PitchBook News - 2021's IPO market breaks the mold

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The Daily Pitch: VC

December 17, 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:

PitchBook analysts predict a big year in 2022 for US private equity.

Six charts explain how the 2021 IPO market's flood of massive listings broke the mold.

VC funding for agtech startups soared to a record $3.2 billion in Q3, boosting annual deal value to nearly $8 billion.

Today's Top Stories

Six charts that put the IPO market into perspective

(Mara Potter/PitchBook News)

For years, private investors' portfolios have swelled with unicorns and decacorns. In 2021, the dams broke as many of the world's most promising companies made the leap to US public markets.

This flood of IPOs was an abrupt change from the comparatively tame performance of the past decade. From crypto to cars, frontier tech led the charge. SPACs stepped up. Public investors paid a premium.

But are the IPO market's best days behind it?

Recommended Reads

Crypto, NFTs and meme stocks brought together pop culture and modern finance in an emotionally charged year. But is "identity investing" here to stay? [Bloomberg]

Researchers and drillers are racing to find new sources of helium to secure the future of our most indispensable technologies. [Wired]

The drama-free rise of Jonathan Gray to Blackstone president. [Institutional Investor]

Since yesterday, the PitchBook Platform added:

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Quick Takes


	The Daily Benchmark
	2017 Vintage Global Secondaries Funds
	Partner Perspectives
	At the intersection of blockchain & gaming
	VC Deals
	Gopuff eyes valuation of up to $40B
	Rokt raises $325M, preps for public debut
	Cockroach Labs hits $5B valuation with Series F
	Infarm tops $1B valuation with Series D
	Dialpad raises $170M in Iconiq-led round
	Cloud startup CData collects $140M
	Gtmhub grabs $120M in Index-led round
	Tasso secures $100M Series B
	Verge Genomics bags $98M
	Accel leads $75M round in Singapore's Nansen
	Exits & IPOs
	Byju's in talks for $4B SPAC deal
	Reddit files to go public
	Fundraising
	Blue Cloud collects $350M for fourth fund
	Madrona raises $120M for Fund VII extension

The Daily Benchmark

2017 Vintage Global Secondaries Funds

Median IRR

15.50%

Top Quartile IRR

25.59%

1.28x

Median TVPI

Select top performers

Auldbrass Partners Secondary Opportunity Fund II

AB Value Bridge VI

NB Secondary Opportunities Fund IV

*IRR: net of fees

18 Funds in Benchmark »

Check out the latest version of PitchBook Benchmarks

Partner Perspectives

At the intersection of blockchain & gaming

The blockchain gaming industry is seeing significant growth in capital from institutional investors. Multiple blockchain-based games have now crossed all-time transaction values of $1 billion and attracted millions of players.

Following its inaugural blockchain market report published last week, Forte uses PitchBook datasets to dive deeply into the intersection between blockchain and gaming. Highlights include:

A handful of the largest blockchain companies have attracted the bulk of VC raised in 2021.
The bulk of media attention has been focused on NFTs, but infrastructure and value-added services have seen a lot of activity.
The ever-changing regulatory environment means established gaming companies will likely explore partners dedicated to compliance.

Read it now

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VC Deals

Gopuff eyes valuation of up to $40B

Gopuff has raised $1.5 billion in a round that could value the instant delivery company at up to $40 billion, according to a report from Axios. The new funding is said to be structured as a convertible debt note led by Guggenheim Partners. The company was last valued at $15 billion with a $1 billion fundraise in July and is reportedly preparing for a 2022 IPO

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Rokt raises $325M, preps for public debut

Ecommerce marketing software provider Rokt has raised $325 million in a round led by Tiger Global. Investors including Wellington Management, Whale Rock Capital Management, Pavilion Capital and Square Peg also took part in the Series E, which values the company at $1.95 billion. Rokt is targeting an IPO in the US in 2023, The Wall Street Journal reported.

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Cockroach Labs hits $5B valuation with Series F

Cockroach Labs has raised $278 million in a Series F led by Greenoaks. The round more than doubles the company's valuation to $5 billion. Investors including Altimeter, Coatue, GV and Tiger Global also joined the round for Cockroach, which provides the cloud-native SQL database CockroachDB.

Additional Investors:

Benchmark, Bond Capital, FirstMark Capital, Index Ventures, JP Morgan, Lone Pine Capital, Redpoint Ventures

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Infarm tops $1B valuation with Series D

Berlin-based urban farming company Infarm has raised $200 million in a Series D from investors including the Qatar Investment Authority, Partners in Equity, Hanaco, Atomico, Lightrock and Bonnier. Infarm will use the funding, which values the company at more than $1 billion, to expand its global network of climate-resilient vertical farms.

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Dialpad raises $170M in Iconiq-led round

AI-powered cloud communications company Dialpad has reached a $2.2 billion valuation with its latest fundraise, a $170 million round led by Iconiq Capital. Amasia, GV, OMERS Growth Equity, Work-Bench, Section 32 and T-Mobile Ventures also participated in the funding.

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Cloud startup CData collects $140M

CData Software has raised $140 million in Series B funding led by growth equity investor Updata Partners. North Carolina-based CData provides a cloud-native data connectivity platform.

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Gtmhub grabs $120M in Index-led round

Gtmhub has closed a $120 million Series C led by Index Ventures, with participation from Visionaries Club, Insight Partners, Singular and CRV. The startup, which has offices in the US and Europe, provides enterprise productivity software for tracking objectives.

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Tasso secures $100M Series B

Seattle-based Tasso has closed $100 million in an oversubscribed round led by RA Capital Management. Investors including Senvest, InCube, SVB Innovation Fund, Hambrecht Ducera Growth Ventures and Merck GHIF also participated in the Series B. Tasso is a developer of clinical-grade blood collection technology for remote testing services.

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Verge Genomics bags $98M

AI-enabled drug discovery company Verge Genomics has raised $98 million in an oversubscribed Series B led by BlackRock. New investors including Eli Lilly, Merck GHIF, Section 32 and Vulcan Capital participated in the funding, alongside existing backers.

Additional Investors:

ALS Investment Fund, Lifeforce Capital, Tao Capital Partners, Threshold Ventures

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Accel leads $75M round in Singapore's Nansen

Blockchain analytics provider Nansen has raised a $75 million Series B led by Accel, with participation from investors including GIC, Andreessen Horowitz, Tiger Global and SCB 10X. The company, founded in 2020, raised a $12 million Series A in June.

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Exits & IPOs

Byju's in talks for $4B SPAC deal

Byju's is in advanced talks to go public via a merger with one of Churchill Capital's blank-check companies, Bloomberg reported. The edtech provider, which is India's most valuable startup, could raise about $4 billion and seek a valuation of up to $48 billion, according to the report. Byju's backers include General Atlantic, Tiger Global and Owl Ventures.

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Reddit files to go public

Reddit has confidentially filed for an IPO. The news sharing and social media platform hired its first CFO earlier this year, and Reuters reported in September that Reddit was hoping to reach a $15 billion valuation with a public offering early in 2022. The company was valued at over $10 billion in August with a round led by Fidelity Management & Research.

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Fundraising

Blue Cloud collects $350M for fourth fund

Blue Cloud Ventures has held a final close on $350 million for its latest vehicle, which will target fast-growing cloud software companies with up to $100 million in annual recurring revenue. Blue Cloud has already made seven investments out of BCV IV.

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Madrona raises $120M for Fund VII extension

Madrona Venture Group has raised $120 million from existing LPs for an extension of its seventh flagship fund. The vehicle closed on $300 million in 2018.

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View 238 investments »