Epic Games received $2B in funding from Sony and Kirkbi to develop the metaverse. Each of the companies invested $1B in the latest funding. Kirkbi, the LEGO Group’s parent company, said last week that it was working on a metaverse for kids alongside Epic. More: - The recent funding increased Epic’s valuation to $31.5B.
- Epic reports that the three firms will use the investment to develop innovative “social entertainment exploring the connection between digital and physical worlds.”
- Epic last raised $1B in April 2021 at a $28.7B valuation.
- Sony Group contributed $200M in the funding.
- Other participants included Fidelity Management, T. Rowe Price, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, KKR, Franklin Templeton, and others.
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Kaseya Ltd. entered a definitive agreement to acquire Datto Holding Corp. at $35.50 per share. The acquisition price represents a 52% premium over Datto’s stock price of $23.37 on March 16, valuing the entire transaction at ~$6.2B. An equity consortium led by Insight Partners with backing from TPG Capital, Temasek, Sixth Street, and other investors will finance the all-cash deal. More: - The transaction is set to conclude in the latter half of 2022, subject to regulatory approvals, wherein Datto’s stock will no longer be publicly traded on the NYSE.
- Datto is a cybersecurity, data recovery, and cloud solution provider for small to medium enterprises.
- Datto had begun soliciting interested companies for a possible takeover in mid-March, per a previous Bloomberg report.
- Vista Equity Partners, which owned 69% of Datto’s shares as of Dec. 31, acquired the firm in late 2017 and later merged the entity with Autotask Corp.
- Its market value in mid-March was $4.2B. The acquisition is set to make Kaseya a large MSP technology provider, rivaling Thoma Bravo-backed industry peers ConnectWise and N-able.
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London-based Fabric Ventures is on the heels of closing two funds worth $245M (€225M) to invest in Web3 projects, per The Block. One of the funds, an early-stage fund, was oversubscribed and got a hard-cap extension, bringing the total amount raised to $136M (€125M). The firm is on the verge of closing the second fund, capped at $108M (€100M), with a focus on Series B and above investments. More: - It last raised a $130M fund targeting digital assets and the blockchain sector in July.
- European Investment Fund (EIF) contributed $27M (€25M) to the fund.
- Fabric has invested in Ramp, Sky Mavis (the parent organization of Axie Infinity), and Ledger.
- Following the close of the current funds, Fabric anticipates raising another fund in the spring of 2023.
Zoom out: - Web3 funds raised by peers include:
- Gumi Cryptos Capital's (gCC) $110M early-stage investment fund.
- Nexo’s venture arm's $150M fund closed in March.
- Pantera’s $200M fund, set to close by May.
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Boston, Mass.-based shipment tracking platform Tive raised $54M in Series B funding. The funding will help the firm to fund strategic acquisitions, back marketing efforts, and accelerate product development. AXA Venture Partners led the financing with participation from Sorenson Capital, Qualcomm Ventures, Fifth Wall, SJF Ventures, and Floating Point Ventures. More: - Tive leverages 5G network-enabled trackers to locate global shipments with high accuracy and measures additional metrics such as temperature, humidity, shock exposure, and others.
- The company reported $29M in annual recurring revenue, with estimates for this year topping $50M.
- Tive has over 350 clients globally, comprising packaged goods, logistics, and retail companies.
- The firm has raised $80M to date and received a $300M post-money valuation during the recent funding.
Zoom out: - Supply chain startups raised over $11.3B in venture funding last year.
- Sensitech, Emerson, and Project44 were among the notable recipients of funding.
- Project44 secured $202M in June 2021, led by Goldman Sachs.
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Diligent Robotics announced it had secured $30M in Series B financing. The Austin, Texas-based robotic automation company has secured $50M in total funding to date. Tiger Global led the funding. More: - Funding round participants include True Ventures, DNX Venture, Ubiquity Ventures, E14 Fund, Next Coast Ventures, Boom Capital, Gaingels, and others.
- The company develops robots with social intelligence and AI capabilities for deployment in the medical sector.
- Its Moxi robotic assistant helps frontline healthcare clinical staff with non-patient-facing tasks.
- Tasks include inter-facility medical supply, medication, and sample transportation.
- Proceeds from the funding will facilitate supply chain optimizations and faster deployments and help integrate with health records.
- It last raised $10M Series A in March 2020, following which it has commercially deployed its robot.
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Online office furniture marketplace Branch secured $10M in Series A financing to develop new products. The funding was led by Springdale Ventures with participation from Maywic Select Investments, Group RMC, and Agya Ventures. More: - While the majority of the incoming funds will be earmarked for furniture design and development of new office furniture products, part of the funding will also help strengthen the company's supply chain.
- According to CEO Greg Hayes' conversation with Axios, revenues are anticipated to surpass $50M in 2022, buoyed by 500% revenue growth over the last three quarters.
- 10% of its customers are expected to be landlords searching for short-term furniture rentals to pre-furnish premises.
- In total, it expects to reach over 200,000 customers this year.
- Prior to this fundraiser, the New York-based company had secured $3.5M in 2019 and 2020.
- Statista estimates officer furniture sales will top $59B in 2022 and reach $85B in 2026.
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- Industrial technology manufacturing company Littelfuse Inc. acquired C&K Switches from Sun Capital Partners Inc. for $540M. C&K manufactures high-performance electromechanical switches for use in industrial, aviation, transportation, and datacom sectors with over $200M of annual sales. The acquisition is set to boost Littelfuse’s reach in key markets.
- Decentralized layer 3 blockchain The Open Network (TON) raised a $250M fund with commitments from Huobi Incubator, Kucoin Venture, MEXC Pioneer Fund, and others to invest in Web3 projects.
- Montreal-based biofuel producer Enerkem received $225M financing. Repsol invested $75M in equity and $95M in convertible debt financing, bringing its total contribution to $170M. Enerkem has pioneered a process to manufacture sustainable aviation and marine fuel by converting non-recyclable waste, circular chemicals, and advanced biofuels.
- Sonos acquired Dutch speaker startup Mayht for $100M. The acquisition will enable Sonos to leverage Mayht’s transducer technology and integrate it into future products.
- California-based DNA synthesis technology developer Ansa Biotechnologies closed its oversubscribed Northpond Ventures-led Series A investment at $68M. RA Capital, Fiscus Ventures, PEAK6 Strategic Capital, Mubadala Capital, Horizon Ventures, and others participated in the funding.
- India-based PhableCare raised $25M in Series B funding led by Kalaari Capital. The company provides a chronic disease management platform with currently over 3 million patients on its platform.
- Perforce Software set to acquire infrastructure automation company Puppet to expand its developer toolkit product portfolio. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
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 |  | Karan Chafekar is a Management Consultant, Business enthusiast, and Licensed Pilot. | | | | Editor | Aaron Crutchfield is based in the high desert of California. Over the last two decades, he has spent time writing and editing at various local newspapers and defense contractors in California. When he's not working, he can often be found looking at the latest memes with his kids or working on his 1962 Ford. | |
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