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The Daily Pitch: VC

April 20, 2021

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

Today's Top Stories

European soccer's new Super League casts shadow over PE investment

The English Premier League's Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal are among the teams set to join the new Super League.
(Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Private equity investors in the multibillion-dollar soccer market face fresh uncertainty after Europe's most profitable clubs moved to form a breakaway league.

The so-called Super League, which is reportedly being bankrolled with a €3.5 billion (about $4.2 billion) loan by JP Morgan, would include the top-tier Big Six teams of the English Premier League along with six other marquee teams from Italy's Series A and Spain's La Liga leagues.

The news comes as PE investors have been stepping up their interest in European soccer and leagues. Hit hard by the pandemic, the sport has been in need of capital.

The extent to which this development could sour other deals in the European soccer leagues is still unclear. Speculation of the new league's formation had already cast a pall over plans by CVC Capital Partners and Advent International to invest in Italy's Serie A.

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Bolt-ons, IPOs and a busy middle market: What to watch for in European PE this year

Private equity in Europe got off to a blistering start this year, with €158.8 billion in total deal value across 1,936 transactions—both quarterly records. Exit activity was similarly impressive, crossing the €100 billion threshold for the first time and notching its own record with more than €115 billion in aggregate.

As Europe emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, rising middle-market and micro-cap activity, combined with factors like elevated valuations and pent-up demand, are setting the stage for a lively year, according to our Q1 European PE Breakdown. Highlights include:

Bolt-on acquisitions accounted for 70.8% of buyouts in Q1, underscoring the importance of buy-and-build strategies.

IPOs are on pace for an annual record in total value, after notching a quarterly high of €30 billion-plus.

Fund count and capital raised experienced a tepid start to 2021, but dry powder remains at record levels following bumper years in 2019 and 2020.

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A message from Orrick

Will 2021 see another record for VC investment in life sciences?

The latest edition of Orrick's life sciences venture investing series is now available, featuring analysis of key datasets and expert commentary on emerging trends. Highlights include:

A candid roundtable with luminaries focused on life science companies that leverage technology spun out from academia
Data on pre-money valuations and financing sizes
Analysis of volume by series and size

Read it now

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On the podcast: The evolution of GP stakes

GP stakes investing has been a relatively niche strategy, but it's becoming increasingly popular for PE firms. On the latest episode of "In Visible Capital," we take a deep dive into the recent trends affecting the GP stakes environment. The discussion includes:

A look at the history of GP stakes deals and how the space was shaped by large-cap investors such as Blackstone and Goldman Sachs' Petershill unit.

Why auctions for these deals typically involve fewer bidders than standard buyouts, why firms hold companies for longer than the usual timelines and how investors find liquidity for LPs.

Why the future of GP stakes will increasingly include middle-market deals and opportunities outside the United States.

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Chargebee buzzes with $1.4B valuation

Chargebee, a provider of subscription-billing and revenue-management software, has secured $125 million in a Series G round co-led by Sapphire Ventures and returning investors Tiger Global and Insight Partners.

The funding catapults the company's valuation to $1.4 billion—a jump of nearly 3x since October, when Chargebee was valued at $505 million, according to PitchBook data.

The company helps customers including Calendly, Okta and Freshworks automate subscriptions, invoices, revenue recognition and other processes.

"There is always some part of a product that a company never wants to build from scratch ... a subscription billing model is one of them," said Chargebee co-founder Rajaraman Santhanam.

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Recommended Reads

About half of US homebuyers cite rising temperatures and sea levels as reasons for relocating, according to a recent survey. But what happens to the "climate havens" they're moving to? [Bloomberg]

Scientists recently analyzed fossils unearthed in Utah's Staircase-Escalante National Monument. They made a surprising discovery about tyrannosaurs. [The Washington Post]

Can a brain implant change your identity? [The New Yorker]

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

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VC valuations

1723

People

507

Companies

39

Funds

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Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2017 Vintage Global Real Assets Funds
	VC Deals
	Adagio Therapeutics rakes in $336M
	Druva picks up $147M
	Virta bags $133M, hits $2B valuation
	India's Razorpay reaches $3B valuation
	Exits & IPOs
	UiPath raises IPO price range
	Fundraising
	Zoom launches $100M fund
	Investors
	National Grid boosts venture arm with $150M

The Daily Benchmark

2017 Vintage Global Real Assets Funds

Median IRR

0.89%

Top Quartile IRR Hurdle Rate

5.39%

0.96x

Median TVPI

Select top performers

Campbell Global Timber Fund

Kerogen Expansion Fund

Resource Capital Fund VII

*IRR: net of fees

40 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

VC Deals

Adagio Therapeutics rakes in $336M

Adagio Therapeutics has raised a $336 million Series C led by RA Capital Management, with participation from Redmile Group, Federated Hermes, Foresite Capital and ArrowMark Partners. Based in the Boston area, the company is developing antibodies intended to prevent and treat emerging coronaviruses. Adagio was valued at $980 million in November, according to PitchBook data.

Select Additional Investors:

GV, Mithril Capital Management, Omega Funds, OrbiMed, Polaris Partners, PremjiInvest

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Druva picks up $147M

Data protection company Druva has raised $147 million in a round led by CDPQ, a Quebec-based asset manager, with participation from Neuberger Berman, Viking Global Investors and Atreides Management. Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Druva develops software that helps companies protect data across a range of cloud environments.

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View 51 competitors »

Virta bags $133M, hits $2B valuation

Virta Health has raised $133 million at a $2 billion valuation in a round led by Tiger Global, a nearly 50% increase over the company's $1.36 billion valuation this past December, according to PitchBook data. The San Francisco startup aims to combat Type 2 diabetes with a telehealth platform and nutritional program.

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View 17 competitors »

India's Razorpay reaches $3B valuation

Razorpay, the developer of a banking platform for businesses, has raised a $160 million Series E co-led by Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC and Sequoia. The funding values the Bengaluru-based company at $3 billion.

Additional Investors:

Matrix Partners India, Ribbit Capital

View round

View 43 competitors »

Exits & IPOs

UiPath raises IPO price range

UiPath has increased the proposed offering of its upcoming IPO to between $52 and $54 per share, up from $43 to $50. At the new midpoint price, the robotic process automation company would raise around $1.27 billion. Existing shareholders are selling 61% of the total shares in the IPO.

View details

View 93 competitors »

Fundraising

Zoom launches $100M fund

Videoconferencing giant Zoom has launched a $100 million fund for companies that are building apps and integrations for its platform. The San Jose-based company plans to write checks between $250,000 and $2.5 million for seed and Series A startups.

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Investors

National Grid boosts venture arm with $150M

National Grid, the UK-based utility, has injected an additional $150 million into its corporate venture arm, National Grid Partners. The firm said it has previously deployed $227 million to its portfolio companies. National Grid Partners separately announced it invested $7.5 million in two security-related Silicon Valley startups—Pathr, which tracks human movement inside offices, and AccuKnox, a security-compliance specialist.

View details

View 28 investments »

Chart of the Day

"Valuation step-ups at exit also had a robust year, with public listing step-ups improving YoY to 1.4x, while the acquisition step-up held at 1.7x—approximately the 10-year average. The strength in 2020's public equity multiples buoyed these step-ups, especially on the public listing front and specifically in relation to growth businesses."

Source: PitchBook's 2020 Annual US VC Valuations Report