PitchBook News - VC valuations surge higher

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

PitchBook

Log in

The Daily Pitch: VC

November 22, 2021

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

In today's Daily Pitch, you'll find:

Our DACH Private Capital Breakdown explores a year like no other in a key European ecosystem.

Publicly traded PE firms have surged over the past few quarters, dominating the S&P 500's recent performance.

US VC valuations are on the rise, as later-stage investors look to back younger startups, and competition for seed-stage companies increases.

Today's Top Stories

PE and VC soar in a key European ecosystem as 2021 continues to break records

Private market activity in Europe's DACH region has matched the dramatic surge throughout Europe this year, with annual records reached in both private equity and venture capital by the end of the third quarter.

Our 2021 DACH Private Capital Breakdown captures the biggest trends across PE and VC in a year like no other, including data on deals, exits and fundraising through Q3. Takeaways include:

Private equity's 2021 deal value reached €87.4 billion across Germany, Austria and Switzerland, driven by heightened middle-market activity.

VC investments totaled €15 billion over the same period, with the region's healthy startup environment contributing to a nearly equal deal count dispersion across venture stages.

DACH-based companies are drawing significant interest from US-based investors. VC deals with US investor participation have totaled €10.7 billion in 2021—nearly double the record set last year.

PE exit value is poised for its highest total in a decade, propelled by a sharp increase in exits over €2.5 billion.

read it now

Share:

US VC valuations continue their ascension

Valuations of VC-backed companies continued their dizzying climb across most stages in the third quarter.

PitchBook's latest US VC Valuations Report is chock full of data and must-read analysis regarding how startup valuations have changed amid the frenzied dealmaking of the last few quarters. Key takeaways include:

Early-stage VC is the strongest segment of the venture lifecycle in terms of valuation growth, as late-stage and growth investors look to back younger companies. Our analysis shows that valuations at this stage more than double between rounds on an annualized basis.

Increased competition for the most promising seed-stage startups has pushed the pre-money top-quartile valuation to $15 million, creating an unprecedented divide of $10 million between top- and bottom-quartile seed-stage valuations.

While late-stage valuations declined slightly quarter-over-quarter, half of all late-stage rounds in the last four quarters raised new capital at more than double their previous valuations.

Exit demand likely reinforced VC valuation growth. Public listing step-ups rose by 1.8 times, while the median valuation step-up for acquisitions swelled to 2.8x, the highest increase on record.

read the report

Share:

A message from SS&C Intralinks

After a long dry spell, CMBS opportunities are flooding the market

In 2020, commercial mortgage-backed securities transactions were off more than 40%. In a dramatic turnaround, 2021 will close with a record volume of $80 billion in issuance in the US alone.

Are you getting your share?

Download Intralinks' new report, Capitalising on Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities, for the results of a recent survey of more than 100 CMBS senior-level issuers and investors. The report spotlights opportunities, innovative tech-enabled tools and new regulatory challenges in this rapidly changing market, including:

The 12-month market outlook—how will investor appetite track?
Target-rich sectors.
The shift from conduit CMBS to single-asset single borrower and commercial real estate collateralized loan obligations.
Driving new efficiencies through tech-enabled data management.
Risk management—why is confidence lagging?

Read this new report

Share:

Public firms extend dominance over major US indexes

(Olena_T/Getty Images)

Publicly traded private equity and asset management firms have surged over the past few quarters, dominating the S&P 500's performance during a 12-month period.

Five of the largest public firms—Blackstone, KKR, The Carlyle Group, Apollo Global Management and Ares Management—outperformed the market index between Sept. 30, 2020, and Sept. 30, 2021, according to a PitchBook analyst note.

Blackstone's rise has been significant, with its share price increasing some 131.6% during the 12-month span, relative to the S&P's roughly 29% climb. The disparity between the public firms and the index is only magnified when viewed over the past five years.

Recommended Reads

IPOs have broken record after record this year. How long will the ride last? [The Wall Street Journal]

As some European countries announce new lockdown restrictions, mentions of pandemic-related risks are seemingly absent from investor 2022 outlooks. [Bloomberg]

Researchers in Seattle have built an AI system that can make ethical judgments. But its decisions can be as confusing as those of humans. [The New York Times]

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

117

People

47

Companies

See what our data software can do

Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2020 Vintage Global Real Estate Funds
	Partner Perspectives
	How SaaS thrives across ecommerce
	VC Deals
	Crypto's Gemini hits $7B+ valuation
	Sierra Space valued at $4.5B
	FlipOS rakes in $136M
	Benchling secures $100M
	Flytrex picks up $40M for drone delivery
	Kettle raises $25M to predict climate crises
	Carro hauls in $20M Series B
	Helaina lands $20M
	Exits & IPOs
	Samsara files for IPO
	Fundraising
	Atomico nears $1B+ in fresh capital
	Neo closes $150M fund

The Daily Benchmark

2020 Vintage Global Real Estate Funds

Median IRR

6.38%

Top Quartile IRR

15.43%

0.99x

Median TVPI

Select top performers

Oak Street Real Estate Capital Fund V

Cabot Industrial Value Fund VI

TA Realty Associates Fund XII

*IRR: net of fees

27 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

Partner Perspectives

How SaaS thrives across ecommerce

Throughout the 2010s, SaaS adoption grew steadily as the leading edge of innovation cycled from SaaS 1.0 to its latest incarnation, SaaS 4.0. The latest version represents a balance between incumbents hoping to expand their client base by bundling additional products, and startups inventing new products or unbundling parts of the full spectrum of services for businesses.

In Moss Adams' latest report, their team of experts utilize PitchBook data to investigate how these investment and technological trends are intertwining. As a wider variety of companies look to acquire ecommerce capabilities, they often partner with investors or look to acquire startups, as their need for more bespoke SaaS solutions grows. How to optimize such strategies, however, can be complex, so Moss Adams' report also outlines how a balance can be struck between key variables such as resolution between legacy and new tech, relationship management, enterprise size and more.

Read it now

Share:

VC Deals

Crypto's Gemini hits $7B+ valuation

Cryptocurrency platform Gemini has raised $400 million at a $7.1 billion valuation. The round was led by Morgan Creek Digital Assets and joined by investors including the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, which also plans to partner with Gemini to provide safe storage for its customers' tokens, Bloomberg reported.

View round

View 43 competitors »

Sierra Space valued at $4.5B

General Atlantic, Coatue and Moore Strategic Ventures have co-led a $1.4 billion investment in Sierra Space, with participation from investors including BlackRock and AE Industrial Partners. The round propels the Colorado-based space transportation and infrastructure company to a $4.5 billion valuation.

View round

View similar company »

FlipOS rakes in $136M

FlipOS, the Arizona-based developer of a platform for real estate investors seeking outsourced services, has raised $136 million in Series B funding. Zeev Ventures made a $36 million equity investment, alongside $100 million in securitization led by Cantor Fitzgerald.

View round

View similar company »

Benchling secures $100M

Benchling has raised a $100 million Series F co-led by Franklin Templeton and Altimeter Capital, with participation from new investors Tiger Global and Lone Pine Capital. The San Francisco-based biotechnology software provider, now valued at $6.1 billion, is considering going public through a direct listing or IPO in 2022, Reuters reported.

View round

View 24 competitors »

Flytrex picks up $40M for drone delivery

Flytrex has raised a $40 million Series C led by BRM Group. The Tel Aviv-based company offers on-demand drone delivery of food and retail products. Flytrex currently operates across three locations in North Carolina.

Select Additional Investors:

BackBone Ventures, Benhamou Global Ventures, OurCrowd

View round

View 11 competitors »

Kettle raises $25M to predict climate crises

Kettle has raised a $25 million Series A led by Acrew Capital, with participation from investors including Lowercarbon Capital, Homebrew and True Ventures. The reinsurance startup uses AI to predict and mitigate the financial risk of catastrophic climate events like wildfires.

View round

View 1 competitors »

Carro hauls in $20M Series B

Carro has raised $20 million in a round led by Alpha Edison, with support from investors including PayPal Ventures, GC1 Ventures and Corazon Capital. Based in the Los Angeles area, the company facilitates cross-store selling between ecommerce retailers.

View round

View similar company »

Helaina lands $20M

Helaina has raised a $20 million Series A co-led by Spark Capital and Siam Capital. The New York-based company uses fermentation to produce proteins that are immune-equivalent to those in breast milk.

Select Additional Investors:

Barrel Ventures, Gabrielle Union, Plum Alley Investments, Primary Venture Partners

View round

View similar company »

PitchBook Webinar: Private fund strategies—Spotlight on VC

Join PitchBook on Dec. 1 for a discussion on the current state of private fund performance in the latest installment of our recurring webinar series, Private Fund Strategies.

Get the latest insights into market performance across asset classes and strategies, including a spotlight on VC and massive VC-backed exit value, record-breaking fundraising, and the continued proliferation of mega-deals.

Key topics include:

A quarterly update on private market fund performance and fundraising.

A spotlight on performance across VC strategies, including a detailed comparison of established and emerging fund managers.

A deep dive on sector specialist fund manager performance.

Deal-level returns as seen through our original research.

Sign up today

Share:

Exits & IPOs

Samsara files for IPO

Samsara has filed for an IPO, listing the size of its offering at $100 million, a figure that's commonly a placeholder before terms are set. The company provides a cloud-based fleet management platform, and has raised over $1.2 billion in prior funding from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Dragoneer Investment Group and General Atlantic. Samsara was valued at $5.4 billion in May 2020, according to PitchBook data.

View details

View 25 competitors »

Share:

Fundraising

Atomico nears $1B+ in fresh capital

London-based Atomico is close to announcing $1.2 billion in fresh capital, CNBC reported. The firm is raising a $400 million fund for early-stage startups and an $800 million fund for investing in later-stage companies, according to the report. Atomico's previous $820 million vehicle closed in February of last year.

View details

View 137 investments »

Neo closes $150M fund

Ali Partovi's Neo has raised its second vehicle, a $150 million fund that will be used to back about 80 companies over the next four years. The VC firm and mentorship community's investment portfolio includes tech companies such as Kalshi and Vanta.

View fund

View 1 investments »