Here’s what you need to know today in startup and venture news, updated by the Crunchbase News staff throughout the day to keep you in the know.
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Mobile retailer Enjoy eyes SPAC deal
Enjoy, a mobile retail operator best known for deliveries of cellphones and set-up services, is considering going public through a merger with a blank-check acquirer, according to a Bloomberg report citing unnamed sources.
The company is reportedly in talks to merge with a SPAC called Marquee Raine Acquisition Corp., in a deal that would set a $1.6 billion valuation for the combined entity.
Founded in 2014, Palo Alto-based Enjoy has raised at least $230 million in known funding to date, per Crunchbase data. Backers include L Catterton, Highland Capital Partners and Kleiner Perkins.
— Joanna Glasner
New funds
AXA Venture Partners raises 250M euros for growth fund: Paris-based AXA Venture Partners just announced that it has raised 250 million euros ($295 million) for its AVP Growth Fund II. The firm is eyeing a final close of 500 million euros later this year, with an eye to making investments in growth-stage technology companies.
— Joanna Glasner
Funding rounds
India’s CRED raises $215M for payment rewards platform: Bangalore-based CRED, a 2-year-old fintech startup that offers rewards for customers who use its platform to pay credit card bills, reportedly raised $215 million in a Series D round. Falcon Edge Capital and Coatue Management reportedly led the new round at a post-money valuation of $2.2 billion.
— Joanna Glasner
Health care
Empathy brings in $13M: Empathy, launched in 2021 and headquartered in New York and Tel Aviv, announced a $13 million seed round co-led by General Catalyst and Aleph. The platform provides families with tools and resources to navigate losing a loved one.
Zedsen inks $12M: U.K.-based health tech company Zedsen closed on a $12 million Series B round of funding to give it a $110 million valuation, the company said. Backers included Joseph Grano and Nasser Kazeminy. Zedsen is developing a noninvasive technology that helps consumers understand their health based on data coming from their bloodstream through a sensor that sits on the skin’s surface. Use cases include tracking prediabetes, fertility and personalizing diets.
Real raises $10M: Real, a New York-based mental wellness startup founded in 2019, announced $10 million in Series A financing led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with additional participation from existing and new strategic angels and funds, including Megan Rapinoe and Eric Kendricks. The company intends to use the new funding on technology and product development for a digital membership program, grow its staff and open its first mental health studio in New York.
— Christine Hall
E-commerce
Bartesian bags $20M as e-commerce alcohol sales rise: Bartesian, a Chicago-based company making at-home cocktail machines, announced $20 million in Series A funding, led by Cleveland Avenue, to accelerate growth within the U.S. and overseas, scale production and expand its team. The company also said that Mila Kunis has joined its board of advisers. In addition to triple-digit growth, the company, founded in 2014, said subscribers grew by more than 30x in the past year, and year-over-year revenue grew 975 percent in 2020.
Although COVID-19 fueled a rise in e-commerce alcohol sales, venture capital investment dollars and deals into the space were down across the board between 2019 and 2020, according to Crunchbase data. Since 2016, global alcohol e-commerce startups took in $2.06 billion in funding spread over 608 investments, according to Crunchbase data. In the U.S., investors poured $1.06 million into 285 transactions over the same period. Experts say the large wine and spirit market will be a magnet for new players and innovation, especially when online business is growing fast and companies can leverage convenience.
Dopple bags $9.8M: Dopple, a personalized e-commerce platform for children’s apparel headquartered in San Francisco, raised $9.8 million in funding led by Bullpen Capital and Precursor Ventures. The company, which grew 5x year over year last year, said it is going after a $96 billion U.S. off-price retail industry, offering a new way to sell excess inventory. Its platform gives brands a new sales channel, end-to-end logistics and marketing support.
— Christine Hall
SaaS
Grata inks $6.3M: New York-based Grata, a search engine for discovering small to middle-market private companies, expanded its seed funding to $9.5 million to scale its proprietary search engine technology and double its employee count in the U.S. The company initially raised $3.2 million last October. The new tranche was backed by existing investors Bling Capital, Accomplice and Alumni Ventures Group, as well as new investors Flex Capital and Touchdown Ventures.
Fyllo raises $30M: Fyllo, a Chicago-based digital marketing and compliance SaaS offering for highly regulated industries, including cannabis, closed an oversubscribed $30 million Series B round, co-led by JW Asset Management and Sol Global. Including this new round, Fyllo raised nearly $60 million since it was launched in 2019, according to Crunchbase data.
Fintech
Atani banks $6.25M: Spain-based cryptocurrency startup Atani, offering a one-stop trading suite for crypto enthusiasts, closed on a $6.25 million seed funding round led by JME Ventures. The seed investment follows a pre-seed round for $750,000 secured in May 2019, bringing Atani’s total funding to $7 million, the company said. Atani, founded in 2019, enables crypto traders and investors to execute trade across more than 20 crypto exchanges through a single interface, as well as monitor and chart portfolios. Users also have access to an integrated tax-reporting tool, which generates an automatic report for more than 30 countries.
— Christine Hall
Enterprise software
Sendbird flys to $1.05B valuation: Mobile engagement and communications company Sendbird closed a $100 million Series C valuing the company at $1.05 billion. The new round was led by STEADFAST Capital Ventures. Emergence Capital, Softbank Vision Fund 2, and World Innovation Lab also participated in the round, as well as previous investors ICONIQ Growth, Tiger Global Management and Meritech Capital.
Sendbird grew its monthly active users by 3x since its Series B in May 2019, and now more than 150 million users interact on Sendbird’s chat and video platform every month through different apps, such as those from Reddit, Hinge and Paytm.
Founded in Korea in 2013, the company has headquarters in San Mateo, California and has now raised $220.7 million to date, according to Crunchbase.
— Chris Metinko
OneStream Software grabs $200M at $6B valuation: Rochester, Michigan-based OneStream Software closed a $200 million Series B that now values the company at $6 billion. The round was led by D1 Capital Partners with participation from Tiger Global and Investment Group of Santa Barbara (IGSB).
The financial planning and analysis software developer realized 86 percent growth in annual recurring revenue last year while increasing its customer base 40 percent.
Founded in 2010, the company has now raised $200 million to date, according to Crunchbase.
— Chris Metinko
Illustration: Dom Guzman
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