The Briefing: UK’s Cazoo Going Public Via SPAC, Ajaib Lands $65M, 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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UK car-buying platform Cazoo to go public via SPAC

London-based Cazoo, an online platform for buying and financing used cars, announced that it plans to go public on the New York Stock Exchange through a merger with a blank-check acquirer.

Cazoo plans to merge with AJAX I, a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, in a transaction that values the combined company at a pro forma enterprise value of approximately $7 billion

Founded in 2018, Cazoo’s business has grown to a team of more than 1,800 across the U.K., Germany, France and Portugal. The company says revenue has been growing over 300 percent year-over-year, with expected 2021 revenues approaching $1 billion.

—  Joanna Glasner

Funding rounds

Indonesia’s Ajaib raises $65M for stock platform: Indonesian stock investment platform Ajaib has raised $65 million in a Series A extension round led by Ribbit Capital. The financing brings total round size for the Jakarta-based company, a participant in Y Combinator, to $90 million.

— Joanna Glasner

PILI lands €4M for bio-based pigments: Toulouse, France-based PILI, a company developing renewable colors including bio-based pigments for paints and inks, raised 4 million euros ($4.7 million) in fresh financing from backers including SOSV, Elaia and Bpifrance.

— Joanna Glasner

E-commerce

Tyltgo inks $1.8M for delivery tech: Canada-based Tyltgo, which connects merchants with customers through a branded delivery service, closed on $1.8 million in seed investment led by TI Platform Management. Founded in 2019, the company said it grew 2,000 percent in the last year, and the funding will support its expansion across Ontario, as well as to double its team of nine this year.

— Christine Hall

Health care

Cityblock Health, Crossover Health raise significant rounds: Cityblock Health, a Brooklyn-based health care provider for Medicaid and lower-income Medicare beneficiaries, raised $192 million in Series C extension funding. New investor Tiger Global led the round, which gives Cityblock total funding of $491 million since 2017, according to Crunchbase data. The company intends to use the new capital on product development.

Crossover Health, a San Clemente, California-based company that provides virtual and in-person care for employers and health plans, closed $168 million in an oversubscribed Series D financing led by Deerfield Management. The new funding gives Crossover $281 million in total funding since the company was founded in 2010, according to Crunchbase data. The capital will go toward expansion of the company’s online care network, the company said. It currently serves more than 400,000 eligible employees and dependents throughout the country.

— Christine Hall

Illustration: Dom Guzman