Jared Kushner's Big Bet, $10B Tennis Rackets, & $200M AI SPAC
September 7, 2023's biggest news in the private markets.
Mergers, Acquisitions, & Investments
WestRock & Smurfit Kappa Collaboration: The two are nearing a merger, aiming to establish a $20B global paper and packaging entity.
Tata Group's Investment Play: Their consumer unit is discussing the acquisition of a 51% stake in Haldiram's, an Indian snack brand seeking a $10B valuation.
Great Wall Motor's Strategic Shift: Exploring options, including a stake sale in its $6B battery unit, Svolt Energy Technology, amid potential IPO delay concerns.
Investor Moves at the London Stock Exchange: An investor consortium, featuring Blackstone and Thomson Reuters, is considering a $2.9B stock sale in the London Stock Exchange Group.
Alteryx's Potential Market Change: This $2.2B data analytics software firm is contemplating a sale following takeover interest.
C&S Wholesale Grocers' Expansion: On the brink of a $2B deal to purchase 400 grocery stores from Kroger and Albertsons Cos, aligning with their larger $24.5B deal efforts.
Thoma Bravo's Health-tech Venture: Ready to seal a $1.8B deal to acquire health-records software entity, NextGen Healthcare.
GTA Semiconductor's Funding Boost: Raised $1.8B in a state-dominated financing round.
Morgan Stanley's Tech Focus: Engaging in discussions to acquire Altice’s French data centers for an approximate $1.1B.
Bridgepoint's Asset Strategy: Preparing to acquire Energy Capital Partners for $1.1B, inclusive of debt, to augment its mid-market asset investment reach.
Nestle's Brazilian Chocolate Quest: Set to purchase Brazilian chocolate manufacturer Kopenhagen for an estimated $600M-$900M.
Energy Shift with Peyto and Repsol: Peyto Exploration & Development finalizing a deal to buy Repsol's Canadian division for $468M.
Kushner's Big Bet: Affinity Partners, led by Jared Kushner, is investing with a $150M minority stake acquisition in Israeli auto manufacturer S Shlomo Holdings.
Venture Capital
PayJoy: Secured $360M with $150M in a Series C round (Warburg Pincus) and $210M in debt financing (Citi).
Boston Metal: Raised $262M in a Series C, backed by Aramco Ventures, M&G Investments, and more.
Nimbus Therapeutics: Collected $210M in private financing with GV, SR One, and Atlas Venture leading.
Shop Circle: A London e-commerce software firm, garnered $120M in a Series A round (645 Ventures & 3VC).
d-Matrix: Attained $110M in Series B funding for its AI compute platform, led by Temasek.
Josys: The SaaS management platform secured a $93M Series B, championed by Global Brain and Globis Capital Partners.
Ibex Medical Analytics: Specializing in AI for cancer diagnostics, raised $55M in Series C funding led by 83North.
Story Protocol: Procured $54M funding for its IP platform, led by a16z crypto.
Tentarix Biotherapeutics: Secured $35M in a Series B, focusing on protein therapeutics, led by Amplitude Ventures.
Nuventura: The Berlin-based tech firm raised $26.8M in a Series A round for its switchgear technologies (Mirova).
Arduino: Extended its funding with a $32M Series B round led by CDP Venture Capital and Anzu Partners.
Momnt: A fintech solution for businesses, attained $15M funding championed by TruStage Ventures.
Commsignia: Raised $15M in a Series B for its vehicle communication tech, with PortfoLion Capital Partners leading.
deskbird: Managed $13M in Series A funding for its workplace management SaaS, led by Alstin Capital and AVP.
SkinnyDipped: A snack brand, secured $12M in a Series A round championed by David Grutman.
Lydian: Focused on CO2-derived fuels, garnered $12M seed funding, backed by Congruent Ventures and Galvanize Climate Solutions.
Rejuvenation Technologies: With a focus on mRNA-based therapeutics, raised $10.6M seed funding, led by Khosla Ventures.
Pynt: An API security firm, secured $6M seed funding led by Joule Ventures.
Treon: Building IoT edge products, collected $5.9M in a Series A round led by Ventech.
TRLab: A tech startup in fine art, raised $5M seed funding championed by Hivemind Capital.
IPO
Amer Sports: The renowned manufacturer behind Wilson tennis rackets has confidentially filed for an IPO. With potential valuations reaching up to $10B, they are aiming to secure as much as $3B.
Instacart: The online grocery delivery leader is on the move, preparing to announce its IPO price range. It's anticipated that their investor roadshow will commence as early as Monday.
Schott: The respected German glassmaker is strategically positioning its medical division for a significant market debut, planning to offer shares worth $859M in its upcoming IPO.
SPAC
Zapata AI: The forward-thinking AI startup has entered into an agreement to merge with Andretti Acquisition Corp., valuing the transaction at an estimated $200M.
Debt
Restaurant Brands International: The prominent company is orchestrating a significant financial move by offering a $4.2B leveraged loan, marking it as one of the most substantial refinancing deals in the market this year.
CBA: Standing as Australia's premier bank in terms of market cap, CBA has successfully secured $3.3B through the US dollar bond markets via three distinct issuances.
DBS Group: As Singapore’s leading banking entity, DBS Group has efficiently raised $1.5B utilizing the dollar bond markets.
Bankruptcy
Party City: The prominent retailer has strategized a path to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy, achieving a substantial reduction in its financial obligations by approximately $1B.
IronNet: Facing challenging circumstances, the cybersecurity firm is poised to furlough a majority of its workforce. In parallel, the company is assessing multiple avenues, including potential bankruptcy reorganization and liquidation.
Fundraising
VC 500 Global: Demonstrating strong momentum in its investment strategy, VC 500 Global has successfully procured $143M for its flagship SE Asian early-stage fund, 500 Southeast Asia, as well as its growth-focused investment vehicle dedicated to Southeast Asia.
Air Street Capital: With noteworthy backing from Spotify’s CEO, Air Street Capital has finalized its second fund raising, amassing $121M. The fund is strategically aimed at nurturing and supporting early-stage AI startups.