The Briefing: Vision Fund Posts $8B Profit, Automattic Buys Parse.ly, And More

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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SoftBank Vision Fund posts $8B Q3 profit

SoftBank Group’s Vision Fund unit rebounded from a loss to record an 844 billion yen ($8 billion) third-quarter profit.

SoftBank-backed firms that went public during the quarter include real estate buying and selling platform Opendoor and food delivery app operator DoorDash. SoftBank said it made a 13.2 times return on its DoorDash investment, as of year-end, and a 3.7 times return on Opendoor.

Almost half of the first Vision Fund’s portfolio, which includes a stake in Uber Technologies, was reportedly exited or listed at the end of December. Overall, the $100 billion Vision Fund has recorded $20.4 billion in gross gains since inception.

— Joanna Glasner

M&A

Automattic buys Parse.ly: Online publishing platform Automattic is acquiring  analytics provider Parse.ly for an undisclosed sum. Founded over a decade ago, New York-based Parse.ly previously raised at least $12.9 million in known funding.

— Joanna Glasner

Enterprise software

Nexthink raises $180M: Nexthink, a provider of digital experience management software, has raised $180 million in a series D round. Permira led the financing for the Switzerland-based company, at a reported valuation of $1.1 billion.

— Joanna Glasner

Transportation

Self-driving vehicle startup Pony.ai raised $100 million in a new round of funding, bringing its valuation to $5.3 billion, according to Venture Beat. The funding is an extension of the company’s Series C round, which it raised in November 2020.

–Sophia Kunthara

Illustration: Dom Guzman