Coinbase cuts back, FTX diversifies, and publicity Musk could do without

Wondering just how bad things can get? Veteran VC Brad Feld tells us that as much as this moment may feel familiar to those who lived through or otherwise studied the dot.com implosion of 2000, the two are not analogous, in his view:

"The comparison to 2000 isn't that interesting to me because there are many different conflating factors. The notion that we are in the middle of a massive reset is undeniable. But there are many different issues, even with the obvious parallels. There are also different layers unfolding that have resulted from macro and exogenous behavior in the past few years that are radically different than 2000. When I hear people telling stories about the internet bubble and relating it to this moment, I feel simultaneously old and amused.

I don't know if you're a Battlestar Galactica fan," he adds via email, "but all of this has happened before, and will happen again."

Twitter executives told employees today that the $44 billion deal to sell the company to Elon Musk is moving forward as planned, and that they won’t renegotiate the agreed-upon price of $54.20 per share. Vijaya Gadde, Twitter’s top lawyer and head of policy, also told workers at an all-hands meeting that there is “no such thing as a deal being on hold,” according to people who attended the meeting. Bloomberg has more here.

In very separate news, Musk allegedly exposed himself to a flight attendant who SpaceX later paid $250,000. Musk is calling the story, by Business Insider, a "politically motivated hit piece."

Can your portfolio survive the 2022 bear attack? With inflation at a 40 year-high… market volatility spiking… and the upcoming rate hike from the Feds… Stocks could be in for a rough ride. That’s why everyone and their wealth manager is pouring money into safe-haven assets like fine art. And there’s one app that's handed investors over 30% annualized returns. Masterworks. But don’t wait. Their offerings sell out quickly. Their recent offering, a $7.4M Banksy painting sold out in less than three hours. Click here for a private concierge. See important Reg A disclosures.

Belong, a three-year-old, Palo Alto, Ca., three-sided marketplace that provides services for both homeowners that are landlords and renters, has raised $50 million in equity and secured $30 million in debt funding. Fifth Wall led the equity financing, joined by earlier investors Battery Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz and GGV Capital. TechCrunch has more here.

Glean, a three-year-old startup based in Palo Alto, Ca., that employs AI to power a unified search experience across all apps used at a company, raised a $100 million Series C round. The deal lead was Sequoia Capital. Glean has raised a total of $155 million. TechCrunch has more here.

Inspiration Mobility, a one-year-old Washington, D.C., startup that makes fleet management software for electric vehicles, raised a $215 million round. Macquarie Asset Management and Ferrovial co-led the deal. The company has raised a total of $415 million. Axios Pro has more here.

Mirvie, a San Francisco startup that has developed a blood test that aims to identify risk of preeclampsia before symptoms occur, raised a $45 million Series B and $15 million in debt, according to CrunchBase. The lead was Decheng Capital; BlackRock, Foresite Capital, General Catalyst, GV, Khosla Ventures, and Mayfield also contributed. MobiHealthNews has more here.

Velocity Global, an eight-year-old startup based in Denver, Co., that helps enterprises find new talent and claims to have reached an annual net revenue run rate of $200 million, raised a $400 million Series B round. The co-leads were Eldridge and Norwest Venture Partners. The company has raised a total of $500 million. Bloomberg has more here.

Xendit, a seven-year-old, Jakarta, Indonesia-based payments infrastructure platform for Southeast Asia, has raised $300 million in fresh funding. Coatue and Insight Partners led the round, joined by Accel, Tiger Global, Kleiner Perkins, EV Growth, Amasia, Intudo and Goat Capital. The outfit has now raised funding $538 million altogether. TechCrunch has more here.

Zolar, a six-year-old Berlin startup whose online configurator provides homeowners with an easy way to buy or lease customized solar installations, raised a €100 million Series C round co-led by Energy Impact Partners and GIC; Inven Capital, Heartcore Capital, Statkraft Ventures, and Pirate Impact Capital also participated. The company has raised a total of $173.2 million. TechCrunch has more here.

Azra Games, a five-month-old, blockchain games company based in Sacramento, Ca., that aims to build mainstream collectible and combat RPGs for the web3 era, raised a $15 million seed round. Andreessen Horowitz led the deal, while NFX, Coinbase Ventures, Play Ventures, and Franklin Templeton Investments also participated. CEO Mark Otero previously co-founded a hedge fund; he was also a GM at Electronic Arts for four years. VentureBeat has more here.

Bravado, a five-year-old, San Francisco-based social network for B2B sales professionals, has raised $26 million in Series B funding led by Tiger Global, which was joined by earlier backers Redpoint, XYZ Ventures, Freestyle Capital and Precursor, along with numerous individual investors, including entrepreneur Mark Pincus. The outfit has now raised $41 million altogether. Crunchbase News has more here.

Coins.ph, an eight-year-old startup based in Pasig, Philippines, that makes a digital wallet for fiat and cryptocurrency, raised a $30 million Series C round. Joffre Capital led the financing. The company has raised a total of $40.5 million. Tech in Asia has more here.

Deciphex, a five-year-old startup based in Dublin that develops software and artificial intelligence to accelerate the delivery of pathology services, raised a $11.5 million Series B led by ACT VC led, with additional participation from Charles River Labs, Novartis, IRRUS Investments, Nextsteps Capital, and HBAN Medtech Syndicate. The company has raised a total of $20.3 million. The Irish Times has more here.

Forma.ai, a six-year-old Toronto startup that helps clients use their data to optimize their sales compensation strategies, raised a $45 million Series B round. ACME Capital led the deal, joined by Crosslink Capital, Golden Ventures, Uncork Capital, Xfund, and Gaingels. The company has raised a total of $58 million. BetaKit has more here.

Inceptor Bio, a two-year-old startup based in Raleigh, N.C., that's developing therapies that focus on strengthening immune cell performance where cancer is found, raised a $37 million Series A led by Kineticos Ventures. The company has raised a total of $71.7 million. Endpoints News calls its claims "really, really bold." More here.

Lassie, a two-year-old pet insurance startup based in Stockholm, raised an €11 million Series A round led by Felix Capital; Inventure and Passion Capital also pitched in capital. More here.

Locus Biosciences, a seven-year-old startup based in Morrisville, N.C., that has developed a drug candidate targeting the bacteria that causes urinary tract infections, raised $35 million in Series B funding. Investors in the deal included Artis Ventures, Tencent Holdings, Viking Global Investors, and Johnson & Johnson Innovation. The company has raised a total of $128.7 million. Endpoints News has more here.

Major League Cricket, a three-year-old, Seattle company that is planning to launch a cricket league in the U.S., raised a $44 million Series A round led by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, with a commitment from investors to provide an additional $76m within the next year. GeekWire has more here.

Oviva Therapeutics, a 15-month-old, New York startup that is developing therapeutics targeting ovarian aging, raised an $11.5 million seed round from Cambrian Biopharma. Forbes has more here.

Professional Fighters League, a five-year-old startup based in Washington, D.C., that is organizing a new mixed martial arts league, raised a $30 million Series E round at a $500 million valuation. Waverley Capital led the deal, and former baseball star Alex Rodriquez also participated. The company has raised a total of $203 million. The Washington Post has more here.

Seclore, a 19-year-old startup based in Sunnyvale, Ca., that helps enterprises protect their data, raised a $27 million Series C round co-led by Origami Capital Partners and Oquirrh Ventures. The company has raised a total of $46 million. SecurityWeek has more here.

Space Perspective, a three-year-old, Cape Canaveral, Fla.-based space tourism company that says it's planning to offer stratospheric balloon rides beginning in 2024, has collected $17 million in funding from new investors Silicon Valley Bank, Trinity Capital, and investor Henry Kravis. The capital brings the company’s total funding raised to date to more than $65 million. More here.

Adgile Media Group, a four-year-old New York startup that places out-of-home advertising on last-mile delivery trucks, raised a $5 million seed round. The lead was Brand Foundry Ventures; Amity Supply, Finn Capital Partners, and Consumer Ventures also chipped in. More here.

Aumio, a startup based in Eppelborn, Germany, that has built a meditation and sleep app specifically for kids, raised a €3 million in seed round. The co-leads were Partech and byFounders. EU-Startups has more here.

Cyscale, a three-year-old Romania-based startup that protects data stored in the cloud, raised €3 million led by Notion Capital. Tech.eu has more here.

Flexspace, a two-year-old San Francisco startup that helps clients provide and manage flexible workspaces, raised a $6 million seed round led by M13. Other backers in the round include R-Squared Ventures and Magenta Venture Partners. finLedger has more here.

FloorFound, a two-year-old reverse logistics startup based in Austin, Tex., that streamlines the recovery and resale of returned, lightly used and open-box items that are oversized, raised a $10.5 million Series A round co-led by Next Coast Ventures and LiveOak Venture Partners; Data Point Capital and previous investors FlyBridge Capital Partners and Schematic Ventures also participated. The company has raised a total of $15.15 million. TechCrunch has more here.

Greater Good Health, a one-year-old Los Angeles startup that employs nurse practitioners and pairs them with doctor’s offices and medical clinics, raised a $10 million round led. LRVHealth was the deal lead, while Martin Ventures, Health Velocity Capital, and Optum Ventures also chipped in. The company has raised a total of $13 million. dot.LA has more here.

Included, a 17-month-old, Seattle-based startup that helps companies to hire, retain, and promote a diverse workforce, has raised $3.5 million in seed funding led by Trilogy Equity Partners. Other participants in the round included Flying Fish Partners, SignalFire and Alumni Ventures. The company separately raised $1.9 million in pre-seed funding late last year from SignalFire and Flying Fish; Built In Seattle had written about it here.

Pique, a six-year-old Los Angeles-based sexual health clinic focused on enjoyment rather than reproduction, raised a $4 million seed round led by Maveron. Axios Pro has more here.

Hey startup founders: Do you ever wish there was an easier way to secure the funding your company needs to ensure future growth? How about building an engaged community around your business that's ready to shout its greatness from the rooftops? SeedInvest has helped hundreds of founders get funded, thanks to its active community of over 600,000 retail and accredited investors on the hunt for a great opportunity. Apply today to learn more!

Generation Investment Management, the London and San Francisco-based sustainability-focused public and private equity firm co-founded by Al Gore, is upping its bet on growth-stage companies via a new $1.7 billion fund. The plan is to plow the capital into 15 to 18 “high-growth” businesses that advance environmental and social goals, such as mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, tackling inequality in finance and making healthcare more accessible, the outfit tells TechCrunch. More here.

HealthQuest Capital, a nine-year-old, Belmont, Ca.-based venture fund, raised $675 million for a fourth fund focused on growth-stage companies in the healthcare industry. The outfit says it now has $1.6 billion in assets under management. More here.

Lightrock, a 12-year-old, London-based impact venture firm, has raised $300 million for a Latin America growth equity fund. City A.M. has more here.

Joby Aviation, an eVTOL developer that began trading on the NYSE last summer after merging with a SPAC, has acquired Avionyx, a Florida-based aerospace software engineering firm. Terms of the deal aren't being disclosed. TechCrunch has more here.

Social fitness tracking platform Strava has acquired Recover Athletics to give users access to injury prevention exercise plans and resources as part of its subscription package. More here.

Carousell, a Singapore-based online classifieds marketplace operator, recently ended talks to go public through a merger with blank-check company L Catterton Asia Acquisition Corp, says Bloomberg. Its sources cite market volatility. More here.

Near, a 10-year-old, Pasadena, Ca.-based data intelligence company, says it will be listing on the Nasdaq by merging with blank-check company KludeIn I Acquisition Corp. at a valuation approaching $1 billion. As part of the deal, the company is also receiving $100 million via a PIPE led by CF Principal Investments, an affiliate of Cantor Fitzgerald. Near was originally based in Singapore; the SPAC taking it public is led by Narayan Ramachandran, the head of Mumbai-based Gaja Capital. TechCrunch has more here.

Surf Air Mobility, a nearly 11-year-old, L.A.-based electric aviation and air travel company that operates via a membership model, says it's going public via a merger with the blank-check company Tuscan Holdings Corporation II, a SPAC that (it's maybe worth noting) was originally targeting the cannabis industry and also dates back a ways, to 2019. The deal is valued at $1.42 billion. More here.

Vikram Chaudhery has been promoted to partner at the San Francisco-based venture firm Genoa Ventures. He joined the firm in 2019 after spending two years as the head of life sciences at Lam Research, a supplier of wafer fabrication equipment and services to the semiconductor industry.

Scott Frederick has been promoted to managing partner at Sands Capital Ventures. Frederick joined the firm as a managing director in 2019 after spending four years with NEA.

Jack Sweeney, the the teen known for tracking Elon Musk's jet, says he re-discovered Mark Zuckerberg's private jet and has begun tracking it again. 

Kapil Venkatachalam has joined FTV Capital, a New York and San Francisco-based growth equity firm, as a partner. He'd previously logged 16 years with the growth-stage firm TCV.

Heather Widman has been promoted to partner at Building Ventures, a Boston-based venture firm that she joined three years ago as a principal. Widman had previously spent time in a variety of product marketing roles.

Affirm, the  “buy now, pay later” startup led by former PayPal co-founder Max Levchin, is hiring a VP of corporate development. Affirm, which went public early last year, is a fully remote company. 

Rapidly rising mortgage rates and record home prices are cooling the U.S. housing market, as April sales dropped for the third straight month and fell to their weakest pace in nearly two years. Existing-home sales slipped 2.4% in April from the prior month, the National Association of Realtors said today. Last month’s sales fell 5.9% from a year earlier.

Y Combinator has advised its founders to "plan for the worst." TechCrunch has more here.

Crypto exchange FTX is diversifying. In an interview with the WSJ today, the outfit said it will let customers trade stocks and exchange-traded funds on its popular trading app alongside bitcoin and dogecoin. Of course, it's hard to forget that last week, FTX co-founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried disclosed he had bought a 7.6% stake in trading-app maker Robinhood, but he says he is treating the stake as an investment and doesn’t have plans to influence Robinhood’s management or strategy. (You have to wonder how Robinhood feels about all this.) More here.

Klarna, the Stockholm-based buy-now-pay-later outfit backed by Sequoia Capital, is reportedly looking to raise new funds that could value the fintech giant at almost a third less than the roughly $46 billion valuation it achieved just under a year ago. The WSJ has more here.

Cryptocurrency trading firm Coinbase is pausing new business projects, freezing hiring for two weeks and aiming to slash its cloud spending on Amazon Web Services, among other cost-cutting measures, according to a pair of internal emails sent to employees this week and viewed by The Information. More here.

Amazon is focused more on technologies that affect the real world, rather than the so-called metaverse, David Limp, senior vice president of devices and services at Amazon, said at a WSJ event today. More here.

Inside Putin's propaganda machine.

Tiaras galore.

How to use your iPhone to turn off your partner's alarm.

I would rather do anything else than grade your final papers.

Nic Cage is selling his private island in the Bahamas for $7.5 million. You can learn all about it at Private Islands Inc.

Amy Schumer is selling her full-floor Manhattan penthouse for $15 million. (You'll recognize it from "Expecting Amy.")

Bespoke fridge doors by Samsung.

More than 250 founders across SaaS, healthtech, CPG, and more have found fundraising success on SeedInvest, including the on-demand pharmacy startup NowRx, the real-estate crowdfunding platform GroundFloor, and the options trading app Gatsby. Find out if your company has what it takes to raise a community round. Submit your deck and connect with our team.