The Crunchbase News Briefing: Fri., Oct. 2

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.

Subscribe to the Crunchbase Daily

Roblox reportedly eyes US IPO

Online gaming platform Roblox is reportedly working with investment banks to prepare for a public offering on a U.S. exchange as soon as early next year.

The offering could potentially double the recent $4 billion valuation Silicon Valley-based Roblox fetched as a private company, Reuters reported.  The company has not decided whether to pursue a traditional IPO or go with a direct listing, which has been a popular route to public markets of late for tech unicorns.

Plans for an offering come as online gaming revenues hit new highs as the pandemic leaves more consumers spending on entertainment at home.

Funding rounds

• Jüsto brings in $5M for expansion: Mexico City-based online supermarket Jüsto announced an additional $5 million in funding after raising $12 million earlier this summer. Investors include Pippa Lamb and Christian Dörffer from Sweet Capital; Sandeep Farias, Johanna Gil Posada and Lina Pena from Elevar Equity; Jose Manuel and team from Bimbo Ventures; and Rob Leclerc and Sofia Ramirez from AgFunder. The cash infusion brings Jüsto’s total capital raised to $27 million in less than a year. The new funding is planned for gamification, growth, last-mile operations and to explore the agricultural space.
• Malomo inks $2.7M for post-purchase logistics: Malomo, an information technology company helping e-commerce with customer experience and post-purchase, raised $2.7 million in seed funding The round was led by Base10 Partners, with participation from Harlem Capital, Irish Angels, Triple Map Ventures, Hyde Park Venture Partners and High Alpha Capital, as well as a network of angel investors.

Public offerings

• Hyliion goes public via SPAC: Hyliion, a developer of electrified powertrain solutions for Class 8 commercial vehicles, announced it has completed its business combination with Tortoise Acquisition Corp. With the business combination complete, the company has been renamed Hyliion Holdings Corp., with its common stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol HYLN.

Other news

• Senate panel to subpoena tech CEOs: The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee voted unanimously Thursday to approve a plan to subpoena CEOs of Twitter, Alphabet’s Google and Facebook for a hearing likely to be held before the election. The hearing will discuss reforming Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which offers tech companies protection from liability over content posted by users.

Illustration: Dom Guzman