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Instacart is going public more than 10 years after launching in California and is hoping Wall Street will appreciate its goal to bring "the grocery industry online and help make grocery shopping effortless."
The San Francisco-based company filed paperwork Monday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), estimating that its stock price will be between $26 and $28 per share, valuing the company between $8.6 billion to $9.3 billion. READ MORE
There's a buzz phrase that’s existentially ruling the startup fundraising ecosystem: The best domestic defense can be the prime global offense.
Yes, we are talking about the state of global venture capital funds and networks. But why is this shift happening, and what does it mean for startups? The answer lies in the changing dynamics of the global economy. READ MORE
Private equity firms are like old soldiers: they never die, they simply fade away.
“There’s no big sign that gets hung on the door that says they are dead, but they just end up not raising new funds. It can take years and years to play out,” according to Hugh MacArthur, chair of Bain and Company’s global private equity practice. READ MORE
Executive coaches who understand how to help management teams perform at their best while offering insights on building productive working relationships with these leaders can accelerate value creation.
When a private equity portfolio company CEO invites her executive coach to also coach her management team, she is inviting the coach to serve as a convener and centralizing force that continually reminds the players that “we’re all on the same team and we win together.” This can accelerate value in a way that nothing else can, especially when you consider the human elements (ego, fear, mistrust, etc.) that can run amuck under the kind of pressure that will surely come with growth and scale. READ MORE
Mergers & Acquisitions is recognizing eight firms for the inaugural Best Places to Work in Private Equity. The latest in our award series honors private equity firms who stand out amongst their peers in demonstrating leadership and innovation in their workplace cultures, policies and internal operations. They have also taken proactive measures to adapt to the changing demands of a post-pandemic world, as well as building environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs at their firms and portfolio companies. READ MORE
In times of volatility, financial stability becomes an understated hallmark of business success. Private equity firms have, appropriately, responded to the severe macroeconomic challenges of recent years with caution, making unprecedented pullbacks in investment and reaching record levels of dry powder, according to a new report from Slayton Search Partners’ Dan Dunn.
“Today’s firms are steadying their balance sheets and preparing for long-term growth by building quality over quantity — a process that will increasingly require proactive CFOs,” he said. “CFOs are key drivers of sustainable value creation for PE firms and their portfolio companies. As portfolio sizes remain limited and the need for exceptionally successful exits grows, the role of the chief financial officer will expand in the coming years. Subsequently, demand for experienced private equity CFOs is certain to rise.” READ MORE
These days, we hear a lot about companies seeing soaring valuations as a result of their artificial intelligence prowess. It’s easy to get the impression that an AI-focused business model is the most direct route to investors’ hearts.
In reality, however, investors aren’t so easily swayed. Scores of venture-backed companies touting artificial intelligence technologies have shuttered or seen valuations plummet in the past few quarters. Such cases are particularly visible among those that went public during the 2021 SPAC boom. READ MORE
Global venture funding settled around $22 billion in August 2023, up around 19% month over month but down 16% from the $26.2 billion invested in July 2022, Crunchbase data shows.
Last month’s startup funding total was on par with what’s emerged as the new normal for venture capital. So far in 2023, funding has averaged just over $23 billion per month as active investors have cut back their funding pace at each stage. READ MORE
Startups are young companies founded with a new idea looking to disrupt the market. Entrepreneurs are driven by innovation and want to create entirely new products or services to cater to existing deficiencies in the market. We can also say that a startup has two main characteristics; innovation and growth. A startup's ability to scale really defines its potential impact on different markets. That’s why most of the startups are known for the disruption in their respective industries. But, not all startups succeed and the majority of them are prone to failure. According to Startup Genome, about 90% of startups completely fail, while 1.5% of startups end up with a successful exit of $50 million across the top eight U.S. startup networks. READ MORE
VinFast Auto’s 400% surge after going public in a SPAC merger earlier this month is the lone bright spot for blank-check deals completed in August.
Beyond the Vietnamese electric-vehicle maker, investors who have held on to shares of newly public companies from tie ups with special purpose acquisition companies have mostly endured nothing but losses. READ MORE
The days of private equity firms simply borrowing money to buy a company and juicing its near-term performance to generate good returns are long gone. But now, in a tough market with higher interest rates, asset managers have to work even harder to improve their portfolio companies, and themselves, to deliver strong returns. READ MORE
Six private equity and hedge fund trade groups on Friday sued the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), arguing the agency overstepped its statutory authority when adopting sweeping new expense and disclosure rules last week.
SEC Chair Gary Gensler said the rules will increase transparency and competition in the private funds industry, which oversees around $20 trillion in assets and has been accused by advocacy groups of opacity and conflicts of interest. READ MORE
Late last year, software and hardware tech startup Anduril made headlines when it closed a massive $1.5 billion Series E.
While the raise was noteworthy for its size alone — it was the fourth-largest round raised by a U.S.-based startup last year — it also was eye-catching because it went to a defense and security firm. READ MORE
There’s no doubt about it—fundraising is the most difficult part of launching a business and being an entrepreneur. But depending on who you are, that part of the journey can be even more daunting due to bias and a system that doesn’t see every entrepreneur as an equal.
So many disparities exist in the world of venture capital, but one thing is and has always been clear: Women, especially women of color, don’t have the same access to capital that their white male counterparts do because of bias that exists within the system. In 2021, Black founders only received 1.2% of venture capital funding in the United States. This is absurd. READ MORE
The ongoing downward trend in venture funding has many founders desperately trying to secure their next round.
Runways are running out, and many great startups with strong businesses and future prospects are willing to take a hit on valuations, and even take a downround, in order to continue operating. READ MORE
According to Crunchbase, over a quarter of the total investments in the US based startups this year has gone toward AI companies, more than double the percentage of last year. This is equivalent to 1 in 4 dollars has been invested in USA AI startups in 2023, so no wonder every company building a new technology has AI emblazoned everywhere in their pitch decks. Comparatively between, 2018 and 2022, AI startups, received an average of 12% of funding capital. READ MORE
After about a year-and-a-half without liquidity prospects, investors and employees of some of the largest unicorns may see a glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel.
Last week's IPO filings of Instacart and marketing automation company Klaviyo mean that once they debut, various types of investment activity—from new late-stage rounds and secondaries trading to other public offerings—are likely to see a pickup. That is in large part because there will finally be more clarity about what private companies are worth. READ MORE
You can tell a lot about investors’ enthusiasm for a startup by the pace of its fundraising.
A company that takes just months to go from one round to the next looks like a hot property. One that takes a couple of years is probably well-regarded, albeit maybe less buzzy. READ MORE
We often discuss the IPO market in binary terms. The window for new offerings is open, or it’s shut. Big exits are happening, or they’re not.
This year, such rigid nomenclatures haven’t applied. Rather, market debuts have worked out well for some, horribly for others, and sort of “meh” for many more. There’s no obvious hot sector, and early pops can be short-lived. READ MORE
You can tell a lot about investors’ enthusiasm for a startup by the pace of its fundraising.
A company that takes just months to go from one round to the next looks like a hot property. One that takes a couple of years is probably well-regarded, albeit maybe less buzzy.
Once a few years pass with no new round raised, however, a startup’s shine has likely faded. If four or more years go by, the probability of ever raising a subsequent venture funding round falls precipitously. READ MORE