PitchBook News - Airbnb paves the way for a marquee IPO

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The Daily Pitch: VC

August 20, 2020

Like our newsletter? The data comes from the PitchBook Platform — our data software for VC, PE and M&A

Today's Top Stories

Airbnb paves way for marquee IPO

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky is preparing to take the vacation rental company public. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Airbnb has confidentially filed for an initial public offering with the SEC, setting the stage for one of the market's most highly anticipated listings.

The vacation rental company said it hasn't determined the number of shares or the price range for the offering; last year, it was reportedly leaning toward going public via a direct listing rather than a traditional IPO

Airbnb's business is recovering, after the company cut 1,900 staff and raised $2 billion in debt and equity amid the pandemic; the fundraising reportedly valued the company at $18 billion, a steep decline from its $31 billion valuation in 2017, according to PitchBook data

Airbnb marked a psychologically important milestone in July, when guests booked more than 1 million nights worth of stays in a single day; it hadn't seen that volume of bookings since early March, before the coronavirus crisis struck

The stock market picture has likewise bounced back, and the S&P 500 closed at a new high Tuesday

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Large vehicles find success in a challenging fundraising environment

(istock_onespirit/Getty Images)

Through the first half of 2020, the total number of private funds raised fell to 643, down 25% year-over-year and continuing a decline that started in 2018. Yet the capital raised tells another story: H1 2020 outraised H1 2019 by $6 billion with 214 fewer funds.

The drop in fund count coupled with the increase in amount raised confirms one forecast PitchBook analysts made after Q1. In the Q2 Private Fund Strategies report, sponsored by Altvia, they revisit other predictions about fundraising's evolution during the pandemic and analyze significant trends in PE, VC and other private asset classes. The findings include:

Funds of $1 billion or more accounted for 19.5% of the fund count in H1 2020 but 74% of the total capital committed

Economic headwinds in North America battered PE fundraising as a whole, but growth equity funds and tech-focused firms had a strong showing in H1 2020

VC funds over $500 million have been especially prolific through June 30, closing 34 vehicles and nearly equaling the full-year number for 2019

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More coronavirus news: Continuing coverage from PitchBook

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Recommended Reads

After hackers locked their servers with ransomware, COVID-19 researchers at the University of California at San Francisco spent a week negotiating for their data. The haggling worked, sort of. [Bloomberg]

The inside story of Robinhood's billionaire founders, option kid cowboys and the Wall Street sharks that feed on them. [Forbes]

As the economy contracts and many companies struggle to survive, the biggest tech companies are amassing wealth and influences in ways unseen in decades. [The New York Times]

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

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Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2018 Vintage Global PE Funds with less than $250M
	People
	Ex-Apollo partner gets a book deal
	VC Deals
	3D home-printing startup Icon raises $35M
	Brightline grabs $20M Series A for mental health
	M12 leads $16M round for Pachyderm
	Portfolio Companies
	Chinese AI company expects sales to jump this year
	Exits & IPOs
	Sports streamer DAZN eyes potential IPO
	CAVU sells sparkling water brand to PE group
	Casper CEO-led SPAC aims to raise $300M IPO
	Investors
	Hangar secures $15M to build tech companies

The Daily Benchmark

2018 Vintage Global PE Funds with less than $250M

Median IRR

8.00%

Top Quartile IRR Hurdle Rate

24.20%

1.04x

Median TVPI

Select top performers

Liberty Hall Capital Partners Fund I

Ironwood Mezzanine Fund IV-B

Ironwood Mezzanine Fund IV-A

*IRR: net of fees

19 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

PitchBook Webinar: The evolution of GP stakes investing during COVID-19

Join PitchBook analysts for a discussion on how GP stakes investors are responding to the current market environment as well as what opportunities and pitfalls the pandemic has introduced to the competitive landscape.

The webinar will be held Aug. 27 at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET. Topics will include sourcing GP stakes opportunities, understanding the strategy's evolving market segments and ensuring LP/GP alignment.

Register here

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People

Ex-Apollo partner gets a book deal

Private equity investor Sachin Khajuria has scored a deal of another kind—as an author with a contract to write a book about his investing experience. Bloomberg reported that Khajuria, a former partner with Apollo Global Management, is writing "Two and Twenty" to be published by Penguin Random House. After leaving Apollo, Khajuria went on to start a new firm, Achilles Management.

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VC Deals

3D home-printing startup Icon raises $35M

Icon has secured $35 million in a Series A led by Moderne Ventures. Other backers in the round include Citi, Vulcan Capital and CAZ Investments. The Austin-based startup uses 3D printing technology to build houses and printed its first home in 2018. To date, it has raised $44 million in total funding.

Select Additional Investors:

Ironspring, Next Coast Ventures, Oakhouse Partners, Wavemaker Partners

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Brightline grabs $20M Series A for mental health

Teletherapy startup Brightline has brought in a $20 million Series A led by Threshold Ventures and Oak HC/FT. Healthcare companies Blue Shield of California and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts also participated in the round, alongside SemperVirens, Rock Health, and City Light Capital. With the funding, the Palo Alto-based startup also announced it has expanded its telehealth offerings to support children and families in California during the COVID-19 crisis.

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M12 leads $16M round for Pachyderm

M12, Microsoft's venture fund, has led a $16 million Series B for data company Pachyderm. New investor Decibel Ventures as well as prior backers Benchmark and Y Combinator also participated in the funding. Founded in 2014 and based in San Francisco, Pachyderm offers an open-source data platform for development teams focused on AI and machine learning.

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Portfolio Companies

Chinese AI company expects sales to jump this year

Chinese AI giant SenseTime's revenue soared 147% in 2019 and the company anticipates sales to increase by 80% this year, according to Bloomberg. The Hong Kong-based company is reportedly close to bringing in $1.5 billion of new funding at an $8.5 billion pre-money valuation. SenseTime is also said to be mulling a dual public listing in China and Hong Kong.

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Exits & IPOs

Sports streamer DAZN eyes potential IPO

Sports-streaming service DAZN is looking for ways to raise up to $1 billion, including a possible public listing or asset sale, according to Bloomberg. The company, backed by billionaire Len Blavatnik, is also reportedly considering a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company and a sale of its Japanese business. DAZN offers its service in nine countries and aims to expand to more than 200 countries and territories this year.

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CAVU sells sparkling water brand to PE group

Flexis Capital has led a consortium to acquire Waterloo Sparkling Water, with participation from Eurazeo, Moore Strategic Ventures, JW Levin Management Partners and other investors. Texas-based Waterloo was founded in 2017 and backed by CAVU Venture Partners. The firm invested $4 million in Waterloo in 2018, following a $3.4 million round in 2017 that valued the company at $8.2 million, according to PitchBook data.

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Casper CEO-led SPAC aims to raise $300M IPO

Casper CEO Philip Krim has filed to raise $300 million for a special-purpose acquisition company, Tailwind Acquisition. With Krim as its chairman and venture capitalist Chris Hollod as CEO, the SPAC plans to sell 30 million units at $10 apiece. The Los Angeles-based company intends to focus its deal targets in the consumer internet, digital media and marketing technology sectors.

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Investors

Hangar secures $15M to build tech companies

Hangar has come out of stealth and raised $15 million for its venture studio, according to TechCrunch. The New York-based firm aims to build tech companies to address government issues such as healthcare and disaster response. In the 18 months before it launched, Hangar created four companies, including education financing provider Outcome and Camber Systems, a mobility data analytics startup.

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