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The Daily Pitch: VC

September 6, 2024

The Daily Pitch is powered by PitchBook’s industry-defining research and best-in-class data

In today's Daily Pitch, you'll find:

Our analysts explore the factors likely to drive any rebound in crypto VC fundraising

Y Combinator co-founder Paul Graham set the VC world abuzz this week with a blog post about the virtues of running a startup in "founder mode." He has a point

Investors drawn to healthcare PE funds by their historical performance edge may be disappointed as the advantage fades

PE firm CVC Capital reports more evidence of a European recovery

Today's Top Stories

Startups in 'founder mode' have an edge

Paul Graham, Y Combinator co-founder
(Araya Doheny/Getty Images)

Y Combinator co-founder Paul Graham set the venture world abuzz this week with a blog post about the virtues of running a startup in "founder mode" instead of in "manager mode."

It turns out that Graham's thesis is correct: Founder mode is often superior when it comes to value creation, according to our analysis using PitchBook data. Here's why.

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Crypto VC fundraising recovery kicks off

After a wild ride for the past two years, crypto VC fundraising shows signs of recovery, buoyed by emerging managers and the rise of midsized funds.

PitchBook’s latest analyst note examines crypto VC fundraising, with Senior Analyst Robert Le exploring the factors likely to drive any funding rebound within the sector. From the experience level of GPs to where capital is being allocated, the note looks comprehensively at the state of fundraising—and provides an outlook on where it might go next.

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Will Middle East VC stop flowing?

(Mara Potter/PitchBook News)

Now more than ever, the global VC ecosystem relies on free-flowing Middle Eastern money. But what happens when one of the region's biggest sovereign wealth funds tightens the taps?

Public Investment Fund—Saudi Arabia's $925 billion sovereign investment vehicle—is now prioritizing domestic projects, the Financial Times reported. Up until this shift, the Kingdom's fund had been on a decade-long global investment spree, and VCs have been a major beneficiary.

Given how entrenched PIF is in the global VC market, any retreat by the fund will be deeply felt, particularly if other oil-rich countries follow suit.

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Are healthcare PE funds losing their advantage?

(Nora Carol Photography/Getty Images)

Investors drawn to healthcare funds by their historical performance may be disappointed as the latest vehicles struggle to replicate the success of earlier vintages.

A PitchBook analysis shows that healthcare specialist funds between 2015 and 2020 performed basically on par with PE funds that invested in other strategies.

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CVC earnings reflect rebound in European PE dealmaking

(NurPhoto/Getty Images)

CVC saw significant improvements in private equity deal activities from deployment to exits in the first set of financial results announced since its IPO in April.

The upbeat earnings underpin the rebound in the wider European market, with 2024 set to be the best year for PE-backed IPOs since 2021.

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Medtech exits test a new future

VC dealmaking in the medtech industry dipped in Q2, but activity is still on track to surpass last year and VC exits are on the rise, according to our recent Emerging Tech Research.

Startups generated $3.3 billion across 206 deals—declines of 7% and 3.3%, respectively, from the first quarter. Notable fundraises in Q2 included molecular testing provider BillionToOne raising a $130 million Series D and ultrasound device specialist Insightec securing $150 million.

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Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

12

VC valuations

1919

People

723

Companies

42

Funds

See what our data software can do

The Daily Benchmark:
2019 Vintage Global Real Assets Funds

Median IRR

12.70%

Top Quartile IRR

17.17%

0.18x

Median DPI

Select top performers

Scout Energy Partners V

Kimmeridge Energy Fund V

Carnelian Energy Capital III

*IRR: net of fees

42 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

VC Deals

Rapido, an Indian mobility startup, secured a $200 million round led by Westbridge Capital. The round brings Rapido's valuation to $1.1 billion.

24M, a company developing battery manufacturing and design technology, raised an $87 million round led by Nuovo Plus. The Series H values 24M at $1.3 billion.

HR and payroll platform developer Oyster raised a $59 million Series D led by Silver Lake Waterman valuing the startup at $1.2 billion.

Laravel, an Arkansas-based startup specializing in web development software, raised a $57 million Series A led by Accel, Fortune reported.

Seegrid, a startup developing automated robots for handling pallets, raised a $50 million Series D led by Giant Eagle and G2 Venture Partners.

San Francisco-based Thatch, which develops a product to simplify healthcare benefits management, raised a $38 million Series A led by General Catalyst and Index Ventures.

Cobre, a real-time payments startup based in Colombia, raised a $35 million Series B led by Oak HC/FT, Axios reported.

Mantel, a Boston-based company developing carbon capture technology, raised a $30 million Series A led by Shell Ventures and Eni Next.

Software documentation startup Mintlify raised an $18.5 million Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz, TechCrunch reported.

Reonic, a German climate tech SaaS startup, raised €13 million in a Series A led by Northzone.

PE Deals

Gas turbine specialist ProEnergy Services has been acquired by Energy Capital Partners as the firm obtains a majority stake in the company.

MyndYou, a company developing conversational AI for use in healthcare, received an investment from PE firm WildRose Health Investors.

Rexall, a Canadian pharmacy and drug store operator, and Well.ca, a wellness products business, have both been sold to Birch Hill Equity Partners by McKesson.

Eurazeo took a minority stake in French healthcare manufacturer Moria.

Copilot Capital acquired SecureFlag, a secure coding training solutions provider in the UK.

PE-backed L2L acquired SwipeGuide, a Netherlands-based training and visual job aids provider for the manufacturing workforce.

Exits & IPOs

Own, a cloud software data security platform startup, is in talks to be acquired by Salesforce for around $2 billion, Bloomberg reported.

GTCR and Golden Gate Capital are preparing to exit Antylia Scientific’s lab-supplying business with a sale that they said could be valued at more than $2 billion.

Gimv sold its stake in Mega International to PE-backed Bizzdesign.

Baird Capital exited aircraft services provider Ecube to Platinum Equity-backed Unical Aviation.

Airbase, a San Francisco-based company that develops a finance-management platform for businesses, has been acquired by Paylocity for $325 million.

Fundraising

Los Angeles-based VC firm Slauson & Co. raised $100 million for its second fund. The firm invests in SaaS and consumer-tech startups.

Asylum Ventures, a new VC firm targeting investments in early-stage tech startups, is launching with a $55 million first fund.

Corporate M&A

Verizon has agreed to buy fiber-optic network provider Frontier Communications for $20 billion.

Chart of the Day

Source: PitchBook Universities: Top 100 colleges ranked by startup founders

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PitchBook News - The 'founder mode' startup edge

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