Plaid secures funding after takeover try

Read online | Don't want to receive these emails? Manage your subscription.

PitchBook

Log in

The Daily Pitch: VC

April 8, 2021

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

Today's Top Stories

Plaid lands $425M in wake of canceled Visa tie-up

Fintech provider Plaid has secured $425 million in Series D funding led by Altimeter Capital. The deal comes less than three months after the company ended a planned takeover by Visa due to an antitrust lawsuit from the Department of Justice.

Most merger targets try to avoid antitrust challenges, but Plaid benefited from the collapsed deal. The new financing values Plaid at $13.4 billion, according to a PitchBook estimate—more than 2.5 times the $5.3 billion Visa agreed to pay for the company in January 2020.

Investor appetite for fintech companies has surged amid the pandemic as demand for digital financial tools has increased. Plaid's customer base reportedly grew by 60% last year.

The round brings the company's total financing to more than $730 million. New investors Silver Lake and Ribbit Capital took part, alongside existing backers like NEA, Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures, Spark Capital, Kleiner Perkins and Thrive Capital.

Share:

Sumeru to invest $300M in two Canadian software companies

(ssuni/Getty Images)

Sumeru Equity Partners, a San Mateo, Calif.-based PE firm that typically targets tech companies in Europe and North America, has agreed to invest $200 million in Toronto-based Loopio and lead a $100 million strategic round for Vancouver, Canada-based Tasktop.

Loopio, which provides software designed to streamline request for proposals, security questionnaires and other documents, raised $9 million in a 2018 Series A led by OpenView Venture Partners.

Tasktop, the provider of a value stream management platform that helps companies with software development and delivery, has raised almost $32 million in prior funding from investors including JettyCove, Yaletown Partners and Elsewhere Partners.

Sumeru's new investments follow two March add-on deals: Mobikit, a cloud-based platform offering data infrastructure for connected vehicles, and Alcami Interactive, a provider of on-demand video interviewing services.

Share:

A message from Twin Brook Capital Partners

The deal pipeline is building

Rich Christensen and Grant Haggard, senior partners at Twin Brook Capital Partners, discuss the rebound in mid-market activity and deal flow following the pandemic-related slowdown in early 2020 and expectations of a busy year ahead.

Recommended Reads

It's well known that organizations with more women in senior positions perform better. A new analysis of over 150 companies explores the specific patterns and outcomes of adding women to the C-suite. [Harvard Business Review]

As international tourism awaits its resurgence, US tour operators are selling luxury "backyard" trips. [The New York Times]

For Broadway stagehands in New York City, a sense of community is part of the lifestyle. With theaters still closed, thousands have given up their careers or remain in limbo. [Bloomberg]

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

12

VC valuations

1789

People

481

Companies

16

Funds

See what our data software can do

Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2013 Vintage Global Real Assets Funds
	VC Deals
	Tiger Global leads $155M round for Patreon
	Redis Labs scores $110M round from SoftBank, others
	Talent management startup Phenom raises unicorn round
	Pendulum Therapeutics collects $54M
	Tax compliance startup banks $32M
	Exits & IPOs
	TuSimple sets IPO terms

The Daily Benchmark

2013 Vintage Global Real Assets Funds

Median IRR

4.09%

Top Quartile IRR Hurdle Rate

8.73%

1.20x

Median TVPI

Select top performers

EQT Infrastructure Fund II

Grain Infrastructure Fund II

AXA Infrastructure Fund III

*IRR: net of fees

32 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

PitchBook Webinar: SPACs in mobility—A detailed look under the hood

Buoyed by brand-name investment firms and celebrities alike, SPACs exploded in popularity during 2020 and the first quarter of 2021.

Join PitchBook analysts on April 14 as we discuss key details and trends in SPACs and the EV/mobility environment. The webinar will address:

Aggregate SPAC data on both IPOs and acquisitions.

The incentives and dynamics behind parties involved in SPAC transactions.

Strong exit outcomes and how successful exits are possible for VC-backed mobility companies.

The future outlook for SPACs.

Register today

Share:

VC Deals

Tiger Global leads $155M round for Patreon

Patreon, the developer of a creator-founded membership platform, has landed $155 million in Series F funding at a $4 billion valuation, up from $1.4 billion last year, according to PitchBook data. Tiger Global led the round, with support from Wellington Management, Lone Pine Capital, NEA, Woodline Partners, Glade Brook Capital and DFJ Growth. Founded in 2013, Patreon is used by musicians, podcasters and other creatives to raise money from fans who have signed up for monthly memberships.

View details

View 9 competitors »

Redis Labs scores $110M round from SoftBank, others

Redis Labs, the creator of an enterprise cloud service and an in-memory database that helps users process, analyze and utilize the data they generate, has raised a $110 million Series G led by new investor Tiger Global. The round, which values the company at north of $2 billion, also saw participation from SoftBank and TCV. The three investors have also acquired additional ownership in the company as part of a $200 million secondary transaction.

View round

View 38 competitors »

Talent management startup Phenom raises unicorn round

Phenom, the provider of an AI-powered recruiting platform, has raised a $100 million Series D led by B Capital Group. Dragoneer Investment Group, OMERS Growth Equity and GoldenArc Capital also participated. The round values the Philadelphia-based startup at $1.3 billion, Bloomberg reported. Prior to the Series D, Phenom raised over $61 million in total funding from investors including Sierra Ventures and AXA Venture Partners. The company was valued at $430 million in January.

View round

View 66 competitors »

Pendulum Therapeutics collects $54M

Pendulum Therapeutics has raised $54 million in a round led by Meritech Capital, with participation from Sequoia, True Ventures and Khosla Ventures. The San Francisco-based company is using microbiome science and DNA sequencing to develop therapies for chronic diseases such as diabetes. Meritech general partner Craig Sherman has joined the company's board.

View round

View similar company »

Tax compliance startup banks $32M

Blue Dot, the developer of an AI-based tax compliance platform intended to help enterprise customers automate and analyze transactional data in real time, has raised $32 million. Ibex Investors and Lutetia Technology Partners led the funding, with support from Target Global and others. Founded in 2013, Blue Dot was valued at around $120 million in 2017, according to PitchBook data.

Additional Investors:

La Maison Partners, Viola Growth

View round

View 6 competitors »

Exits & IPOs

TuSimple sets IPO terms

Self-driving freight truck startup TuSimple has established terms for its upcoming public debut on the Nasdaq, with plans to offer nearly 33.8 million shares for between $35 and $39 apiece. A midpoint pricing would raise some $1.25 billion for the company and give it a fully diluted valuation of around $8.5 billion, Renaissance Capital reported. TuSimple was said to be valued at $1 billion in a 2019 funding round. The company's largest outside investor is Sina CEO Charles Chao, who owns more than 31 million shares through an entity called Sun Dream.

View details

View 14 competitors »