Driverless truck startup fuels expansion

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

PitchBook

Log in

The Daily Pitch: VC

May 7, 2021

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

Today's Top Stories

Driverless trucking startup Einride lands $110M Series B

(Courtesy of Einride)

Stockholm-based Einride, a maker of electric self-driving freight vehicles, has raised $110 million to fuel its expansion in Europe and the US.

The Series B saw participation from existing backers like EQT Ventures and Norrsken VC, as well as new investors including Temasek, Soros Fund Management, Northzone, Maersk Growth and Build Capital.

The Swedish startup is best known for its Einride Pod, the only cabless freight mobility truck in commercial use. Einride also offers a digital platform for carriers that handles route planning, scheduling, invoices and billing, among other processes.

As technology for self-driving trucks continues to gain investor attention, it could become widely adopted before applications such as robotaxis and last-mile delivery, according to Asad Hussain, an emerging tech analyst at PitchBook. Last month, TuSimple went public on the Nasdaq, marking the first-ever autonomous vehicle IPO.

Share:

PitchBook Benchmarks for PE, VC and more

Over the past decade-plus, the US private markets have continued to grow as investors pour money into alternative assets. And the number of fund strategies has followed suit.

But the private markets have remained opaque, putting pressure on pensions and endowments to find a place to invest. Enter PitchBook Benchmarks, a one-stop destination that reveals aggregate investor performance across a range of strategies by measuring IRR, cash multiples and more. And the latest edition takes it to another level.

Improved timeliness: We've added preliminary data for the past several quarters, shortening the lag in fund reporting by three months.

More details: We now offer PDFs with slices for funds-of-funds and secondaries, including performance metrics for PE funds-of-funds, real estate funds-of-funds and more.

Visualizations: Beyond the data, we've added box and whiskers charts showing dispersion among the funds in these areas, as the median returns mask some very different results.

take a look

Share:

A message from RBC Capital Markets

Inside track: Behind the scenes of a major biotech SPAC

In RBC Capital Markets' latest Pathfinders podcast, we go behind the scenes of one of the biggest biotech SPAC deals of the year. Dr. David Hung, Nuvation Bio founder and CEO, and Michelle Doig, Omega Funds partner and president of its Omega Alpha SPAC, share how they brought Nuvation Bio's public market vision to fruition. These two industry leaders, who are at the cutting edge of biotech innovation and venture capital, also provide insight into today's SPAC boom, advantages of SPACs versus traditional IPOs, and what it takes to transition a successful biotech company from the private to public markets. Are SPACs now a premium option for companies going public? Find out in our latest episode.

Start listening now.

Share:

Recommended Reads

A look inside the lithium gold rush and the race to power electric vehicles. [The New York Times]

After pledging to have all of its financial services fully regulated, Ant Group is looking for ways to revamp a popular but controversial product that nearly 91 million Chinese citizens count on. [The Wall Street Journal]

The pandemic has likely changed the way we travel for good. But it may also offer Europe's tourism industry the chance for an upgrade. [Financial Times]

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

23

VC valuations

1544

People

347

Companies

29

Funds

See what our data software can do

Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2011 Vintage Global Funds-of-Funds
	People
	Yale endowment chief David Swensen dies
	VC Deals
	ReCharge reveals $277M in funding
	Material Bank secures $100M Series C
	Dyno Therapeutics gets $100M in a16z-led round
	Huntress nabs $40M for cybersecurity tech
	Exits & IPOs
	Figs files to go public

The Daily Benchmark

2011 Vintage Global Funds-of-Funds

Median IRR

12.69%

Top Quartile IRR Hurdle Rate

16.45%

1.71x

Median TVPI

Select top performers

Franklin Park Venture Fund Series 2011

Weathergage Capital Investments A

Weathergage Capital Investments B

*IRR: net of fees

58 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

People

Yale endowment chief David Swensen dies

David Swensen, Yale University Endowment's longtime chief investment officer, has died of cancer at the age of 67. Swensen was known for creating the "endowment model," which emphasizes illiquid assets such as venture capital and private equity in addition to stocks and bonds. Since its introduction in the 1980s, Swensen's model has been widely adopted by endowments, foundations and sovereign wealth funds. The endowment model is credited with the growth of the VC and PE asset classes.

View details

VC Deals

ReCharge reveals $277M in funding

Ecommerce startup ReCharge has announced $277 million in funding from Summit Partners, Iconiq Capital and Bain Capital Ventures. The company is now valued at $2.1 billion. Based in Santa Monica, Calif., ReCharge helps direct-to-consumer brands increase revenue, reduce operating costs and offer subscriptions to their customers. The financing consists of a $227 million Series B and a previously undisclosed $50 million Series A that was raised in January 2020, TechCrunch reported.

View round

View similar company »

Material Bank secures $100M Series C

General Catalyst and Durable Capital Partners have co-led a $100 million round for Material Bank, which operates an online marketplace for architectural, design and construction materials. Material Bank was valued at $258.6 million in April 2020, according to PitchBook data.

Additional Investors:

Bond, Bain Capital Ventures, Lead Edge Capital, Raine Ventures

View round

View similar company »

Dyno Therapeutics gets $100M in a16z-led round

Dyno Therapeutics, a biotech startup that's applying AI to gene therapy, has announced a $100 million Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz, with participation from new investors including Casdin Capital, GV, Obvious Ventures and Lux Capital. Existing backers Polaris Partners, CRV and KdT also participated in the round. The deal brings the Massachusetts-based startup's total private funding to around $109 million.

View round

View similar company »

Huntress nabs $40M for cybersecurity tech

Huntress has raised a $40 million Series B led by JMI Equity. Based in the Baltimore area, the company is the developer of a cybersecurity platform that automates threat detection and remediation for small and medium-sized businesses. Existing investors ForgePoint Capital and Gula Tech Adventures also participated in the funding. Huntress was valued at nearly $60 million in February 2020, according to PitchBook data.

View round

View similar company »

Exits & IPOs

Figs files to go public

Healthcare apparel provider Figs has filed for an IPO on the NYSE. The Santa Monica, Calif.-based company more than doubled its year-over-year revenue to $263.1 million in 2020, with net income of $57.9 million. Figs' investors include Tulco, a holding company that owns a roughly 58% pre-IPO stake, as well as Viking Global (7%) and the Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System (6%).

View details

View 1 competitors »

Chart of the Day

"Q1's overall deal value growth did not depend solely on outsized follow-on rounds. First-time deal value reached €1.4 billion in Q1, which is well ahead of 2020's figures. Investors have been eager to bet on pandemic-accelerated trends that could have long-term viability. As spending habits shift and nascent trends develop, new startups will continue to attract investors fearful of missing out on the next big growth opportunity."

Source: PitchBook's Q1 2021 European Venture Report