The Week’s 10 Biggest Funding Rounds: SeatGeek And Triller Raise Big After SPAC Deals Fall Through

This is a weekly feature that runs down the week’s top 10 funding rounds in the U.S. Check out last week’s biggest funding rounds here.

Last year was the year of the SPAC—this year not so much. As that market has cooled, those companies looking to go public through a “blank-check company” have had to find other ways to finance their operations. Two of those companies lead our list this week.

1. SeatGeek, $238M, ticketing: The decline in the SPAC market stopped New York-based SeatGeek from going public. However, it did not stop the company from raising a lot of money. This week, SeatGeek announced it raised $238 million as part of a Series E at a $1 billion pre-money valuation. The funding announcement comes just about two months after SeatGeek’s $1.35 billion deal to go public via a SPAC was mutually canceled by both the SPAC, RedBall Acquisition Corp., and the company due to unfavorable market conditions. While the amount is less than a fifth of what the company would have raised from its SPAC deal, it does give the company a unicorn valuation and money to expand on its platform. SeatGeek’s SPAC deal was just one of many canceled this year as the market for such vehicles cooled significantly from a record-setting 2021. The new round was led by longtime investor Accel. Founded in 2009, SeatGeek has now raised approximately $400 million, according to Crunchbase data.

2. Triller, $200M, digital media: It was a busy week for Los Angeles-based Triller. It was reported the music and video app—not dissimilar to TikTok— had raised $200 million in financing ahead of a potential $3 billion IPO before the end of the year. The company’s planned $5 billion SPAC deal fell through in June (sound familiar?).The raise was a mix of debt and equity from investors such as Fubon Financial, TheWrap reported. Just a day later, Variety reported Sony Music filed a lawsuit against Triller for copyright infringement when the company allegedly stopped making payments for music used on the platform. This is not the first time Triller has faced legal trouble.

3. JenaValve Technology, $100M, health care: This week was not as big for large rounds going to health care and biotech companies, but that does not mean there aren’t a couple on this list. Irvine, California-based JenaValve Technology—which makes transcatheter aortic valve replacement systems—announced the initial closing of a $100 million Series C led by Bain Capital Life Sciences. Founded in 2006, the health care device startup has now raised nearly $300 million, according to Cruchbase.

4. Solid, $63M, fintech: It doesn’t seem like “fintech” as a sector is that old, but it is—and old fintech architecture that does not always keep up with the current needs of newer fintech and SaaS companies. That is where Solid comes in. The startup offers newer, modern architecture to get payment and banking options up and running through simple APIs. Investors clearly see the market there, as the San Mateo, California-based firm closed a $63 million Series B funding led by FTV Capital. Founded in 2019, the company—previously named Wise— has now raised nearly $81 million, according to Crunchbase data.

5. Bridger Photonics, $55M, energy: Montana-based startups do not pop up on this list often, but Bridger Photonics does this week after securing a $55 million investment from Beaverhead Partners LLC. The company has developed gas mapping LiDAR technology that allows the oil and gas industry to detect and manage emissions. Bridger does this by mounting sensors on small aircraft and scanning oil and gas infrastructure. Founded in 2006, this is the company’s first outside investment, per Crunchbase.

6. Alloy, $52M, fintech: New York-based fintech identity management startup Alloy closed a fresh $52 million round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and Avenir Growth at a $1.55 billion valuation. Last September, Alloy raised a $100 million Series C, also led by Lightspeed, at a $1.35 billion valuation. Founded in 2015, Alloy has now raised just over $200 million, according to Crunchbase.

7. (tied) Ascend Elements, $50M, battery: Westborough, Massachusetts-based Ascend Elements, a lithium-ion battery recycling and materials startup, closed a strategic investment of $50 million from SK ecoplant. Founded in 2015, the company has raised approximately $151 million, according to Crunchbase.

7. (tied) OneSignal, $50M, marketing automation: San Mateo, California-based customer engagement platform OneSignal secured a $50 million Series C led by BAM Elevate. Founded in 2014, the company says it has now raised more than $80 million.

7. (tied) Vilya, $50M, biotech: Seattle-based biotech medicine company Vilya closed a $50 million Series A led by Arch Venture Partners as part of its launch.

10. StarTree, $47M, analytics: Mountain View, California-based analytics platform developer StarTree closed a  $47 million Series B funding led by GGV Capital. Founded in 2018, the company has raised a total of $75 million to date, according to the company.

Big global deals

While U.S.-based startups saw some big rounds this week, the largest went to an online shopping company in Singapore.

• Lazada Group, an online buying and selling destination in Southeast Asia, closed a $912.5 million round.

Methodology

We tracked the largest rounds in the Crunchbase database that were raised by U.S.-based companies for the seven-day period of Aug. 27 to Sept. 2. Although most announced rounds are represented in the database, there could be a small time lag as some rounds are reported late in the week.

Illustration: Dom Guzman

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