PitchBook News - SpaceX adds $1.9B to VC stockpile

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The Daily Pitch: VC

August 19, 2020

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Today's Top Stories

SpaceX lands record $1.9B fundraising round

SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket waits on the launchpad of Kennedy Space Center before a planned mission this May.
(Handout/Getty Images)

SpaceX has raised $1.9 billion in new capital, its largest-ever fundraising haul, according to PitchBook data. The latest funds reportedly value SpaceX at $46 billion, making it one of the most valuable US venture-backed companies.

A total of 75 investors pledged financing for the space company this month, but SpaceX still has about $165 million left to sell in its $2.1 billion offering, according to an SEC filing. Existing backer Fidelity Investments was one of the biggest participants in the round, according to Bloomberg.

On Tuesday, SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket, a record sixth flight for one of its boosters. The company plans to use the new cash to commercialize its Starlink satellite internet service and conduct test flights of its Starship and SuperHeavy booster launch vehicle, according to CNBC.

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Heavy hitters lead the way in our Q2 league tables

Accel, Andreesen Horowitz, GV and Sequoia are four of the biggest names on the venture capital landscape. In the second quarter of 2020, all four were among the 20 most active venture firms in the US, led by Andreessen Horowitz and its 29 new investments.

What other firms are at the top of the list? And which other investors, advisers, bankers and lawyers have stayed the busiest? PitchBook's Q2 2020 Interactive Global League Tables break down the data across dozens of different criteria, now in a handy sortable format that makes it easier than ever to assess the market's biggest players:

take a look

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Oracle may join bidding for TikTok

Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison has expressed his support for the Trump administration, which recently extended the deadline for a US company to strike a TikTok deal. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Software giant Oracle is reportedly considering a rival bid to buy TikTok's operations in the US, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

A potential offer would compete with Microsoft's bid for the short-form video app developer. General Atlantic and Sequoia, investors in TikTok parent ByteDance, were approached by Oracle to team up on a possible deal, according to multiple reports. The software company, co-founded by billionaire Larry Ellison, and Microsoft are said to be the top suitors interested in buying the TikTok assets.

Twitter had also emerged as a possible bidder and held early talks with TikTok, but there were concerns over the social media company's ability to finance the deal, according to the Financial Times.

Oracle's TikTok approach comes after President Trump extended the deadline from 45 days to 90 days for ByteDance to find a buyer for the video app's US business or face a ban in the US.

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Recommended Reads

In YouTube's flourishing economy of family vloggers, more kids can mean more clicks. Did two Ohio parents take their dreams of online stardom too far? [The Cut]

In February, Roblox raised new venture capital at a $4 billion valuation. In the six months since, the gaming company has emerged as a major winner during the pandemic. [The New York Times]

Many experts believe contact tracing is a crucial weapon in battling the coronavirus crisis. The case of one private school in Georgia reveals why it has largely failed in the US. [The New Yorker]

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Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2012 Vintage Global Secondaries Funds
	VC Deals
	Chinook gets $106M in private placement
	Tango gets $50M, expands pact with Gilead
	Attabotics grabs $50M
	Dutchie rolls up $35M
	Movable Ink draws up $30M
	Seated picks up $30M, buys VenueBook
	Exits & IPOs
	Canoo to go public via SPAC merger
	HomeLight purchases property listings manager Disclosures.io
	Fundraising
	MDI Ventures closes $500M tech-focused fund
	Lightspeed India brings in $275M
	Investors
	Calpers faces investigation over former CIO

The Daily Benchmark

2012 Vintage Global Secondaries Funds

Median IRR

14.95%

Top Quartile IRR Hurdle Rate

16.00%

1.40x

Median TVPI

Select top performers

Dover Street VIII

Keyhaven Secondaries Fund I

Pomona Capital VIII

*IRR: net of fees

13 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

VC Deals

Chinook gets $106M in private placement

Chinook Therapeutics, a Canadian biotech company developing medicines for kidney diseases, has secured $106 million in a private placement from backers including Janus Henderson Investors, Surveyor Capital and OrbiMed. Chinook's existing investors, including Versant Ventures and Apple Tree Partners, will buy $25 million in stock as part of the financing. Chinook's planned merger with Aduro Biotech is still expected to close later this year.

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Tango gets $50M, expands pact with Gilead

Tango Therapeutics, a developer of cancer therapies, has brought in a $50 million financing round led by Casdin Capital. New investor Gilead Sciences and existing backers Boxer Capital and Cormorant Asset Management also participated. Gilead invested $20 million and will pay the startup $125 million as part of an extended partnership between the two companies. In exchange, Gilead gets the right to option up to 15 immune evasion programs that Tango develops.

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Attabotics grabs $50M

Attabotics, the creator of a 3D robotics supply chain system, has secured $50 million in a Series C led by Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, along with existing backer Honeywell. The Calgary-based company has six live installations of its warehouse fulfillment system in North America, and counts luxury retailer Nordstrom among its clientele. Attabotics raised a $25 million Series B in July 2019.

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Dutchie rolls up $35M

Dutchie, the operator of an ecommerce marketplace for cannabis dispensaries, has secured a $35 million Series B. The Bend, Ore.-based company's backers include Snoop Dogg's Casa Verde Capital, Kevin Durant's Thirty Five Ventures, Thrive Capital, Gron Ventures and former Starbucks CEO, Howard Schultz. Dutchie processes 10% of all legal cannabis sales globally and 25% of legal dispensaries in the US and Canada use its platform.

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Movable Ink draws up $30M

Digital marketing platform developer Movable Ink has picked up $30 million in a Series C, with investments from Contour Venture Partners, Intel Capital and Silver Lake. The startup plans to use the funds to expand into new markets and grow its partner ecosystem. New York-based Movable Ink has raised a total of $39 million to date.

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Seated picks up $30M, buys VenueBook

Seated, the creator of a restaurant booking app that rewards users with credits, has raised $30 million in a round led by Insight Partners. Craft Ventures, Rho Capital Partners and Greycroft also participated. The New York-based startup has also bought VenueBook, the provider of a digital event booking platform, as Seated's business model evolves during the pandemic. Seated recently launched a pickup and delivery service, Seated at Home, and plans to fold VenueBook into another new offering, Seated Events.

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Exits & IPOs

Canoo to go public via SPAC merger

Electric vehicle startup Canoo has agreed to merge with a special-purpose acquisition company called Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp. IV, valuing the combined company at $2.4 billion. The deal will provide more than $600 million for Canoo to continue developing its fleet of electric vehicles, including $300 million in a new PIPE investment. The Torrance, Calif.-based company, which is led by the former CFO of Faraday Future, expects to introduce its first model in 2022 for its electric vehicle subscription service.

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HomeLight purchases property listings manager Disclosures.io

Online real estate startup HomeLight has bought Disclosures.io, a property listings management company that had received prior backing from Zeno Ventures, Y Combinator and others. HomeLight, which was valued at nearly $500 million by VCs last year, will fold the San Francisco-based company into its operations and rebrand it as HomeLight Listing Management. Disclosures.io's platform allows real estate agents and brokers to share property information, monitor buyer interest and manage offers.

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Fundraising

MDI Ventures closes $500M tech-focused fund

The venture arm of telecommunications conglomerate Telkom Indonesia has raised $500 million to support the digital development of the country's state-owned enterprises, according to Deal Street Asia. MDI Ventures plans to use the new fund to make investments of between $5 million and $30 million in late-stage companies focused on Indonesia.

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Lightspeed India brings in $275M

Lightspeed India Partners has raised $275 million for its third flagship fund, two years after closing a $175 million vehicle. The firm, which has offices in New Delhi and Bengaluru, focuses primarily on seed and Series A rounds. Lightspeed India, which raised its first fund in 2015, has backed companies including hotel booking platform Oyo and edtech startup Byju's.

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Investors

Calpers faces investigation over former CIO

Officials in California have launched an investigation surrounding former Calpers chief investment officer Ben Meng and whether his personal holdings in private equity firms represented a conflict of interest, The Wall Street Journal reported. Meng stepped down from his position Aug. 5, and a day later Calpers released a statement acknowledging questions about possible irregularities in his financial disclosure filings. Meng had pledged to boost Calpers' returns in part by increasing the pension fund's exposure to private assets.

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