PitchBook News - Alex Rodriguez joins the SPAC game

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The Daily Pitch: VC

February 5, 2021

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

Today's Top Stories

Bespoke new PitchBook Benchmarks for PE, VC and more

Every quarter, our PitchBook Benchmarks present a snapshot of the most recent data available on how funds are performing across a huge range of geographies and strategies. Now, to make it easier for LPs and GPs to compare performance across more representative peer groups, the Benchmarks are getting even bigger.

In addition to our usual look at the full global data, we're now offering new editions catered specifically to the Europe, North America, private equity and venture capital markets. The benchmarks are also timelier than ever, with preliminary data from Q3 2020, when many markets began to recover from a pandemic nadir.

We've got the full range of data on IRR, cash multiples and other performance metrics for whichever scope best meets your needs.

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CVC Capital could take minority stake in San Antonio Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs and head coach Gregg Popovich are drawing PE interest. (Pool/Getty Images)

CVC Capital Partners is in talks to buy a roughly 15% stake in the San Antonio Spurs in a deal that could value the NBA franchise at around $1.3 billion, the Financial Times reported. Such a move would be the latest example of private equity's surging appetite for pro sports investments, with the news coming just a week after the NBA's owners relaxed league rules to allow investment firms to own up to a 20% stake in as many as five different teams.

CVC Capital has long been an active investor in the world of sports. Earlier this week, the Luxembourg-based firm struck a deal with the International Volleyball Federation to launch Volleyball World, a new partnership aimed at driving the game's global growth. Other firms, including Dyal Capital Partners and Arctos Sports Partners, are raising funds with the specific aim of acquiring passive stakes in sports teams.

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A message from DocSend

How VCs raise their early funds

The democratization of VC means that more early-fund investors are on the hunt for LPs than ever before.

DocSend surveyed dozens of VC firms to demystify how these funds were able to successfully raise at a time of intense competition. An industry-first report, "Looking behind the curtain: How VCs raise their early funds," shares exclusive data on the fundraising process for funds 1-6, analyzes why some funds raise faster than others and challenges that more meetings do not equal a more successful fundraise.

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Recommended Reads

An ice cream startup called Ample Hills was thriving, winning famous fans like Oprah Winfrey and Bob Iger. Then, it all came melting down. [Marker]

A 24-year-old graduate student who turned a 40,000% profit in less than three weeks by betting on GameStop looks back on his brief, wild ride. [The Wall Street Journal]

The fascinating tale of a lion, a polygamist, and a biofuel scam that bilked the government for hundreds of millions of dollars. [Wired]

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

26

VC valuations

1661

People

554

Companies

25

Funds

See what our data software can do

Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2013 Vintage Global Funds-of-Funds
	People
	Sriram Krishnan joins a16z as GP
	VC Deals
	Rad Power Bikes picks up $150M
	Top Hat books $130M, brings on new CEO
	Tovala cooks up $30M Series C
	Exits & IPOs
	Sana Biotechnology debuts in IPO
	23andMe to go public in Richard Branson-led SPAC deal
	Alex Rodriguez swings for $500M SPAC IPO
	Veracyte reveals $600M deal for Decipher
	Fundraising
	Acrew launches diversity fund

The Daily Benchmark

2013 Vintage Global Funds-of-Funds

Median IRR

13.25%

Top Quartile IRR Hurdle Rate

17.09%

1.46x

Median TVPI

Select top performers

Glouston Ohio Midwest Fund II

Franklin Park Venture Fund Series 2013

Industry Ventures Partnership Holdings III

*IRR: net of fees

48 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

People

Sriram Krishnan joins a16z as GP

Sriram Krishnan has joined Andreessen Horowitz as a general partner on the firm's consumer team, where he will focus on social startups and other investments. Krishnan previously held positions on the product teams of Microsoft, Facebook, Snap and Twitter.

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VC Deals

Rad Power Bikes picks up $150M

E-bike maker Rad Power Bikes has raised $150 million from Morgan Stanley Counterpoint Global, Fidelity Management & Research, TPG's Rise Fund and others. The Seattle-based startup has over 200,000 riders in 30-plus countries, and plans to double its headcount to around 650 employees in 2021.

Additional Investors:

T. Rowe Price, Durable Capital Partners, Vulcan Capital

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Top Hat books $130M, brings on new CEO

Top Hat has raised a $130 million Series E from existing investor Georgian. The Toronto-based company is the developer of an edtech platform that offers digital course content, assessments and other related learning tools for colleges and universities across North America. Top Hat has also named Joe Rohrlich, former chief revenue officer at Bazaarvoice, as its new CEO.

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Tovala cooks up $30M Series C

Tovala, which offers a smart oven and meal service, has raised $30 million in a round led by Left Lane Capital. In June, the company raised $20 million at a $75 million valuation, according to PitchBook data.

Additional Investors:

Comcast Ventures, Finistere Ventures, Origin Ventures, OurCrowd, Pritzker Group Venture Capital

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Exits & IPOs

Sana Biotechnology debuts in IPO

Sana Biotechnology, which bioengineers cellular therapeutics, has arrived on Wall Street in an IPO that raised more than $587 million. The Seattle-based company's upsized offering of 23.5 million shares priced at $25 apiece. The stock opened for Nasdaq trading on Thursday at $35 and traded as high as $38.45. Sana had previously raised about $865 million from investors including Arch Venture Partners, Baillie Gifford and Bezos Expeditions.

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23andMe to go public in Richard Branson-led SPAC deal

23andMe, a provider of at-home DNA test kits, has agreed to go public through a merger with VG Acquisition Corp., a SPAC led by Richard Branson's Virgin Group. The deal gives the company an enterprise valuation of around $3.5 billion. 23andMe has raised about $874 million in private funding from Sequoia, Altimeter Capital, Breyer Capital and others, according to PitchBook data. The SPAC will inject up to $509 million in Sunnyvale, Calif.-based 23andMe, while Branson and 23andMe co-founder Anne Wojcicki will each invest $25 million as part of a $250 million private placement.

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Alex Rodriguez swings for $500M SPAC IPO

Slam Corp., a blank-check company started by baseball legend Alex Rodriguez and hedge fund Antara Capital, plans to raise around $500 million in an initial public offering, according to a regulatory filing. The SPAC will seek targets in sectors including sports, media, entertainment, health and wellness, and consumer technology. It does not plan to acquire a professional sports franchise. Rodriguez's investment firm, A-Rod, has backed real estate tech companies Sonder and Apartment List.

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Veracyte reveals $600M deal for Decipher

Veracyte has agreed to pay $600 million to acquire Decipher Biosciences, a precision oncology company based in San Diego that is focused on urologic cancers. The payment will consist of $250 million in cash and $350 million in stock. Decipher filed for an IPO about two weeks ago. The company has raised prior venture funding from investors including Tekla Capital Management, CD-Venture and Novalis Lifesciences.

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Fundraising

Acrew launches diversity fund

Theresia Gouw's Acrew Capital has launched a VC fund that seeks to diversify the ownership of late-stage companies by bringing in LPs that identify as female or people of color. The Diversify Capital Fund plans to write checks ranging from $5 million to $15 million as a co-investor alongside growth firms. Acrew will use its network to help portfolio companies bring diversity to their boards and leadership teams. The firm is a backer of expense-management startup Divvy, fintech company Chime and Solv Health.

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View 44 investments »