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D-Wave agrees to $1.6bn reverse merger

D-Wave Systems, a Canada-based quantum computing technology developer backed by IT equipment producer NEC, agreed to a $1.6bn reverse merger with special purpose acquisition company DPCM Capital.

Flexport receives $935m funding haul

Logistics services platform developer Flexport raised $935m in a series E round featuring internet and telecommunications group SoftBank’s Vision Fund and e-commerce software provider Shopify at a post-money valuation of $8bn.

WNBA makes $75m funding shot

US-based professional women’s basketball league WNBA raised $75m from investors including sports apparel brand Nike, helping expand funding for a sport where coverage and sponsorship are lacking.

Scandit captures $150m in series D round

Data capture technology developer Scandit closed a $150m series D round featuring Alphabet, Sony, Swisscom and Schneider Electric.

Polygon picks up $450m

Polygon, an India-based blockchain scaling technology developer, secured $450m through a private token sale featuring SoftBank, blockchain entertainment product developer Animoca Brands and quantitative trading firm Alameda Research.

Qredo to scale with $80m

Qredo, a UK-based provider of decentralised digital asset management technology, completed an $80m series A round featuring cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and blockchain technology developers Terraform Labs and Ava Labs.

Infinity Ventures Crypto closes $70m fund

Animoca Brands and payments services provider Circle have backed Taiwan-based venture capital firm Infinity Ventures Crypto (IVC)’s maiden fund, which closed with $70m in commitments.

Intel introduces $1bn semiconductor technology fund

Intel Capital, the corporate venturing arm of chipmaker Intel, launched a $1bn investment vehicle with its semiconductor fabrication business, Intel Foundry Services (IFS).

GBA Fund progresses towards $257m close

Greater Bay Area Fund (GBA Fund), an investment vehicle formed by e-commerce firm Alibaba’s Entrepreneurs Fund (AEF), is set to close at about $257m by mid-2022.

NGP Capital nets $400m from Nokia

Smartphone manufacturer Nokia has provided $400m in capital for the latest fund closed by NGP Capital, the US-based venture capital firm that it had spun off.

UTokyo IPC achieves $221m close

University of Tokyo Innovation Platform (UTokyo IPC), the venture capital arm of University of Tokyo, announced the final close of its second fund at $221m with backing from several corporate LPs.

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Investments

Cancer drug developer ADC Therapeutics has taken its total financing to $225m with a $105m private placement that included existing investor AstraZeneca.

Mobike has closed more than $100m in funding from investors including Tencent.

Mitsui has led a $100m round for MatahariMall.com, an e-commerce platform launched by real estate conglomerate Lippo Group with $500m last year.

Online wholesale alcohol retailer Yijiupi has also raised $100m, in a series C round backed by local reviews and group buying platform Meituan-Dianping which will fuel an expansion drive the company hopes will more than double the 72 Chinese cities in which it operates by the end of 2017.

GE Ventures, Envision Energy and Inven Capital have contributed to a round for energy storage and management technology provider Sonnen that has closed at $85m.

Oblong Industries, a gesture-based user interface spinout of MIT Media Lab, secured $65m in funding on Wednesday from investors including Utimco, the investment arm of University of Texas System.

Temasek, the sovereign wealth fund of Singapore, today invested $250m in US-based healthcare conglomerate Columbia Pacific Management’s Chinese subsidiary Columbia China.

Funds

Online media brands Thrillist, NowThis, The Dodo and Seeker joined forces last week to form a new holding company called Group Nine Media, fueled by a $100m investment by Discovery Communications.

French venture firm Daphni has launched a $165m fund with backing from LPs including corporates Nokia, MAIF and Fnac-Darty.

The government of Saudi Arabia joined forces with Japan-based conglomerate SoftBank on Friday to launch a $100bn vehicle dubbed SoftBank Vision Fund.

Exits

Quantenna, which has raised more than $200m in debt and equity since 2005 from investors including NTT, Vivint, Swisscom and Telefónica, has set the range for an offering that could raise up to $107m.

Gene editing company Crispr Therapeutics went public in a $56m IPO that was priced below its range, but which was executed concurrently to a $35m investment by existing backer Bayer Global Investments.

There’s a big new player in the Asian travel services industry, after MakeMyTrip acquired Ibibo Group in an all-share deal that reportedly valued Ibibo at $720m.

Salesforce has scored a decent-sized exit after cloud services provider Appirio agreed to a $500m acquisition by IT services firm Wipro.

Investment manager and research provider Morningstar has agreed to acquire financial data platform Pitchbook in a $180m deal that will see it buy the 80% of the company it does not already own.

Curtin University spinout ePat Technologies, which is developing facial recognition technology, floated on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) on Thursday.

General trading firm Mitsubishi Corporation purchased a 60% stake on Friday in ElectroRoute, an Ireland-based energy trading and services firm backed by government-owned export development agency Enterprise Ireland.

People

Dinesh Moorjani has become Comcast Ventures’ ninth managing director, joining the unit from Warburg Pincus.

Bruce Zimmerman, chief executive of Utimco, last week announced that he is stepping down from the position after a decade of leading the investment company of University of Texas System and Texas A&M System. Zimmerman was appointed as chief executive and chief investment manager in 2007.

Edinburgh Research and Innovation (ERI), the commercialisation arm of Edinburgh University, has appointed George Baxter as its new chief executive effective October 24.