The Crunchbase News Briefing: Fri., Oct. 9

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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Robinhood says some accounts were targeted by hackers

Hackers may have targeted some of Robinhood customers’ email accounts outside of the commission-free investing company’s platform, Reuters reported Friday.

A company spokesperson told Reuters that the issue was not the result of a breach in Robinhood’s systems.

“We’re actively working with those impacted to secure their accounts,” Robinhood told media outlets.

The Menlo Park-based fintech company, founded in 2013, has focused on investment education and making stock trading accessible to everyone.

In August, we reported that Robinhood raised a $200 million Series G led by D1 Capital Partners, giving the company a valuation of $11.2 billion. In September, the company added $460 million to the round participated by Sequoia, Andreessen Horowitz, DST Global, Ribbit Capital, 9Yards Capital and D1 Capital Partners.

In total, Robinhood has raised $2.2 billion, according to Crunchbase data. Following the most recent round, Robinhood was touting a $11.7 billion post-money valuation.

As we have reported in the past, it has been widely speculated that Robinhood is poised for an initial public offering.

IBM spins out legacy business to focus on cloud growth

IBM is splitting itself into two public companies, the culmination of a long effort by the 109-year-old firm to diversify away from its legacy businesses and focus on high-margin cloud computing.

The company’s plan is to list its IT infrastructure services unit as a separate company with a new name by the end of 2021. It will have a workforce of roughly 90,000 employees.

Investors cheered the move, sending IBM stock higher following the announcement.

Funding rounds

• Accurics brings in $20M for cyber resilience: Accurics a cloud cyber resilience specialist that is enabling resilient, self-healing cloud native infrastructure, announced $20 million across seed and series A financing. Intel Capital led the Series A, while ClearSky led the seed. The new investment is intended for technology development.
• Clair inks $4.5M for instant pay advances: New York-based social impact fintech startup Clair, raised $4.5 million in seed funding to provide free instant pay advances to hourly and gig workers to a digital bank account that can be accessed via debit card. Upfront Ventures led the round with participation from Founder Collective and Walkabout Ventures.

Other news

• AMD eyes $30B Xilinx purchase: Advanced Micro Devices is in advanced talks to buy rival chip-maker Xilinx in a deal that could be valued at more than $30 billion, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal citing people familiar with the matter.
• Devialet launches Apple AirPods rival: French high-end audio tech company Devialet debuted a pair of  wireless earbuds, its first new product in two years. Called Gemini, the gadget will sell in the U.S. for around $300, beginning in late November.

Illustration: Dom Guzman