PitchBook News - A bumpy ride for insurtech

Down rounds not a problem for unicorns, yet; VC's busiest investors in gaming deals; Ace Turtle grabs $34M Series B
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The Daily Pitch: VC
May 8, 2023
The Daily Pitch is powered by PitchBook’s industry-defining research and best-in-class data
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In today's Daily Pitch, you'll find:
  • The saga of a lucrative M&A deal highlights the battle between two leveraged finance segments.

  • Our 2023 Insurtech Overview lays out the industry's bumpy ride.

  • Our Unicorn Indexes show that raising funds may be tough, but billion-dollar companies aren't showing widespread signs of crisis.
 
Today's Top Stories  
Buckle up for insurtech's ride
Insurtech saw huge growth during the pandemic as newly emerging technology startups competed with traditional insurance carriers, but over the last 18 months, the vertical hasn't fared as well.

How bumpy has insurtech's ride been? Our 2023 Insurtech Overview lays it all out.
  • Insurtech companies raised $9.4 billion across 617 deals in 2022, a 42% decline in deal value year-over-year.

  • Exit activity also dwindled. Last year, $2.4 billion in exit value was generated, as opposed to $36.6 billion in 2021.

  • Still, opportunities remain for investors in segments including underwriting and commercial insurance.
read the preview
 
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Squid vs. whale: Leveraged loan saga points to battle in private credit world
(Atomic Roderick/Shutterstock)
A $2.75 billion financing to back Blackstone's LBO of climate-tech specialist Copeland has resurfaced in the syndicated leveraged loan market—six months after it first emerged as a marquee transaction in the private credit sector.

The deal, a rare instance of a lucrative M&A pact in today's uncertain economic environment, highlights the market-share tussle between the two leveraged finance segments.

Market volatility has brought headwinds to both the syndicated loan and private credit asset classes, intensifying the competition for deals. The Copeland saga shows banks aren't throwing in the towel when it comes to higher-risk, higher-reward deals.
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A message from Coupa  
Profitability and resilience are top priorities for financial leaders
The past year has been extremely demanding for CFOs, from balancing cutting costs, to investing in growth, to striving for financial health while building organizational resilience.

The inaugural edition of Coupa's annual survey asked how financial leaders cope with these uncertain times. Many CFOs said they lack visibility into spend across the company—often because of legacy systems—making meeting these demands nearly impossible.

It is critical to learn how modern technology—automation especially—can help you respond to challenges and weather a recession without broad cutbacks. Download this report to learn:
  • Financial performance and strategies for profitability
  • Internal pressures and external threats, from rising wages to supply chain disruption
  • Plans to drive growth in the event of a recession
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Meet the 10 most active investors in VC video game deals
(Drew Sanders/PitchBook News)
Video games have long been the entertainment industry's golden goose, generating more revenue than movies and music combined. VC investors have poured an increasing amount of money into the sector in recent years. In 2019, gaming startups raised $3.9 billion across 809 deals. Yet in 2022, they raised $13.3 billion across 1,306 deals.

Here are the most active VC investors in the sector.
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Unicorns are still hanging on
Billion-dollar companies have yet to show widespread signs of crisis despite intense difficulty raising new funds, the Morningstar PitchBook Global Unicorn Indexes show.

Public markets have been relatively stable this year, and unicorns have yet to raise down rounds en masse thanks to a combination of cost-cutting and plentiful cash reserves from the boom times.
explore the indexes
 
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Survey: UK's PE, VC industry falls short on diversity
(Lightspring/Shutterstock)
Diversity in gender and ethnicity has been on the rise in the UK's VC and PE firms since 2021, but representation remains too low, according to a BVCA and Level 20 survey.

Notable progress has been made at junior levels, but representation in senior investment roles has been slower.
read more
 
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Recommended Reads
Roelof Botha's first year as "senior steward" of Sequoia Capital has been a stormy one. [The Information]

Who owns the North Pole? What's hidden under Arctic ice matters more. [Bloomberg]

As asset managers look for ways to save, are the days of the spreadsheet numbered? [Institutional Investor]
 
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A message from Silicon Valley Bank  

Trust is key to partnership, and SVB is committed to regaining yours

With the strength and stability of First Citizens behind Silicon Valley Bank, it continues to be positioned to deliver specialized lending and financial solutions for innovation companies and investors.

Read more here
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VC Deals  
Bengaluru-based retail company Ace Turtle has raised a $34 million Series B led by Vertex Growth, SBI Investment, Farglory Group and others.

Hackajob, a London-based technical hiring platform, has raised a $25 million Series B led by Volition Capital.

Inbox Health, a medical-billing SaaS company, has raised a $22.5 million Series B led by Ten Coves Capital.

Indonesian supply chain startup Praktis has secured a $20 million Series A led by East Ventures.

Netherlands-based Instruqt has raised a €15 million Series A led by Blossom Capital for its marketing platform for SaaS companies.

Setscale, fintech provider serving small and medium-sized businesses, has launched out of stealth with $9.5 million in seed funding and up to $70 million in debt.

Hoxton Ventures has led a $6.2 million seed extension round for MultiOmic Health. The London-based startup develops AI-enabled precision medicine.

Berlin-based virtual restaurant franchise Tasty Urban has raised €1.5 million in a round led by Earlybird.
 
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PE Deals  
Vice Media's senior lenders, including Fortress Investment Group and Soros Fund Management, are lining up a deal to buy the company out of bankruptcy in a reorganization that would value Vice at $400 million, including debt, The Wall Street Journal reported. The deal would cut out TPG, Sixth Street and other shareholders.

Silver Lake has increased its bid for Software AG by €2 to €32 per share, valuing the German company at around €2.4 billion.

Mubadala has sold a 7.6% stake in Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank to Emirates International Investment Co. The stake is valued at more than $780 million, based on the bank's stock price, Reuters reported.

Cerberus Capital Management and Axactor have agreed to buy a distressed loan portfolio valued at €1.1 billion from Spain's Santander, Expansión reported.

DeA Capital has acquired Italy's Magic. The company provides packaging for the food, medical, industrial and hygiene industries.

Astorg has agreed to acquire Hg Medical, which makes orthopedic implants, from Nord Holding.
 
Exit & IPOs  
Meta is trading its ownership of Kustomer for a passive minority stake and giving stakes to Redpoint Ventures, Battery Ventures and Boldstart Ventures, The Wall Street Journal reported. The deal reportedly values Kustomer at $250 million. Meta bought the business software company for $1 billion.

Acelyrin has raised $540 million in its IPO. The biopharma company, which started trading on the Nasdaq on Friday, issued 30 million shares at $18 apiece.
 
Fundraising  
Bain Capital has raised about $6 billion for its fifth and largest Asia-focused fund, Reuters reported. The vehicle, which is expected to invest heavily in Japan, is nearing its final close.
 
Investors  
Oklahoma has barred 13 financial institutions from doing business with the state due to so-called boycotts of fossil fuels or neglecting to answer a survey. Firms and banks on the list include BlackRock, State Street, JP Morgan Chase and Lexington Partners.

Truffle Private Markets has launched a US mid-market PE program aimed at wealth managers and family offices across Europe. Truffle uses the collective scale of its clients to access funds.
 
Chart of the Day  
"Asian-headquartered funds raised more than $5.5 billion, a slight dip from each of the last three years. A growing demand exists for nonbank lending in Asia, given the uptick in sponsored deal activity in recent years, but the creditor-debtor regimes vary greatly and can make it difficult for direct lending funds to establish a foothold."

Source: PitchBook's 2022 Annual Global Private Debt Report
 
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