The Week’s 10 Biggest Funding Rounds: YipitData Surpasses Unicorn Status, Claroty Locks Up Monster Round To Lockdown Industrial Cybersecurity

This is a weekly feature that runs down the week’s top 10 funding rounds in the U.S. Check out last week’s entry here.

No billion-dollar rounds this week, but you had to raise more than a quarter-of-a-billion dollars to break into the top five. Again, investors showed they have diverse interests, as they spread their cash everywhere, from data and analytics to security to some biotech and health ventures.

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1. YipitData, $475M, data research: New York-based YipitData announced a $475 million Series E from The Carlyle Group at a valuation that “surpasses unicorn status,” the company said in a release. YipitData will use the new money to help others make more money. The company’s platform provides research and analytics on digitally enabled sectors like ridesharing, e-commerce marketplaces, payments and streaming video to both institutional investors and corporations. Founded in 2013, the company now works with more than 400 investment funds and corporations and has raised more than $490 million, according to Crunchbase data.

2. Claroty, $400M, cybersecurity: With attacks on critical infrastructure in the news and the recently signed $1.2 trillion U.S. infrastructure bill designating money to secure those types of facilities, New York-based industrial cybersecurity company Claroty closed a $400 million Series E co-led by new investor SoftBank Vision Fund 2, as well as existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners and Schneider Electric. Claroty had just raised a $140 million Series D in June, but doubled down as the operational technology and industrial control security space is starting to see investor interest it has not seen since 2019. Claroty has now raised a total of $635 million since being founded in 2015.

3. Freenome, $300M, biotechnology: South San Francisco, California-based biotech company Freenome raised a $300 million Series D led by Perceptive Advisors and RA Capital Management. The company will use the new cash to advance its colorectal cancer screening test and expansion of its analysis platform to other cancers. Freenome’s platform uses blood tests to detect cancer in its earliest stages. Founded in 2014, the company has now raised more than $800 million.

4. Cerebral, $300M, health: There’s been a lot of talk about mental health in the last few years, especially as the pandemic has disrupted nearly everyone’s lives and limited social contact. That also has led investors to see the potential in the intersection of tech and mental health. Case in point: San Francisco-based Cerebral just closed its $300 million Series C round led by the SoftBank Vision Fund 2. Cerebral is an online mental health care and wellness one-stop shop, offering counseling, therapy, medication delivery and more. Launched less than two years ago, the company has now raised $462 million.

5. Tipalti, $270M, fintech: Few investors would complain about an investment quadrupling its value in about a year. Given that, investors in San Mateo, California-based Tipalti, a payment automation platform, likely are happy. The company closed a $270 million Series F funding led by G Squared at a valuation of $8.3 billion. It was last valued at $2 billion in a $150 million round led by Durable Capital Partners in October 2020. The company has raised more than $550 million since its founding in 2010. Tipalti helps global companies streamline payment and procurement processes

6. Robotic Research, $228M, robotics: Clarksburg, Maryland-based Robotic Research, a developer of autonomous mobility and robotics solutions, raised a $228 million funding round—the first outside capital the company has raised. Investors in the round included SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Enlightenment Capital, Crescent Cove Advisors, Henry Crown and Co. and Luminar Technologies.

7. Incode Technologies, $220M, cybersecurity: San Francisco-based Incode Technologies raised a $220 million Series B funding round led by General Atlantic and SoftBank at a $1.25 billion valuation. The company, which plays in the hot identity verification space, has raised approximately $257 million to date, according to Crunchbase data.

8. Odyssey Therapeutics, $218M, biotechnology: Boston-based biotechnology company Odyssey Therapeutics closed a $218 million Series A led by OrbiMed Advisors and co-led by SR One Capital Management.

9. Tradeshift, $200M, B2B fintech: San Francisco-based supply chain finance platform Tradeshift closed a $200 million round—a mix of funding and debt—from existing and new investors, including Koch Industries, IDC Ventures, LUN Partners, Private Shares and Fuel Capital. Founded in 2009, the company has raised more than $1 billion, according to Crunchbase data.

10. The EVERY Company, $175M, food tech: San Francisco-based The EVERY Company, which develops  animal-free protein, raised a $175 million Series C financing co-led by new investor McWin and existing investor Rage Capital.

Big global deals

U.S.-based startups saw some nice rounds, but the top two go to Berlin-based companies this week, including a company in the Amazon aggregation space—which has been white hot as of late.

• Berlin-based Flink, an online startup that offers grocery deliveries, closed a $750 million Series B.
• Berlin-based SellerX, which buys and builds Amazon businesses, raised $500 million.

Methodology

We tracked the largest rounds in the Crunchbase database that were raised by U.S.-based companies for the seven-day period of Dec. 4 to 10. Although most announced rounds are represented in the database, there could be a small time lag as some rounds are reported late in the week.

Illustration: Dom Guzman