin Bannon and Priya Saiprasad. We also have news on liquidity events for Eurazeo’s Vivianne Akriche and Avestria Ventures, which was founded by Linda Greub and Corinne Nevinny.
~ David Barry
Video Voices
Anthemis’ Katie Palenscar leads the firm’s Female Innovators Lab in partnership with Barclays. In this segment of Video Voices, Katie discusses the three things that instilled her with discipline and shaped her to make the career decisions she did. She explains what the Female Innovators Lab is, how it got started, what female founders really need and her journey to lead the lab. “You cannot be what you do not see” is the mantra that continues to drive Katie to look at where there are opportunities for change.
In the Spotlight...
The amount invested by JDRF T1D and Eli Lilly in Protomer last November was not disclosed. Protomer also had received backing from Sanofi. Eli Lilly owned 14 percent after its investment and is acquiring the rest. It did not say how much it is providing up front, only that the more than $1 billion price tag is tied to “successful achievement of future development and commercial milestones.” Katie said the T1D Fund’s share of any future returns from Protomer “will be realized over the course of several years, if, and when agreed-upon development and commercial milestones are achieved.” She said that, as with any of its investments, any returns generated will be recycled into the fund for redeployment against its mission goals. The T1D Fund is a non-profit venture philanthropy vehicle dedicated to accelerating the investment market for cures and life changing therapies for T1D.
Protomer is developing protein therapeutics that can sense molecular activators in the body. The company’s platform enables the development of therapeutic peptides and proteins with tunable activity that can be controlled using small molecules. The company is using this approach to develop a portfolio of therapeutic candidates, including a glucose responsive insulin that can sense sugar levels in the blood and automatically activate as needed throughout the day. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease where the pancreas produces little or no insulin. Although it can develop in adults, it typically is diagnosed during childhood or adolescence. There is no cure. Treatment revolves around managing blood sugar levels with insulin, diet and lifestyle. Protomer was founded in 2015 by researchers at the California Institute of Technology.
“While not a cure, this kind of highly advanced insulin therapy, which automatically senses and activates in response to sugar levels in the blood represents a potential major-breakthrough for people on insulin and could substantially improve the lives of people with diabetes,” Katie said. She said that the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the T1D Fund actually supported Protomer prior to its inception so “the exciting approach and technology have been known to us for several years. The promise of a true glucose-sensing insulin has been a longstanding priority of JDRF’s, as it has the potential to significantly reduce the daily burden of people who rely on insulin therapy.” She said that while the fund is “primarily focused” on equity investments to advance cures or disease modifying therapies, it will “occasionally invest in treatments that have the potential to fundamentally transform the lives of people living with T1D, while work to develop cures continues. Protomer is one of these investments.” She added that “as one of the leaders in the field of diabetes,” Lilly “brings substantial resources that will be needed to move Protomer’s technology toward the clinic, and thus a step closer to people living with T1D. We believe Lilly and the Protomer team are well-positioned for continued success.”
In a statement, Ruth Gimeno, vice president, diabetes research and clinical investigation at Lilly, said the company has “long strived to make life better for people living with diabetes and we have a continued determination to provide real solutions, including innovation in insulin therapy. Glucose-sensing insulin is the next frontier and has the potential to revolutionize the treatment and quality of life of people with diabetes by dramatically improving both therapeutic efficacy and safety of insulin therapy. Protomer’s glucose-sensing insulin program, based on its proprietary molecular engineering of protein sensors platform, is showing significant promise and Lilly is excited to enhance our diabetes pipeline with the company’s innovative technology.”
Protomer is the second significant liquidity event that JDRF T1D has had in the past two years. In 2020, another of its portfolio companies, Pandion Therapeutics, Inc., went public. JDRF T1D’s investments also include Repertoire Immune Medicines, i2O, IM Therapeutics and Immunocore, whose CEO is Bahija Jallal. Katie joined JDRF T1D in 2018 from Endeavour Vision. The JDRF T1D Fund is focused on accelerating life-changing solutions to cure, prevent and treat type 1 diabetes through equity investments.
Next Acts: Women on the Move
Shelby Wanstrath leaves the Teacher Retirement System of Texas to join Vista Equity Partners
Last month, we told you that Shelby Wanstrath had left her role as co-head of private equity funds at the Teacher Retirement System of Texas and would be joining a new firm in August. Well, we now know where she’s headed. Shelby is joining Vista Equity Partners as managing director, corporate growth initiatives. Based in Austin, Texas, Shelby will work with Vista’s executives and the broader organization to lead and support key cross-functional initiatives with a specific focus on new product development, strategic partnerships and fund management programs.
In a statement, Shelby said, “I am thrilled to join Vista at a time when the firm’s growth is only accelerating and the rapid digitization of our world is fueling demand for enterprise software. Vista’s mission and the boundless potential for impact catalyzed by its technology investment platform is made possible by their commitment to a culture of excellence and innovation. I look forward to being part of an organization that leads with purpose and drawing on my LP and GP experience in partnership with the Vista team to create enduring market value for investors and all stakeholders alike.”
During her time at TRS, she oversaw the group’s $27 billion private equity funds portfolio and was a member of the private equity investment and management committees. Prior to joining TRS in 2014, she led European private equity investments for Partner’s Group. Her background also includes roles with WhiteHorse Capital and Prudential Capital Group. Shelby has spoken at both the Women’s Alternative Investment Summit and the Women’s Private Equity Summit – which Vista is a longtime sponsor of.
Vista has more than $75 billion in assets under management and invests exclusively in enterprise software, data and technology-enabled organizations across private equity, permanent capital, credit and public equity strategies.
Taurus Private Markets brings aboard Lucy Cook as an investment analyst
In last week’s Women’s PE Briefs, we mentioned that it would have been nice to write about Taurus Private Markets raising its debut fund, but the firm did not have any women on its investment team. Well, that is no longer the case.
The Paoli, Penn. private equity firm said that Lucy Cook had joined as an investment analyst. In that role, she will be involved in all aspects of due diligence process and portfolio monitoring. Lucy actually signed on to join Taurus in January. However, after graduating from Temple University’s Fox School of Business in May, she took some well-deserved time off and toured various parts of the United States.
Taurus was formed in 2018 by industry veterans Kevin Campbell and Eric Wilcomes and closed its debut fund last month at $112 million. The firm invests in lower middle market leverage buyout and private credit partnerships with target fund sizes less than $1.25 billion. It also invests in venture capital partnerships with target fund sizes of less than $750 million.
The firm’s Industry Advisor Group includes Kate Mitchell, partner and co-founder of Scale Venture Partners, and Heather Faust, co-founder and managing partner at Argand Partners.
Other Headlines:
Health Enterprise Partners promotes Jessie Laurash and brings aboard Dr. Natasha Deckmann. Read more
Long Ridge Equity Partners adds Edna Conway and Deborah Yang to its executive council. Read more
Avante Capital Partners, whose managing partner is Ivelisse Simon, brings aboard Nicole Vatter and Emily Yin and promotes Danielle Williams. Read more
North Sky Capital adds Ying Lucy Fan to its team. Read more
Relay Ventures has promoted Chevonaé Walcott. Read more
Sue Yang leaves her role as a vice president at Orion Energy Partners to join another investment firm. Read more
Tess Manning leaves her role as a principal with edtech-focused GSV Ventures to join a firm portfolio company – one co-founded by Roxanne Petraeus and Anne Solmssen. Read more
Hailey Foreman leaves her role as an associate at Lindsay Goldberg to join Wheelhouse, which was co-founded by TV host Jimmy Kimmel and which earlier this year brought aboard Ann Berry as chief investment officer. Read more
Blackstone Group adds Courtney della Cava to its portfolio operations group. Read more
Sera Global, a real assets-focused advisory firm, brings aboard infrastructure industry veteran Maria Kang. Read more
Women Investing in Women
Linda Greub and Corinne Nevinny’s Avestria Ventures sees a portfolio company acquired
Avestria Ventures, which was founded by Linda Greub and Corinne Nevinny, sees a second company from its recently closed debut fund acquired – a company co-founded and led by Jenna Ryan. Terms of Uqora’s purchase by Pharmavite were not disclosed, but in an email to Avestria’s contacts, the firm said the acquisition represents an IRR of 218 percent and a multiple on invested capital of 12.2 times. Crunchbase does not list how much venture funding Uqora raised or who its investors were.
San Diego-based Uqora develops urinary tract health products that it has sold directly to consumers through its website. It offers supplements and products to identify and treat the symptoms of UTIs. Jenna founded the company in 2017 with Spencer Gordan after becoming stuck in a cycle of UTIs with no effective, long-term option for relief. Pharmavite, which is owned by Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, produces Nature Made vitamins and supplements. It will utilize its international distribution network to make Uqora’s products more readily available.
In a statement, Jenna said the acquisition is “an exciting moment for me, Spencer and the Uqora team – this acquisition means we now have access to resources from a leader in the health and wellness space who can help us further our research efforts and accelerate our ability to develop new products. Our goal has always been to make our products available to every person who needs them. With Pharmavite, we know we can bring that vision to life.”
Linda and Corinne backed Uqora prior to forming Avestria and brought it along with three other companies into its inaugural fund. That fund closed in April at $10 million, almost at the same time as another of the firm’s investments, Alydia Health, was acquired by Merck spin-off Organon for $215 million upfront plus a $25 million contingent milestone payment. Avestria also recently backed AOA Dx, Inc., which was co-founded by Oriana Papin-Zoghbi and Anna Jeter and is developing the first non-invasive ovarian cancer liquid biopsy diagnostic test.
Avestria, which was created in 2019, has also backed such other companies as Raydiant, which provides improved guidance as to whether an emergency caesarean delivery is needed, and Genome Medical, Inc., a genomics medical practice company co-founded and led by Lisa Alderson.
Other Headlines:
Sofinnova Partners’ Henrijette Richter and Sanofi Ventures’ Laia Crespo help launch a company focused on treating neurodegenerative diseases whose CEO is Rita Balice-Gordon. Read more
SoftBank Investment Advisers’ Kristin Bannon guides the firm’s Vision Fund 2 into Clearco, the e-commerce investor co-founded by Michele Romanow and whose board includes Oak HC/FT’s Annie Lamont. Read more
Blossom Capital’s Ophelia Brown backs a company founded by Hanna Marie Asmussen, Lisa Dahlke and Franziska Löw that supports staff relocations and hiring across borders. Read more
True Beauty Ventures’ Cristina Nuñez and Fable Investments’ Paola Felipak invest in a modern intimacy brand founded by Éva Goicochea – a company that True’s Claire Cherry helped seed last year. Read more
Fountain Healthcare Partners’ Ena Prosser re-invests in a company led by Mary Kerr that is focused on treating chronic cough caused by reflex hypersensitivity disorders. Read more
Floodgate’s Ann Miura-Ko re-invests in Popshop Live, a mobile live streaming marketplace founded by Danielle Li – who goes by Dan Dan – in a round that also includes angel investors Sophia Amoruso, Hailey Bieber and Kendall Jenner. Read more
Jacqueline Ovens, a director at Export Development Canada, guides the organization back into a company founded and led by Olga Pawluczyk that is focused on helping food processors make safer, higher quality food while reducing waste. Read more
EQT Ventures’ Sandra Malmberg plants capital in an Estonian company co-founded and led by Merit Valdsalu that enables landowners to sell their holdings as carbon and biodiversity credits. Read more
M Ventures’ Therese Liechtenstein invests in Theolytics, which is harnessing viruses to combat cancer and whose co-founders include Charlotte Casebourne and Margaret Duffy. Read more
Breakout Ventures’ Julia Moore re-invests in a carbon transformation start-up whose co-founders include Kendra Kuhl and Etosha Cave. Read more
Chrysalix Venture Capital’s Alicia Lenis digs into a Montreal company co-founded and led by Amanda Truscott that provides advanced and reliable analytics for mobile mining equipment maintenance. Read more
Curate Capital’s Carrie Colbert backs an e-commerce retailer founded by Alix Greenberg pioneering art curation for the Instagram generation. Read more
CapitalT’s Janneke Niessen invests in a German carbon tracking software company for retailers co-founded by Namrata Sandhu and Anita Daminov. Read more
Dish on the Deal
Priya Saiprasad leads SoftBank Investment Advisers into Skedulo’s $75M Series C round
Just weeks after leaving her role at Mayfield to join SoftBank Investment Advisers as a partner, Priya Saiprasad leads the firm’s Vision Fund 2 into a productivity software company – one she knows very well. SoftBank led Skedulo’s $75 million Series C round. Skedulo has also received backing from Blackbird, Costanoa Ventures and M12, Microsoft’s venture arm.
Two years ago while at M12, Priya led Skedulo’s $28 million Series B round and joined the San Francisco company’s board. Priya left M12 later in 2019 and joined Mayfield as a venture partner. Tamara Steffens, a managing director with M12, is now on Skedulo’s board.
Skedulo is focused on meeting the demand for solutions that can intelligently optimize and engage the deskless workforce – the 80 percent of the workforce who are not in a traditional office setting. Organizations that have used its platform include The American Red Cross, DHL and Sunrun. More than 35 million appointments have been booked through Skedulo’s platform.
In a statement, Priya said, “the pandemic dramatically accelerated the adoption of digital services for workers across many industries, including those who don’t work in a traditional office setting. Powered by AI and machine learning, Skedulo’s cloud-based software helps enterprises increase productivity by enabling them to intelligently manage and support deskless workforces.”
Other Headlines:
Stephanie Geveda guides Warburg Pincus into a provider of laboratory testing services for customers in the food & beverage end markets – a company that will merge with one of Stephanie’s portfolio companies. Read more
Eurazeo’s Vivianne Akriche is involved with the sale of another firm portfolio company. Read more
Luminate Capital Partners, which was founded by Hollie Haynes, invests in a provider of market access and product compliance SaaS solutions. Read more
Welcome Dairy Holdings, a portfolio company of New Heritage Capital’s Melissa Barry, gulps down an acquisition. Read more
Reach Capital’s Jennifer Carolan and Urban Innovation Fund’s Clara Brenner are now board members at BookNook, a company that both Reach and Urban Innovation Fund have backed. Read more
Natasha Li, a partner with Ares Management Corp., wraps up the firm’s investment in a provider of custom label design and printing for a wide range of industries. Read more
S Capital Managing Partner Aya Peterburg guides her firm into a company that describes itself as the “database supercharger.” Read more
Maureen Spivack, a senior advisor with Havencrest Capital Management, joins the board of Paradigm Health after Havencrest invests in the provider of hospice and palliative care. Read more
Olivia Steedman oversees the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan’s sizable investment in a portfolio company of Renegade Partners’ Roseanne Wincek. Read more
Core Innovation Capital’s Kathleen Utecht backs a company seeking to radically reset expectations for aging. Read more
Lorin Wolfe is involved in L2 Capital Partners’ acquisition of an ecological restoration service provider. Read more
National Grid Partners, whose founder and president is Lisa Lambert, has a portfolio company acquired by Microsoft. Read more
One Equity Partners is selling a portfolio company of Inna Etinberg in what Inna described as a “successful exit.” Read more
Triton Partners is selling a portfolio company of Nadia Meier-Kirner. Read more
Cormorant Asset Management, which is led by Bihua Chen, is among those providing significant backing to a company pioneering “search and replace” gene editing. Read more
Merit Webster and JoAnne Kruse take part in TZP Group’s recapitalization of a provider of sales force training solutions to the tech sector. Read more
Sequoia Capital China’s Lynn Yang invests in a company developing antibody-based therapies for cancer patients. Read more
Kinzie Capital Partners, LLC, whose founder and managing partner is Suzanne Yoon, has a portfolio company make an add-on acquisition. Read more
Backstory: Industry Data & Analysis
PEF Services, LLC, a fund administration services provider founded by Anne Anquillare, has been acquired. Terms of PEF’s purchase by CSC were not disclosed. CSC provides business, legal, tax and digital brand services. Founded in 2002, PEF provides its services to private capital firms and their investors, including private equity, private debt, venture capital and U.S.-based small business investment companies.
Anne, who is CEO and president, will join CSC as head of its U.S. Fund Services, Beth Manzi, who is PEF’s chief operating officer, will lead CSC’s U.S. operations for fund administration.
In a statement, Anne said, “as market requirements expanded, we searched for the perfect partner to enhance the exceptional fund administration services and technology solutions we provide. CSC already has tremendous resources supporting private capital firms on a global scale and we will be a natural extension of those services. In turn, CSC recognized PEF’s reputation for having one of the most skilled and respected teams in the industry, leading-edge portal technology, and thought leadership in private capital. Both firms share a commitment in supporting private capital firms with excellent customer service, innovative technology, and investing in our people.”
Stepping Out in Public
Planet Labs is poised to become publicly traded
Planet Labs, Inc. – whose board includes Threshold Ventures’ Heidi Roizen and whose investors include EDBI, whose CEO is Swee Yeok Chu; Felicis Ventures, which was led into it by former partner Renata Quintini; and 137 Ventures, which was led into it by former managing partner Alda Leu Dennis – is poised to become publicly traded company. Planet has agreed to merge with special purpose acquisition company dMY Technology Group, Inc. IV and, in turn, go public. It would be traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol PL. The transaction will provide the San Francisco company with $545 million and a valuation of $2.8 billion.
Planet is an Earth data and analytics company, producing 25 terabytes of data per day from approximately 200 satellites. It currently generates more than $100 million in revenue from more than 600 customers
Heidi joined Planet’s board in 2018, taking a seat that had been held by former DFJ founder Steve Jurvetson prior to his departure from the firm. DFJ has rebranded as Threshold. Planet Labs’ board also includes Ita Brennan, senior vice president, chief financial officer of Arista Networks, and Ann Mather, the former executive vice president and CFO of Pixar, who is on a series of boards including Google, Bumble and AirBnB.
Planet, according to Crunchbase, raised $374 million in funding from a group which in addition to DFJ, EDBI, Felicis and 137 Ventures included Westly Group, DBL Partners and DCVC.
EDBI, the corporate investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board, recently had another portfolio companies, Sprinklr, go public.
Renata is now the co-founder of Renegade Partners, while Alda is a general partner of Initialized Capital.
Other Headlines:
Cormorant Asset Management, which is led by Bihua Chen, sees two companies that its backed in 2021 file to go public. Read more
Two of Longitude Capital’s Juliet Tammenoms Bakker’s portfolio companies have filed to go public. Read more
A special purpose acquisition company led by Isabelle Freidheim and Phyllis Newhouse has found a company to merge with and, in turn, bring public. Read more
Patricia Trompeter forms a space transport-focused special purpose acquisition company that she hopes to fly onto Nasdaq. Read more
JJ Kang, a venture partner with The Column Group, is on the board of a biotech company that has filed to go public – a company that she previously served as the founding president of. Read more
BDT & Company’s Kelly Rainko will be hoping that outdoor grill maker Weber, Inc.’s IPO is well done. Read more
It's a Wrap: Fund Closures
Anu Duggal’s Female Founders Fund closes a new $57M fund
Female Founders Fund, whose founding partner is Anu Duggal, closes what it says is the largest fund for seed capital specifically for female founders, with Anu telling Women’s PE Briefs that the growing interest in women-led companies has “been incredible to see.” The New York firm raised $57 million, a sizable step up from its $25 million second fund and its $13 million debut fund. Investors in the fund include Goldman Sachs, Cambridge Associates, Pivotal Ventures, Twitter, Plexo Capital, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and such strategic female tech leaders as 23&Me’s Anne Wojcicki, her sister, YouTube’s Susan Wojcicki and Houseparty’s Sima Sistani.
“There has been an increased recognition of the importance of backing a more diverse set of founders amongst the LP community and we are incredibly fortunate to work with some of the early leaders in the LP ecosystem who are driving change like Goldman Sachs, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Plexo Capital, Pivotal Ventures, amongst others,” said Anu.
In a statement, Melinda French Gates said her Pivotal Ventures invested in Female Founders Fund “because we need women founders and funders at the table if we want to build a more prosperous and inclusive economy for everyone. New and innovative ideas come from everywhere; we can’t keep looking in the same old packages.” With the new fund, Female Founders will look to write checks of between $750,000 and $1 million, Anu said. Founded in 2014, Female Founders has now raised more than $95 million and invested in more than 50 female led companies, including Thrive Global, a behavior change technology company founded by Arianna Huffington; Wagmo, a pet wellness and insurance company co-founded by Christie Horvath and Alison Foxworth; Co-Star, an astrology app co-founded by Banu Guler and Anna Kopp; Real, a therapy start-up founded and led by Ariela Safira; BentoBox, which helps restaurant owners quickly build websites and whose co-founder and CEO is Krystle Mobayeni; and Maven Clinic, the women-focused health care clinic founded by Kate Ryder.
Female Founders’ team includes investors Adrianna Samaniego and Emily Powers. Female Founders has backed seven companies with the new fund and expects to invest in a total of 25, Anu said. Of those seven, 70 percent have a founder who can be classified as Black, Indigenous or a person of color. The firm’s disclosed deals in 2021 include Kindra, A modern wellness brand for menopause essentials led by Catherine Balsam-Schwaber; Fave, which was founded by Jacquelle Amankonah Horton to connect fans and creators; Rising Team, which was founded by Jennifer Dulski to help managers motivate, organize and effectively lead their team; Base, an at-home lab testing and smart app company founded by Lola Priego; and Oula Health, which was founded by Adrianne Nickerson and Elaine Purcell to create a modern maternity center.
“It has been incredible to see how much the ecosystem has grown since raising Fund I. There is so much more awareness around the issue of moving towards a more equitable ecosystem. It has been great to see that now almost all VC funds have at least one female partner, we've also seen a growing trend of more and more women starting their own funds. We've also seen increased momentum with both female-led exits and IPOs. This year alone we’ve seen Bumble, 23andMe, and FIGS. All of this I believe bodes incredibly well for this movement.”
Other Headlines:
DN Capital, whose fundraising and investor relations activities are overseen by Susann Aulbach, raises a new fund – a fund that Maryna Omelchenko will be involved in deploying. Read more
Eka Ventures, which Camilla Dolan co-founded, raises what it says is the largest impact-driven early-stage venture capital fund focused on the United Kingdom. Read more
Leading Ladies:
Women-Run Companies in the News
Shulamit Levenberg’s Aleph Farms raises $105M
An Israeli cultivated meat start-up co-founded by Shulamit Levenberg grills up a large round. Aleph Farms raised $105 million from the Growth Fund of L Catterton, DisruptAD, Skyviews Life Science, Thai Union, BRF, CJ CheilJedang, VisVires New Protein, Strauss Group, Cargill, Peregrine Ventures and CPT Capital.
Aleph claims to the first company to grow steaks directly from the cells of cows. It has rolled out the world’s first cell-cultured thin-cut steak and the first cell-cultured ribeye. Aleph will use the capital to executive its plans for large scale global commercialization and portfolio expansion into new types of animal protein.
Shulamit is a professor of biomedical engineering at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Shulamit founded Aleph in 2017 with Didier Toubia.
Other Headlines:
CASAFARI, a European real estate data platform co-founded and co-led by Mila Suharev, lines up financing. Read more
A private equity firm has partnered with BELAY, a virtual staffing company co-founded by Shannon Miles and her husband, Bryan, and now led by Tricia Sciortino. Read more
An AI-enabled talent intelligence platform co-founded by Joanna Riley secures funds to help organizations find, keep and grow a diverse and future-ready workforce. Read more
Facebook executive Fidji Simo is tapped to lead Instacart, the well-funded online grocery platform. Read more
A secure data analytics platform co-founded by Raluca Ada Popa receives seed funding. Read more
PharmaReview, a UK provider of outsourced medical and scientific review that was co-founded by Tessa Pugh, receives backing from a private equity firm. Read more
Investors pump additional capital into a company co-founded by Kim Stiefel and Sarah Wissel that makes it easier for consumer brand customers to reorder everyday items. Read more
Solve Industrial Motion Group, which has been led since March by Lisa Mitchell, has been sold by one private equity firm to another. Read more
Arianna Huffington raises additional capital for her behavior change technology company. Read more
Unit21, a platform of no-code tools for risk and compliance teams whose co-founder and CEO is Trisha Kothari, lands additional capital. Read more
Wecasa, a home help and well-being services start-up whose co-founders include Anne-Emilie Prévot, lands capital. Read more
Kurly, Inc., a grocery start-up led by Sophie Kim, bags additional capital. Read more
A platform led by Helen Vaid to grow online brands launches after receiving sizable funding. Read more
Sponsorship Opportunities Available
Women's Private Equity Golf Networking Event
July 29, 2021
We are thrilled that our first in person event of the year will be a day out on the golf course, on Thursday, July 29 at the Tamarack Golf Club in Greenwich, CT! As a sponsoring organization of the upcoming Golf Networking Event, your firm will have an unparalleled opportunity to market your services to—and network with—an inner circle of private equity and venture capital professionals. We offer sponsorship packages at several levels, and can also customize a package to your specifications. To learn more about sponsoring, please contact Carolyn O'Donnell at Carolyn.ODonnell@falkmarquesgroup.com.
No Females in Starring Roles
Each week we highlight the industry announcements where women are noticeably absent.
We would have loved to have written more about the personnel moves at Las Olas Venture Capital, but all of the people involved were men and the firm’s investment team is comprised entirely of men.
Casting Call! Job Postings
Plum Alley Investments: Associate of Operations and Communications (New York)
We are a venture firm investing in advanced technologies and medical breakthroughs - technological innovations that will transform our world and represent outsized opportunities for both financial return and human prosperity. All of our portfolio companies have at least one woman founder from the STEM fields. Over the last five years, Plum Alley has invested more than $36M across 24 companies. Plum Alley has a strong reputation backing premier companies and delivering exceptional value to founders, while also engaging our investor community in a powerful and unique way. We are seeking to hire an Associate of Operations & Communications to help execute and support operational and communication activities at Plum Alley. The Associate will work closely with the Executive Director of Operations, Finance and Investor Communications. This is a multi-disciplinary role that will involve exposure to general communications, investor engagement and operations, content, technology platform management, and general administration. While this is a non-investment role, the position will involve working collaboratively with the investment team, and it offers exposure to learn about venture investing. If interested please contact Positions@plumalley.co with resume and cover letter.
Dechert LLP: PE/M&A Mid-Senior Level Associates (New York, Philadelphia and other U.S. Offices)
Dechert’s Private Equity and M&A team is vibrant, dynamic, and growing. We are seeking associates with 3+ years of Private Equity/M&A experience who are looking for career advancement, mentorship and high-quality work. Open positions can be based out of our New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Boston, and Charlotte offices, and admission to the bar of the relevant jurisdiction is preferred but not required. Additionally, we will provide a relocation allowance. Our associates, at all levels, are provided with client interfacing roles and responsibilities that are above level, and our culture is built on integrating and blending lateral talent with our organic Dechert team members, creating a diverse group with broad experience. Our team is recognized for its commercial judgment and client focus – we work with top PE sponsors, with recently announced deals for CVC Capital Partners, Cerberus, Blackstone, One Equity Partners, Court Square, GIC, KKR, Centerbridge, Morgan Stanley Capital Partners, Sterling Investment Partners, Nordic Capital and many others. Our team has been named a top private equity law firm by Chambers and Partners, Law360, IFLR1000, Bloomberg, The Legal 500, The Deal, Private Equity International and PitchBook. Please direct inquiries to Marelys Sosa at legal.recruiting@dechert.com or apply directly here.
Probitas Partners: Associate, Project Management (New York or San Francisco)
Founded in 2001, Probitas Partners is a leading independent placement agent, having raised over $94 billion for over 111 managers for the highest-quality fund managers across the alternative investment spectrum including: private equity, real estate, real assets, and private credit. The firm seeks an experienced, self-motivated individual at the associate-level to serve as a key member in the execution of fund raising and secondary transactions, working closely with the senior members of our project management team. Responsibilities include preparation and drafting of offering and diligence materials, preparing investment committee memorandums, serving as liaison between our clients and sales team over the fundraising cycle and coordinating road shows with internal teams and clients. Qualifications for the role include: Three to four years in an investment banking or professional services firm offering pertinent experience, strong financial and analytical skills and very strong communication skills and writing ability. Please direct all inquiries or send your resume to Ray Tsao, CEO, at rwt@probitaspartners.com
Probitas Partners: Analyst, Project Management (New York or San Francisco)
Founded in 2001, Probitas Partners is a leading independent placement agent, having raised over $94 billion for over 111 managers for the highest-quality fund managers across the alternative investment spectrum including: private equity, real estate, real assets, and private credit. The firm seeks an analyst who is a self-motivated individual to assist in the execution of fund raising and secondary transactions. Responsibilities include preparation and drafting of offering and diligence materials, conduct research and diligence, assist in the coordination of road shows, act as a liaison between our clients and sales team over the fund raising cycle. Qualifications for the role include: One to three years in an investment banking or professional services firm offering pertinent experience (select candidates considered directly from undergraduate programs), strong financial and analytical skills, very strong communication skills and writing ability and the ability to work independently, and as part of a cohesive deal team. Please direct all inquiries or send your resume to Ray Tsao, CEO, at rwt@probitaspartners.com
Bain Capital Credit: Private Credit Group Analyst/Associate (NYC, Boston, Chicago)
Bain Capital Credit, an independently-managed affiliate of Bain Capital, is a leading global credit specialist with approximately $44 billion in assets under management. Bain Capital Credit’s Private Credit Group evaluates investment opportunities across the capital structure in the middle market, typically companies with $10-100M of EBITDA. We are actively looking to lead or participate in senior, second lien and unitranche loans; subordinated debt; and preferred or common equity co-investments for traditional leveraged buyout transactions and non-sponsored financings. We can hold up to $150 million in any middle market transaction and can grow with a borrower into a broadly syndicated structure through our liquid credit strategies. We are looking for an Analyst or Associate to work as an integral part of the Private Credit Group. The Analyst/Associate will conduct company and industry research, perform cash flow modeling, develop underwriting memorandums and supporting analyses, and present investment recommendations to internal investment committees. The ideal candidate will have 1-3 year’s experience with an investment management firm, direct lending firm, investment bank, or private equity firm. Please direct all inquires to Emma Moriarty at emoriarty@baincapital.com and/or apply via this link.
