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Talk of boosting diversity isn't new. Is it any different this time around?
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| Intel executives at CES 2020 (David Becker/Getty Images) |
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The woman who created Intel Capital's groundbreaking venture capital fund to back underrepresented entrepreneurs has a message for asset managers: Diverse investing, and making an impact through your portfolio, depends first on hiring a diverse and inclusive team internally.
- In 2015, the tech industry was reeling over the lack of gender and ethnic diversity among its employees at all levels; like other tech giants back then, Intel acknowledged shortcomings and launched a corporate campaign to achieve greater diversity and inclusion in its ranks, with a goal of a US workforce that would reflect society's gender and racial composition
- Intel later that year created a VC fund to invest over a five-year period in underrepresented entrepreneurs, including women, with an eye toward the diverse leaders of tomorrow's economy
- The landscape for minorities in tech looks fairly similar today—the intertwined tech and venture capital industries are saying the same kinds of things about their goals, but there's a sense that the momentum has fizzled and that an opportunity for change is being lost
- "The only real difference today is the riots and social unrest," says Lisa Lambert, who ran Intel Capital's diversity fund
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China's IPO market makes post-COVID-19 comeback
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| A medical worker cleans outside the Shanghai Stock Exchange Building in February. (Yifan Ding/Getty Images) |
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A wave of Chinese companies is suddenly flocking to the public markets, as several weigh initial public offerings in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Two electric vehicle makers are eyeing IPOs on Shanghai's STAR board, according to Bloomberg. Tesla rival WM Motor is reportedly planning an offering for as soon as this year that would value the company at more than 30 billion yuan (around $4.3 billion). The Shanghai-based company's investors include Alibaba, Baidu, Tencent and Sequoia China. Meanwhile, Hozon Auto is targeting a listing for 2021 and wants to secure 3 billion yuan in Series C funding, Bloomberg reported.
The potential public listings follow fintech giant Ant Group's announcement that it is seeking a dual listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai in what could be one of the largest offerings in years. And dairy products maker Junlebao is reportedly following suit with a dual public listing of its own in China. |
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A message from Silicon Valley Bank
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Healthcare sector performing exceptionally well amid the uncertainty of COVID-19
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Venture fundraising in healthcare soared to $10.4 billion in mid-2020, nearly matching 2019's full-year record. Company investment also spiked. H1 2020 produced the largest two-quarter investment period ever for venture-backed healthcare companies. Biopharma had a record investment pace, led by 34 large, crossover-led mezzanine deals that made SVB's "Likely to IPO" list (LIPO). Healthtech saw increased deal activity, led by significant investment in alternative care. Diagnostics/tools also is on record investment pace, led by a large contingent of companies using their technologies to help battle COVID-19. Devices remained steady, led by later-stage deals in non-invasive monitoring and imaging.
IPO performance drove the healthcare sector to new heights. Lofty mezzanine round markups led to public offerings that experienced tremendous post-IPO performance across all healthcare sectors. For more, read SVB's latest Trends & Insights report by clicking here. |
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Pair of biotech companies make tepid market debuts
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Biotech companies iTeos Therapeutics and Nurix Therapeutics went public Friday, ending their first trading day at slightly above their IPO listing prices.
The first-day performances were a reversal from the spate of biotech companies like Royalty Pharma, Legend Biotech and Relay Therapeutics that surged in their trading debuts this year. In all, iTeos raised $201 million from investors, which will assist its development of gene-targeting cancer therapies. The company's stock closed Friday at $19.05, a hair above its $19 IPO price. Nurix, a developer of drugs that manage protein production to fight disease, finished trading at $19.01, a penny above its IPO price.
The lukewarm openings also followed a few frantic weeks of public debuts that saw the share prices of Lemonade, nCino and Agora more than double on their inaugural trading days, alongside many other strong IPOs. Some have criticized the succession of underpricings as proof that the IPO market needs fixing. |
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A healthy showing for biotech startups
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| (greenleaf123/Getty Images) |
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The pandemic has cast a spotlight on drug development, but biotech and pharma companies were already raking in capital: VCs more than tripled their investment in such startups between 2009 and 2019. Now, the presence of the pandemic as well as shifts in R&D and regulations could give the industry more tailwind. In Betting on Biotech, PitchBook analysts find:
- Strategic M&A activity involving VC-backed biotech and pharma startups has doubled over the past decade
- Startups in the space command a significant premium in funding rounds over non-biotech startups
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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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How Ben & Jerry's perfected the delicate recipe for corporate activism. [Bloomberg]
The Wall Street Journal's news and opinion sections have long co-existed under a sort of uneasy truce. Now, the internecine drama is heating up. [Vanity Fair]
Asset owners would like to think they're experts at choosing who should manage their money. New research suggests a different story. [Institutional Investor] |
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Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:
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2008 Vintage Global Funds-of-Funds
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Vegan collagen maker pockets $90M
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| Geltor has raised $90 million in new funding, according to TechCrunch. The San Leandro, Calif.-based company is a developer of vegan collagen for use in plant-based food, beverages and cosmetics. |
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Revolut adds to earlier mega-round
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| Fintech company Revolut has raised an additional $80 million for its Series D from TSG Consumer Partners, according to TechCrunch, maintaining a valuation of about $5.5 billion. In February, TCV led a $500 million investment in the London-based startup at that same valuation. Revolut is the developer of a banking app intended to help users make payments, transfer funds abroad and manage budgets. |
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FreightWaves brings in new funding
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| FreightWaves, the developer of a logistics, supply chain and data analytics platform, has secured a total of $37 million across two funding rounds since April. The latest injection was led by Kayne Partners Fund, while existing investors including 8VC, Revolution Ventures and Prologis Ventures supported the first round. Based in Chattanooga, Tenn., FreightWaves has secured $75 million in total financing. |
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Epic Games awards $42M from developer fund
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Epic Games has doled out $42 million from its MegaGrants program to over 600 developers. Last December, the video game creator announced that 200 recipients had received grants from the fund. Launched in March 2019, the program assists those working to improve the open-source capabilities for the 3D graphics community. |
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Trustify and its CEO face fraud charges
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| The SEC has charged Trustify, the provider of an on-demand private investigator platform, and its CEO Daniel Boice with fraud for allegedly misrepresenting the success of the company. Trustify's network of investigators and revenue were much lower than it let on, causing the company to cease operations, according to the SEC's complaint. Boice also allegedly misappropriated $8 million worth of investor capital for personal expenses including private jet charters and vacations. Trustify previously courted investments from firms like Anchorage Capital and 500 Startups. |
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German coronavirus vaccine developer files for IPO
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| German biotech company CureVac has filed for an initial public offering on the Nasdaq. The company began a clinical trial for a COVID-19 vaccine in June, with results expected in Q4. Dietmarr Hopp, co-founder of software company SAP and current managing director of Dievini, CureVac's majority shareholder, will buy €100 million (around $116 million) worth of shares in the company at the IPO price. |
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Vital Farms sets IPO terms
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| Vital Farms, known for its brand of "pasture-raised" eggs, is looking to raise up to $152 million in its IPO. The Austin-based company plans to sell 8.9 million shares for between $15 and $17 apiece when it lists on the NYSE under the symbol VITL. |
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Chinese real estate startup eyes US debut
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| KE Holdings, a Chinese company that operates the Beike platform for buying and selling homes, has filed with the SEC for a public offering on the NYSE. The IPO could raise as much as $1 billion, according to Renaissance Capital. Based in Beijing, the company facilitated some 2.2 million housing transactions in 2019 with a total transaction value of more than $300 billion. Its backers include Tencent (12.3% pre-IPO stake) and SoftBank (10.2%). |
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Li Auto looks to raise nearly $1B in IPO
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| Chinese electric vehicle maker Li Auto has filed with the SEC to go public on the Nasdaq, with plans to offer 95 million American depositary shares for between $8 and $10 apiece. Founded in 2015, the Beijing-based company booked $120.3 million in first-quarter revenue this year. Its investors include ByteDance, Meituan-Dianping and Cango. |
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Dragoneer registers $600M SPAC listing
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| A blank-check company backed by Dragoneer Investment Group has filed with the SEC to raise $600 million in a public offering on the NYSE. The San Francisco-based firm typically invests in sectors including software, internet, media, fintech and retail. |
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