PitchBook News - AI's sky-high hopes for the neoclouds

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The Daily Pitch: VC

November 29, 2024

Presented by Banc of California’s Venture Banking Group

Today's Top Stories

BlackRock to buy private credit manager HPS

BlackRock looks set to buy private credit firm HPS Investment Partners—the latest in a wave of asset manager mergers in the past year.

The deal, which was first reported by the Financial Times, is expected to fetch a valuation of up to $12 billion. In September it was widely reported that HPS was considering an IPO that would value the business at over $10 billion.

Asset manager consolidation has been has surged over the past few months. Last month, BlackRock completed it acquisition of Global Infrastructure Partners, which was a $12.5 billion deal. Read more

Michael M. Santiago /Getty Images

Also...

🌥️ AI is putting its head in the clouds. The answer to sky-high computing costs and GPU scarcity may be “neocloud” operators like CoreWeave and Groq that rent out processors, according to our latest Emerging Space Brief.

The brief outlines the use cases, limitations and outlook for a segment poised to grow rapidly alongside generative AI adoption. Dive in.

🗺️ Our latest market map explores customer relationship management startups within the enterprise SaaS vertical, which is hot off its strongest quarter in more than a year. Much of the increase has been driven by AI, which is poised to disrupt CRM operations. Explore the map.

⚡Hong Kong could introduce a new crypto tax exemption that benefits PE and VC funds. The Chinese territory is hoping the change will burnish its status as an offshore finance hub. Learn more

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Big banks hold back from acquisitions

(Jenna O'Malley/PitchBook News)

It’s a much better time to be a fintech founder trying to sell your company than it was a year ago. Corporate M&A in B2B fintech jumped 42% year-over-year in Q3, including major purchases by Stripe, Pagaya and U.S. Bank, according to PitchBook’s Quarterly Fintech M&A Review.

But there’s one group of buyers which still isn’t budging: big banks. PitchBook analysts are estimating that the 30 largest US banks will make just 12 acquisitions this year. But a new presidential administration taking a more lax approach to financial regulation in 2025 could reverse the trend.

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Crypto VCs wager on the future of gambling

The price of bitcoin and interest in crypto-based prediction markets soared following the US presidential election.

By comparison, VC funding for crypto startups has been glum. Total deal value declined to $1.7 billion in Q3, down 31.3% from the previous quarter, a surprise halt to the sector's strong momentum built over the preceding quarters, according to our latest Emerging Tech Research.

But it's too soon to bet against crypto—and wagering with it might just be the next big thing. Decentralized, crypto-based prediction markets are poised to ride a wave of excitement hitting the betting industry that is projected to generate $45 billion per year in the US alone. But with plenty of regulatory and economic risks, investing in the segment is a gamble.

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Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

2948

People

982

Companies

32

Funds

See what our data software can do

The Daily Benchmark:
2017 Vintage Global Debt Funds

Median IRR

8.71%

Top Quartile IRR

10.85%

0.76x

Median DPI

Select top performers

Aero Credit Opportunities Fund I

Anchorage Illiquid Opportunities VI

MCP Private Capital Fund III

*IRR: net of fees

88 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

VC Deals

Allink Biotherapeutics, a Shanghai-based startup developing therapeutics for treatments for oncology and immune diseases, raised $42 million in a Series A led by Lanchi Ventures.

Lactips, a France-based startup that makes biodegradable, water-soluble polymer from natural materials, raised €16M in a round led by Swen Capital Partners.

Roon, which offers an online platform for accurate medical information, raised $15 million led by Forerunner Ventures and First Mark at a $68 million valuation.

Constrafor, a company providing financing and software for contractors, raised a $14 million Series A led by NFX alongside a $250 million credit facility, Axios reported.

Predium, a Munich-based real estate management platform, closed a €13 million Series A led by Norrsken VC.

PE Deals

SHS Capital acquired a majority stake in Medizintechnik Rostock, a Germany-headquartered home care medical devices maker.

Accent Equity agreed to acquire the indoor division of Unisport, a Denmark-based sports equipment retailer.

Macquarie Asset Management offered to acquire London-listed Renewi, a UK-based waste management company, for £701 million, representing a 57% premium of its closing price.

London-based Apse Capital raised €350 million at the close of its latest continuation fund which was used to acquire three additional portfolio companies: TerraQuest, Kallidus and Ultima Business Solutions.

Exits

Meat supplier Group of Butchers may be sold by Parcom Capital Management in a deal that could value the company at about €1 billion, Bloomberg reported.

Saudi Arabia-based hospital operator Almoosa is planning to offer 13.3 million shares in its IPO.

VC-backed Aer Compliance, a cryptocurrency trade monitoring software developer, has been acquired by compliance software company StarCompliance.

Black Forest Ventures-backed Sentronics Metrology, which develops tools for semiconductor fabrication, has been acquired by Nasdaq-listed Nova in a $60 million deal.

Philippine e-wallet startup GCash is looking to raise $1.5 billion in a Manila IPO, Bloomberg reported.

Croatian food retailer Studenac canceled its Warsaw IPO citing unfavorable market conditions.

Investors

Brookfield Asset Management has dropped its €6.45 billion bid for Spain-based drug manufacturer Grifols.

Capital Dynamics expanded its presence in Europe with a new office in Madrid.

Chart of the Day

Source: These 10 Southeast Asian startups are transforming the fintech landscape

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PitchBook News - AI's sky-high hopes for the neoclouds

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