Ex-crypto regulator tees up second VC fund

Don't want to receive these emails? Manage your subscription.

Log in

The Daily Pitch: VC

September 13, 2024

Presented by SVB

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

Autonomous driving specialists powered mobility-tech funding forward in Q2

The one-time crypto regulator who founded VC firm Department of XYZ is already raising a second fund

Insight Partners triples its money in the $2.65B sale of Recorded Future to Mastercard

Mega-funds push deeper into investors' pockets

Our latest country snapshot shows private markets struggling in the Netherlands

Today's Top Stories

Ex-crypto regulator already at work on second VC fund

(Howard Kingsnorth/Getty Images)

Matthew Homer—a one-time crypto regulator with the New York Department of Financial Services and founder of VC firm Department of XYZ—is raising a second fund mere months after closing his first, according to four people familiar with the matter.

The raise comes as crypto companies navigate stormy regulatory waters and await the outcome of an uncertain election. The former regulator has a few aces up his sleeve as he courts LPs: his resume, his rapport with policymakers and a deep roster of LP advisors steeped in regulatory matters.

Share:

VC powers mobility tech's oceanic drive

The autonomous driving segment powered mobility-tech funding forward in Q2, with deal value reaching $6.7 billion—up nearly 14% over the previous quarter, according to our latest Emerging Tech Research. But fewer companies are fueling the gains, with startups like Wayve and Scale AI leading the way by hauling in at least $1 billion each.

Another growing segment includes startups focusing on marine data and drones. Saildrone is among the companies that have raised millions to develop underwater drones for scientific, commercial and defense use.

read the preview

Share:

A message from SVB

Yes, SVB.

Backed by the strength of First Citizens Bank, a Fortune 500 Company, SVB can deliver even more solutions that can help you stay ahead of the curve. Yes, SVB.

Share:

Insight Partners scores big with sale of Recorded Future to Mastercard

(iStock Editorial/Getty Images)

Mastercard has agreed to buy Recorded Future from Insight Partners for $2.65 billion, more than three times what the firm paid for the threat-intelligence specialist five years ago.

The deal is the second major exit this month for Insight, following the $1.9 billion sale of cloud-data security company Own to Salesforce.

Share:

Startups are simplifying ID with digital passports

Current technology often still requires the use of physical ID, from government documents to ecommerce transactions. But startups are working to consolidate identifying information into one streamlined digital passport, according to our latest Emerging Space Brief.

VC funding in the digital identity passports sector has yet to take off, but several companies have received government support. Concerns about achieving cross-functionality across different uses, regulatory hurdles and other issues could prevent widespread adoption of this technology in favor of non-digital ID methods.

read it now

Share:

Reporter's notebook: Future-proofing is priority at BVCA Summit

UK Economic Secretary to the Treasury Tulip Siddiq
(Image courtesy BVCA)

Optimism is returning to UK private markets. But macroeconomic and political uncertainties loom large, and being prepared for the future could be key to success.

Liquidity solutions, the use of AI and the new government's response to the UK's funding gap were among the topics highlighted by panelists and attendees at the annual BVCA private markets summit.

Share:

Mega-funds attracted bulk of H1's commitments

Vista Equity Partners chairman and CEO Robert F. Smith
(Riccardo Savi/Getty Images)

The world's largest and most-experienced asset managers continue to attract the majority of investor dollars. Recent PitchBook research reveals which mega-funds led the charge, from Vista Equity Partners' eighth flagship fund to Silver Lake's seventh.

Share:

BlackRock, Partners Group join forces in private-wealth offering

(Bet_Noire/Getty Images/iStockphoto)

BlackRock and Partners Group have formed an alliance to offer an investment product aimed at increasing retail investors' access to the private markets, as top asset managers tap into the private-wealth channel for a larger base of capital.

This initiative comes as both firms anticipate significant market growth, with BlackRock projecting managed model portfolios to reach $10 trillion in AUM over the next five years.

Share:

Dutch private markets languish amid modest economic growth

Our Q2 2024 Netherlands Market Snapshot shows PE deal value in the country has stagnated, while VC investment activity remains below its historical average. Exit activity remains weak overall, but healthy valuations aided two privately backed IPOs involving Dutch companies, albeit on the US exchanges.  

Overall, the economic landscape showed some positive signs. GDP grew 1% quarter-over-quarter, outpacing the Eurozone, while inflation rose to 3.4% and unemployment remained low at 3.6%.

read it now

Share:

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

12

VC valuations

2097

People

796

Companies

18

Funds

See what our data software can do

The Daily Benchmark:
2021 Vintage Global Debt Funds

Median IRR

10.44%

Top Quartile IRR

13.35%

0.20x

Median DPI

Select top performers

Owl Rock Technology Finance Corp.

Star Asia Japan Special Situations V

Cheyne European Strategic Value Credit Fund II

*IRR: net of fees

113 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

VC Deals

Inflammatix, a startup developing technology to detect sepsis infections faster via a blood test, raised a $57 million Series E led by Khosla Ventures and Think.Health.

French biotech startup Abolis Biotechnologies, which develops micro-organisms for sustainable industrial production, raised a €35 million round from investors including BOLD, Evonik Venture Capital, and DeepTech & Climate Fonds.

Aembit, a startup specializing in non-human identity and access management, raised a $25 million Series A led by Acrew Capital.

Healthtech startup Nirvana, which provides software that calculates the cost of medical bills when booking an appointment, raised a $24.2 million Series A led by Northzone, Axios reported.

Every, a company developing a platform that operates back-end office management for startups, raised a $22.5 million Series A led by Redpoint Ventures.

Boston-based workplace coaching startup AceUp raised a $22.5 million Series A led by investors including PJC, Techstars Ventures, and Gaingels Ventures.

Centricity, an Indian wealth management platform, raised a $20 million seed investment led by Lightspeed India Partners.

Delli, a London-based food marketplace, secured $6 million in a round led by Balderton Capital and HV Capital, Sifted reported.

Beebop.ai, a Belgian provider of power grid orchestration software, closed a $5.5 million seed round led by Angular Ventures.

PE Deals

Archimed is set to finalize its 990 billion Korean won ($742 million) take-private of Jeisys Medical, a South Korean specialist in non-invasive aesthetic medicine devices for skincare.

Cinven bought a 50% stake in Policy Expert, UK home and motor insurance provider, from ADIA.

Sullivan Street acquired UKAT, a provider of residential addiction treatment services based in the UK, Sky News reported.

Mayfair Equity Partners acquired I-media, a UK provider of digital-out-of-home advertising media.

EClinical Solutions, which is developing a data and analytics platform to help life science companies streamline clinical trials, received an investment from GI Partners.

Cloud-based finance platform developer Ninth Wave received growth financing from Level Structured Capital.

Exits & IPOs

Chinese AI chip-making startups Enflame Technology and Biren Intelligent Technology are both seeking IPOs in Shanghai. Enflame is targeting a 2 billion yuan ($280 million) raise, and the amount for Biren's IPO is yet to be disclosed, Bloomberg reported.

Media and film studio Angel Studios has publicly listed on Nasdaq following a merger with Southport Acquisition in a $1.6 billion deal.

Fundraising

Alternative credit manager Sound Point Capital Management closed its latest direct lending fund on $1.2 billion.

Rethink Impact, a VC firm investing in tech startups with female founders, raised over $250 million for its third fund.

Paris-based VC firm Wind received a €30 million commitment from the European Investment Fund for its second early-stage fund.

Chart of the Day

Source: Unicorn companies tracker

About PitchBook | Terms of use | Advertise with us | Contact

This email was sent to you via the PitchBook Platform.

Do you want to change your email address, get a different edition or unsubscribe? Manage your subscription here.

PitchBook Data Inc., 901 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1200, Seattle WA 98164, United States

Ex-crypto regulator tees up second VC fund

Older messages

Investors pivot to healthcare IT

Has fundraising's bounce-back begun?

India's unicorn herd braves headwinds

AI bookkeeping startup scores $200M

Is Calif. AI bill part of a 'doomer' agenda?

You Might Also Like

Discover the new Digiday Streaming and Video Awards categories

Fed Begins Easing Cycle with Jumbo 50bps Rate Cut

[Webinar] 👀 Unlock lululemon’s winning social media formula

🦄 The GTM coach for 12 unicorns

✅ The Forbes Parasite SEO Playbook

HubSpot and Shopify Are Both Going More Enterprise

How Flodesk bootstrapped to $27,000,000

Rise of the AI agents

When do your visitors turn into leads? (AI and GA4 combo trick)

A Major Concern for Business Sellers - What Happens to My Employees