Spencer Dinwiddie's leap from the NBA to VC

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The Daily Pitch: VC

June 22, 2020

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NBA standout Spencer Dinwiddie has a VC-fueled vision for the future of stardom

Spencer Dinwiddie is a rising star in the NBA, but his aspirations extend far beyond the basketball court.
(Al Bello/Getty Images)

Last November, Spencer Dinwiddie of the Brooklyn Nets made an annoucement that was unprecedented in the annals of NBA history: He planned to put his $34.4 million contract on a blockchain and turn it into a securitized investment.

It might have struck some as a curiosity. A closer look, though, reveals that the move was a sign of Dinwiddie's deep ambitions in the world of tech.

Last year, Dinwiddie teamed with longtime friend and business partner Sherrard Harrington to form their own venture firm and startup studio. And now, they're beginning the long grind of turning their big dreams into reality:

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A message from the National Science Foundation

Invention to impact

From using voice biomarkers for battling stress, anxiety and depression to developing learning platforms for math using music and psychology, startups and small businesses funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) are creating solutions to address the challenges of our time.

Kintsugi and Muzology are just two of hundreds of deep technology startups funded each year by NSF, a government agency that plays a central role in accelerating discoveries from the laboratory into the marketplace.

Each startup can receive up to $1.75 million to support research and development aligned with commercialization goals. The NSF team is a group of experts drawn from the technology startup and investment community, committed to identifying and supporting these new firms from launch to commercialization.

NSF helps these teams navigate the earliest stages of technology translation and paths to marketplace success, investing roughly $200 million annually in small businesses. In the last five years, these companies have gone on to raise billions in follow-on capital, and the portfolio has had nearly 100 exits.

Learn more today at seedfund.nsf.gov.

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DoorDash nears $16B valuation with $400M haul

DoorDash accounted for almost half of the US meal delivery market in May, Second Measure found. (Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images)

Food and grocery delivery company DoorDash has raised $400 million at a nearly $16 billion valuation. Durable Capital Partners and Fidelity Management co-led the round, with T. Rowe Price and existing investors participating.

The pandemic has led to a rapid rise in sales for online food and meal deliveries. DoorDash has proven to be a leader in the US, commanding 45% of the meal delivery market in May, according to consumer analytics provider Second Measure.

The valuation step-up represents a nearly 23% jump from last November, when DoorDash was reportedly valued at $13 billion after raising a $700 million round.

DoorDash filed for an IPO in late February, but the new financing indicates those plans have likely been pushed back.

"The new funding affirms positive investor sentiment and buys the company time for volatile public markets to settle," said Alex Frederick, an emerging tech analyst at PitchBook.

Related read: Delivery technologies are reshaping the grocery industry

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Jio rakes in another $1.5B from Saudi Arabia's PIF

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund will inject 113.7 billion rupees (about $1.5 billion) in Jio Platforms, the digital unit of Indian telecom company Reliance Industries. The investment represents a 2.32% stake and gives Jio an equity valuation of 4.91 trillion rupees.

The deal with Saudi Arabia marks the Mumbai-based company's 11th funding deal in less than two months, bringing its total backing during that time span to about $15.2 billion.

Reliance Industries has sold more than 25% of Jio since April, when Facebook ignited the investment spree with its $5.7 billion deal. Since then, Vista Equity Partners and KKR have each dropped $1.5 billion on the company and Abu Dhabi's Mubadala grabbed a stake of its own for $1.2 billion, among other deals. Last week, Indian regulators opened a probe into Facebook's investment.

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Ask PitchBook

Wondering how the economy reopening will affect your segment of the private markets? Looking for insight into which industries are likely to bounce back faster than others? Curious about what's driving a new trend you've noticed?

Email us at ask@pitchbook.com, and the news team will choose a question and track down the answer.

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Recommended Reads

A look at WNBA legend Maya Moore's early retirement and her efforts to free a jailed man she believes is innocent. [ESPN]

In Texas, nearly 650,000 people still await their unemployment benefits. [Houston Chronicle]

Black Lives Matter has been organizing behind the scenes for years. Now, it's ready to enact change. [The Wall Street Journal]

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	The Daily Benchmark
	2015 Global Secondaries Funds
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	Medium names Colin Kaepernick to board
	VC Deals
	Payfone banks $100M
	Mental health startup draws in $39M
	Zerto secures new funding
	Kaia Health pulls in $26M Series B
	Urbint picks up $20M

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2015 Global Secondaries Funds

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People

Medium names Colin Kaepernick to board

Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick has joined the board of directors at publishing startup Medium. Kaepernick and his publishing company will also work with Medium to create articles about race and civil rights. Kaepernick protested racial oppression and police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem, an act that has gained renewed attention following the killing of George Floyd. He last played in the NFL in the 2016 season.

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VC Deals

Payfone banks $100M

Payfone, which offers identity verification software to secure digital transactions, has raised $100 million in a round led by Apax Digital. The New York-based company raised $24 million in April 2019 at a valuation of about $270 million, according to PitchBook data.

Select Additional Investors:

MassMutual Ventures, Wellington Management, Sandbox Insurtech Ventures

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Mental health startup draws in $39M

Glide Healthcare and Morningside Ventures have co-led a $39 million Series B for Big Health, a provider of anti-anxiety and sleep improvement programs. The new funding comes about a year after the company teamed with CVS Health to offer customers access to Sleepio, Big Health's digital sleep program. Big Health has offices in San Francisco and London.

Additional Investors:

Kaiser Permanente Ventures, Octopus Ventures, Samsung Next Ventures

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Zerto secures new funding

Zerto, which offers a platform for data protection and recovery, has raised $33 million in equity from investors including 83North, Battery Ventures and IVP. The funding also includes up to $20 million of debt financing from providers including Kreos Capital. Based in Boston, Zerto was valued at around $261 million in 2018, according to a PitchBook estimate.

Additional Investors:

Access Industries, ClalTech, Harmony Partners, Pitango Venture Capital, RTP Ventures, US Venture Partners

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Kaia Health pulls in $26M Series B

Kaia Health has raised $26 million in a round co-led by Optum Ventures, Idinvest and Capital300. The company offers a digital health platform to track body movements of patients with musculoskeletal pain and other chronic conditions. With offices in New York and Munich, Kaia was valued at $27 million in January 2019, according to a PitchBook estimate.

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Urbint picks up $20M

Urbint has collected a $20 million Series B co-led by Energy Impact Partners and Piva, with participation from Salesforce Ventures and National Grid Partners. The New York-based company is the developer of a risk management platform designed to predict threats to energy infrastructure projects across North America.

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