PitchBook News - Reid Hoffman's air taxi SPAC deal

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The Daily Pitch: VC

February 25, 2021

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

Today's Top Stories

VC fundraising soared, emerging managers struggled in a strange 2020

LPs allocated more than $870 billion to private market funds during 2020. On one hand, that marks a 20.7% decline from the year prior. On the other, it's a sign of astonishing market resilience in the middle of a pandemic.

PitchBook's 2020 Annual Private Fund Strategies Report, sponsored by Altvia, drills down much deeper to examine how fundraising trends shifted across several different strategies, with key takeaways including:

Capital raised for VC funds increased 20.4% in 2020, while capital raised for PE funds declined 31.8%.

The secondaries market surged, with capital raised soaring to $96.6 billion, up 278.3% year-over-year.

The number of funds and amount of capital raised by emerging managers both fell to their lowest points since the global financial crisis.

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Reid Hoffman-led SPAC to merge with Joby Aviation

(Courtesy of Joby Aviation)

Air taxi specialist Joby Aviation has agreed to go public through a merger with Reinvent Technology Partners, the latest in a growing list of SPAC deals for electric aviation companies.

The blank-check company is sponsored by LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, who will join the new company's board of directors, and Zynga founder Mark Pincus.

The combined company is valued at $6.6 billion in the deal, which includes $1.6 billion in cash. Santa Cruz, Calif.-based Joby reached a $2.6 billion valuation early last year, according to PitchBook data.

Uber invested in an $835 million PIPE round that was part of the deal, joining the Baupost Group, BlackRock, Fidelity Management & Research and Baillie Gifford. Joby acquired the ridehailing giant's flying car business, Uber Elevate, in December.

Joby is teaming up with Toyota to produce its aircraft and plans to launch an electric air taxi service in 2024. Toyota led the company's $620 million Series C last year, with other investors including Intel Capital and JetBlue Technology Ventures.

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Ex-LSE head urges London to join SPAC 'revolution'

Former LSE CEO Xavier Rolet is the director of a new blank-check company. (Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

The UK should do more to attract its share of the current surge in blank-check companies, said Xavier Rolet, the former CEO of the London Stock Exchange and the director of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

The remarks came in a paper co-authored by Rolet, Shore Capital research head Clive Black and pro-Brexit campaign leader Matthew Elliott.

The trio argue that the UK's current review of its regulations presents a "golden opportunity" to draw companies to London's stock exchanges over New York or Amsterdam.

SPAC activity has been negligible in Europe compared to the US, but recent announcements of significant SPACs may signal a change.

Recommended Reads

Typically, lower-income countries are hit hardest by infectious diseases. With COVID-19, the opposite has been true. It's an epidemiological mystery experts are still attempting to unravel. [The New Yorker]

Before anyone talked about influencers, celebrity endorsements were a key part of Fubu's rise to fame. Now, the apparel brand is eyeing a revival led by a new generation. [The Wall Street Journal]

When NASA's Perseverance rover arrived on Mars last week, it carried a code. It didn't take long for someone to crack it. [The New York Times]

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

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Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2016 Vintage Global Real Assets Funds
	VC Deals
	Yuanfudao aims to line up $1B in new funding
	Orna Therapeutics picks up $80M Series A
	Bitwise books $50M Series B
	Energy storage provider lights up with $50M
	Blueshift brings in $30M Series C
	Exits & IPOs
	Berkshire Grey to go public via merger with Steve Case SPAC
	Babylon Health explores going public at $4B+ valuation
	Fundraising
	Primary Venture Partners raises $200M across two new funds

The Daily Benchmark

2016 Vintage Global Real Assets Funds

Median IRR

8.20%

Top Quartile IRR Hurdle Rate

12.25%

1.18x

Median TVPI

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Kimmeridge Energy Fund III

AIM Storage

AIM Landfill

*IRR: net of fees

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VC Deals

Yuanfudao aims to line up $1B in new funding

Yuanfudao has held talks with investors like Boyu Capital and DCP Capital to raise at least $1 billion, Bloomberg reported. The Chinese operator of an online education platform is targeting a valuation of over $20 billion, the report said. Yuanfudao closed a $2.2 billion round last October that valued it at $15.5 billion, making it the world's most valuable private edtech company, according to PitchBook data. Tencent and DST Global are among Yuanfudao's backers.

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Orna Therapeutics picks up $80M Series A

Orna Therapeutics has raised $80 million in a round co-led by MPM Capital, Taiho Ventures and F2 Ventures. Based in the Boston area, the company is a developer of RNA therapeutics intended to treat cancer, autoimmune and genetic disorders.

Additional Investors:

Astellas Venture Management, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Kite Pharma, Novartis, Pags Group

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Bitwise books $50M Series B

Bitwise has raised $50 million in a round led by Kapor Capital, with participation from JPMorgan Chase, Motley Fool Ventures and ProMedica. The company offers paid apprenticeships and technical support to students in marginalized communities.

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Energy storage provider lights up with $50M

Malta has raised a $50 million Series B led by Proman, with participation from Dustin Moskovitz, Alfa Laval and Breakthrough Energy Ventures. Based near Boston, the company is the developer of a long-duration electro-thermal energy storage system that's designed to expand renewable energy capacity and improve grid stability. Malta raised $26 million in 2018 at a $43 million valuation, according to PitchBook data.

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Blueshift brings in $30M Series C

Blueshift has raised $30 million in a round led by Fort Ross Ventures, with participation from Avatar Growth Capital, Softbank Ventures Asia, Storm Ventures, Conductive Ventures and Nexus Venture Partners. The San Francisco-based company is the creator of an AI-based customer engagement platform designed to help marketers at companies like Udacity, PayPal and LendingTree make decisions in real time. Blueshift was valued at $75 million in 2019.

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Exits & IPOs

Berkshire Grey to go public via merger with Steve Case SPAC

Berkshire Grey, a warehouse robotics developer, has agreed to merge with a blank-check company founded by former Maryland congressman John Delaney and Revolution founder Steve Case. The transaction with Revolution Acceleration Acquisition Corp. will value the combined company at up to $2.7 billion. In 2018, Berkshire Grey was valued at $224 million, according to PitchBook data. Its backers include SoftBank, Khosla Ventures, NEA and Canaan Partners.

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Babylon Health explores going public at $4B+ valuation

Babylon Health is considering options to go public that could value it at over $4 billion, Bloomberg reported. The London-based telehealth company is exploring a traditional IPO, and several SPACs have reached out about a reverse merger, the report said. Babylon was valued at $1.9 billion in 2019 after raising $450 million. Its investors include Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, VNV Global and Kinnevik.

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Fundraising

Primary Venture Partners raises $200M across two new funds

Primary Venture Partners, which targets seed-stage startups based in New York, has raised $150 million for its third core seed fund. The firm has also collected $50 million for its second opportunities fund, which will make Series B and late-stage investments in existing portfolio companies. The firm has previously backed telehealth startup K Health and Alloy, the creator of an identity verification platform.

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