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The Big Ones
China-based grocery delivery app operator Dingdong Maicai closed a $330m series D-plus round led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund. Founded in 2017, Dingdong Maicai has built a grocery e-commerce platform it claims delivers fresh produce and seafood ingredients door-to-door in under 30 minutes. It has served more than 5 million households across 27 markets in its home country. The company’s overall funding now stands at more than $1bn. It had secured $700m in a series D round last month co-led by DST Global and Coatue.
SoftBank has increased the size of its Vision Fund 2 from $10bn to $30bn. Its original Vision Fund closed at $98.6bn in 2017 with contributions from corporate LPs and sovereign wealth funds, but it has so far been unable to secure backing for its successor, instead committing the capital itself. The first Vision Fund booked a $16.8bn net loss for 2019 due to bankruptcies for portfolio companies OneWeb and Brandless, the failure of WeWork to successfully float and lacklustre share performance for others such as Uber. However, the coronavirus pandemic has caused tech stocks in several industries to skyrocket while also driving the pre-IPO funding market, leading to a considerable turnaround in SoftBank’s fortunes – the Vision Funds have now made a $37bn paper profit. The overall fair value of Vision Fund 1 and 2 stood at $154bn as of the end of March this year and SoftBank has returned $22.3bn to its LPs.
Better, the US-based digital mortgage services provider backed by SoftBank, American Express, Ping An, Citi and Ally Financial, agreed a reverse merger at a $7.7bn post-deal valuation. The company will join forces with SPAC Aurora Acquisition Corp, taking the position on the Nasdaq Capital Market that Aurora acquired in a $220m initial public offering in March this year. The deal will be supported by $1.5bn in PIPE financing from SoftBank’s SB Management subsidiary, Activant Capital and Novator Capital, Aurora Acquisition Corp’s sponsor.
University
Ginkgo Bioworks, a US-based microbe engineering services spinout of MIT, agreed to a reverse merger with SPAC Soaring Eagle Acquisition Corp. The deal values Ginkgo at $15bn and includes a $775m PIPE financing co-led by Baillie Gifford, Putnam Investments and Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s Counterpoint Global. Soaring Eagle had raised $1.73bn through its own initial public offering three months ago, putting the reverse merger deal’s total value at a jaw-dropping $17.5bn. Ginkgo had raised more than $789m in equity financing since being founded in 2009.
Deals
Vinted, the Lithuania-based operator of a second-hand fashion marketplace, picked up €250m ($303m) today in a series F round featuring Burda Principal Investments, a subsidiary of media group Hubert Burda. The round was led by EQT Growth, a fund operated by investment firm EQT, at a $4.2bn valuation, and it included Insight Partners, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Sprints Capital.
Telkomsel, the mobile network subsidiary of Telkom Indonesia, has invested $300m in Indonesia-based ride hailing service Gojek, having supplied $150m for the company in November 2020. Gojek runs an app-based on-demand ride service which has expanded into food, package and grocery delivery in addition to mobile financial services. The funding comes as the company prepares to merge with e-commerce marketplace Tokopedia in a deal that will create a company called GoTo which would be valued at about $18bn. The deal is reportedly expected to be formally agreed by the end of June.
US-based diagnostic testing technology developer Cue Health completed a $235m financing round backed by Koch Industries and Johnson & Johnson, which took part through subsidiaries Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC and Koch Strategic Platforms respectively, joining Perceptive Advisors, MSD Capital, Decheng Capital, Cavu Ventures, Acme Capital and undisclosed other investors.
Masterclass, the US-based online education provider backed by Bloomberg, Endeavor and Novel Group, secured $225m in a series F round led by investment and financial services group Fidelity. Baillie Gifford, Balyasny Asset Management, Eldridge, IVP, New Enterprise Associates, Javelin Venture Partners and Owl Ventures also took part in the round. It valued the company at $2.75bn, sources told CNBC.
US-based life insurance platform developer Ethos Technologies received $200m in series D funding from investors including Roc Nation and GV. General Catalyst led the round, which valued the company at $2bn. It included Sequoia Capital and Accel as well as Will Smith’s Dreamers VC fund and a vehicle representing fellow actor Robert Downey Jr that may have been Downey Ventures.
WeRide, a China-based autonomous driving technology provider that counts several corporates among its investors, has raised hundreds of millions of dollars in series C funding. IDG Capital, Homeric Capital, CoStone Capital, Cypress Star, Sky9 Capital, K3 Ventures, CMC Capital Partners, Qiming Venture Partners and Alpview Capital supplied the capital at a valuation of $3.3bn. The series C proceeds will be channelled into research and development and commercialisation activities. The deal comes four months after WeRide closed a series B round led by $200m from bus manufacturer Yutong Group at $310m.
Funds
China-based cryptocurrency trading platform developer Huobi has established a $100m strategic investment fund. Founded in 2013, Huobi operates a blockchain-equipped online platform where users can buy and sell digital currencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP. Huobi Ventures will make early-stage investments in blockchain-focused companies which can integrate their operations with its parent company’s businesses, in addition to decentralised finance projects and merger and acquisition deals. The unit has reserved $10m of the capital for investments in NFTs and NFT marketplaces, and it brings together existing Huobi subsidiaries including Huobi Eco Fund, Huobi Capital and Huobi DeFi Labs.
Exits
Plus, a US-based automated driving technology developer backed by Full Truck Alliance, Quanta Computer, Wanxiang and SAIC, announced a reverse merger. The deal involves the company merging with SPAC Hennessy Capital Investment Corp V at a $3.3bn valuation, with the combined business taking the Nasdaq Capital Market listing secured by the latter in a $300m initial public offering in February this year. Funds and accounts managed by BlackRock and DE Shaw Group are among the participants in a $150m PIPE financing.
Bird, the US-based mobility services provider backed by Simon Property, is merging with SPAC Switchback II Corporation. The company will acquire the position on the New York Stock Exchange taken by Switchback II in a $275m initial public offering in January this year. The deal grants Bird a $2.3bn pro forma enterprise valuation. The transaction will be boosted by $160m a PIPE financing from investors including Fidelity Management & Research.
Science 37, a US-based clinical trials technology provider backed by Sanofi, Amgen, Alphabet, Novartis and PPD, agreed to a reverse merger with LifeSci Acquisition II Corp. The transaction will involve the Science 37 taking the position on the Nasdaq Capital Market taken by LifeSci in a $75m initial public offering in November 2020. It will give Science 37 an initial enterprise value of about $1.05bn. Science 37’s technology helps run clinical trials for developmental stage therapeutics and medical devices, helping bridge the gap between laboratory research and patient care.
UK-based encryption technology developer Arqit agreed to a reverse merger with Centricus Acquisition Corp that will be backed by corporates Sumitomo and Virgin Orbit. The deal will create a new company called Arqit Quantum, which will be valued at $1.4bn and which will take on the listing Nasdaq Capital Market Centricus Acquisition got in a $300m initial public offering in February 2021. The merged business will receive approximately $70m from a PIPE deal featuring Virgin Orbit, Sumitomo Corporation and Heritage Group.
Waterdrop, a China-based digital health insurance marketplace which counts corporates Meituan Dianping, Tencent and Swiss Re as investors, raised $360m in an initial public offering. The company issued 30 million American depositary shares (ADSs) on the New York Stock Exchange, each ADS representing 10 ordinary class A shares. Waterdrop priced the ADSs at $12 each, at the upper end of the $10 to $12 range it had set for the offering, valuing the company at over $4.7bn. The shares closed on $9.70 on the first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange, but dropped over the course of the week to open at $7 on Friday morning.
Ane Logistics, a China-based small freight services provider backed by insurer Ping An and dairy product manufacturer Yili, has filed for an initial public offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The size of the offering has not been disclosed but the company was looking to raise $500m, according to a Bloomberg report in February. CICC Capital and JPMorgan Chase are lead underwriters for the flotation.
“Funky Chunk” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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