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Clover Health to go public via Social Capital-backed SPAC
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| Vivek Garipalli's Clover Health is planning an upcoming public debut. (Image courtesy of Clover Health) |
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Health insurance startup Clover Health has agreed to merge with Social Capital Hedosophia Holdings Corp. III, a special-purpose acquisition company led by former Facebook executive Chamath Palihapitiya. The deal gives Clover Health an enterprise valuation of $3.7 billion.
The merger will generate up to $1.2 billion in cash proceeds, including a $400 million PIPE investment led by Palihapitiya, with the rest set to come via the blank-check company's trust account. Fidelity Management & Research, Jennison, Senator Investment Group, Casdin and Perceptive Advisors will also participate in the PIPE investment. Around $500 million of the proceeds from the SPAC deal will go to existing Clover Health investors, a roster that includes GV, Greenoaks Capital and Sequoia.
Founded in 2013, Clover Health says it's the fastest-growing Medicare Advantage insurer in the US. The New Jersey-based company was valued at $1.2 billion in 2017 after a $130 million round, according to PitchBook data.
Three weeks ago, a Social Capital-backed SPAC struck a $4.8 billion deal with real estate company Opendoor, and the firm took rocket company Virgin Galactic public through a SPAC merger last year. Social Capital plans to raise cash through at least three more blank-check companies, according to SEC filings. |
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Veolia advances in the battle for waste management rival Suez
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| (Cineberg/Getty Images) |
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Veolia has agreed to acquire Engie's 29.9% stake in waste and water company Suez, paving the way for a full takeover. The French group offered €18 per share, a premium of 75% over Suez's July 30 closing price, or €3.4 billion (about $4 billion).
In a statement, Suez described the transaction as hostile and announced that it would use all the means at its disposal to avoid a "creeping takeover" or de facto control. Veolia said it intends to tender for the rest of the shares at €18 a piece but has committed to wait for approval from Suez's board.
Veolia first bid for the stake back in August, initially seeking to pay €15.50 per share, but Suez rejected the offer on the basis that it undervalued the business and did not guarantee employee protections. Suez had been pushing an offer from Ardian as an alternative, but the private equity firm decided against pursuing the deal. |
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Effective project management influences deal success
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In the lead-up to a transaction, there is crucial investigative work and relationship-building to be done. The staging and sequencing of this activity is critical to deal success.
The Deal Workflow Checklist is a project management tool that has been configured to cascade from one diligence task to another, outlining what documentation needs to be provided so you can make progress clearly visible every step of the way.
This checklist is the first step to getting alignment on all the required documentation and tasks that will get the deal underway and on track. It can support advisors in maintaining control and oversight over their deal pipelines from day one, for greater speed, security and scalability in the transaction.
Access the Deal Workflow Checklist |
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For nearly five years, Tidjane Thiam was the only Black CEO of a major bank. His ouster brought questions of a scandal—and questions about persistent inequality at the highest levels of finance. [The New York Times]
Almost everyone who works at SoftBank believes going private would be a bad idea. That doesn't mean it won't happen. [Bloomberg]
BitTorrent was no stranger to a little bit of controversy. But when it sold to a Chinese cryptocurrency magnate named Justin Sun, the company was little prepared for the whirlwind that came next. [The Verge] |
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Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:
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7
VC valuations
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1371
People
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390
Companies
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13
Funds
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2007 Vintage Global Secondaries Funds
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French insect farming startup adds $224M to Series C
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| Ynsect has extended its Series C by $224 million in equity and debt, bringing the round's total to $372 million. Astanor Ventures, Upfront Ventures, Robert Downey Jr.'s FootPrint Coalition, Happiness Capital, Supernova Invest and others participated in the financing. Founded in 2011 and based in Paris, Ynsect uses vertical farming to cultivate mealworms and produce protein and fertilizer products for pets, fish and plants. The startup will use the new funding in part to complete an insect farm in Amiens, France, which it plans to open in 2022. |
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Unqork collects $207M at $2B valuation
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Tipalti raises $150M at $2B+ valuation
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| Tipalti has raised $150 million in a Series E led by Durable Capital Partners, with participation from Greenoaks Capital and 01 Advisors. The funding values the San Mateo, Calif.-based company at more than $2 billion. Tipalti provides a fintech platform designed to help B2B customers manage automated payments. |
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Dialpad hits $1.2B+ valuation
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| Chargebee, the developer of a revenue automation platform for SaaS, ecommerce and subscription-based businesses, has raised a $55 million Series F led by Insight Partners. The company was valued at $145 million in August 2019, according to PitchBook data. Founded in 2011, Chargebee operates in more than 160 countries. |
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Walden Biosciences brings in $51M
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| Walden Biosciences, a biotech startup focused on developing treatments for kidney diseases, has launched with a $51 million Series A. Arch Venture Partners and UCB Ventures led the funding round. The Cambridge, Mass.-based company has active initiatives to develop therapies for two proteins that are connected to kidney disease. |
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Federation Bio picks up $50M for microbial therapies
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Skilljar scoops up $33M Series B
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| Skilljar, the developer of a customer education and engagement platform, has landed $33 million for its Series B. Insight Partners led the fundraise, with existing investors Mayfield, Trilogy Equity Partners and Shasta Ventures also contributing. Due in part to an increase in remote work, the Seattle-based company has seen a 229% year-over-year jump in new bookings and a 290% YoY increase in total training hours delivered on its platform. Skilljar was valued at $46 million in 2018, according to PitchBook data. |
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Airkit launches with $28M financing
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| Airkit, the creator of a platform that allows companies to develop digital customer experiences, has gone live with $28 million in funding. Accel, Emergence Capital, and Salesforce Ventures participated in the capital raise. The Palo Alto-based company's founders were previously executives at RelateIQ, a relationship intelligence business bought by Salesforce in 2014. |
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Faraday Future eyes SPAC merger
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| Electric vehicle maker Faraday Future has plans to go public by merging with an unnamed special-purpose acquisition company, CEO Carsten Breitfeld told Reuters. Several other electric vehicle companies have lined up SPAC deals of their own in the past several months, including Nikola, Canoo, Fisker and Lordstown Motors. Based near Los Angeles, Faraday Future received $225 million in senior bridge financing led by Birch Lake in April 2019. |
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GIC eyes $1B+ investment in Ant's IPO
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| Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC is targeting an investment of over $1 billion in Ant Group's IPO, according to Bloomberg. The fund and Singapore's Temasek are reportedly exploring investments in Ant Group's listings in both Hong Kong and Shanghai. China's National Council for Social Security Fund is also gearing up to buy shares in the Shanghai sale, the report said. |
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Root files for VC-backed IPO
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| Root Insurance, the creator of an app that tracks driver behavior to calculate insurance premiums, has filed with the SEC to go public on the Nasdaq. Founded in 2015 and based in Ohio, the company has raised prior funding from backers including Drive Capital (26.6% pre-IPO stake) and Ribbit Capital (16.5%). In August 2019, Root closed a $350 million Series E co-led by DST Global and Coatue Management at a reported $3.65 billion valuation. |
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Space delivery startup in talks to go public
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Greycroft grabs $678M for two funds
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| New York-based venture firm Greycroft has closed its sixth early-stage fund on $310 million and its third growth-stage fund on $368 million. Both vehicles are follow-ups to predecessors that raised $250 million. Greycroft primarily invests in consumer and enterprise software-enabled businesses. |
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Salesforce Ventures launches new impact effort
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| Salesforce Ventures has announced its second impact fund, a $100 million vehicle that will invest in cloud companies focused on areas including education, climate action and diversity. The corporate venture arm of Salesforce revealed its first impact fund, a $50 million effort, in 2017. |
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Draper Goren Holm unveils blockchain fund
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| Draper Goren Holm has announced the launch and first close of a $25 million fund that will primarily pursue seed and Series A investments in blockchain and fintech startups. The Los Angeles-based firm is also preparing to open an office in Vienna this December. |
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"The median angel & seed pre-money valuation reached €4.0 million, and the top- and bottom-quartile valuations also recorded increases in H1 2020 relative to 2019, as COVID-19 has appeared to have had limited effect on valuations in Europe. We believe valuations could still fluctuate because smaller companies that have had less time to accumulate capital reserves may fall into financial trouble as the pandemic continues to hammer the economy."
Source: PitchBook's Q2 2020 European VC Valuations Report |
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