News
London-based Tessian, a cybersecurity company that uses machine learning to automatically predict and eliminate advanced threats on email caused by human error, has bagged $65 million (nearly £46 million) in a Series C funding round.
The investment round was led by March Capital, a VC firm that had backed cybersecurity unicorns – CrowdStrike and KnowBe4. Also, existing investors, including Accel, Latitude, Balderton Capital, and Sequoia Capital participated in this round alongside new investor Schroder Adveq. With this, the total investment in Tessian is now $120 million (nearly £85 million) and its valuation is now $500 million (nearly £353 million).
Tessian wants to use the investment to accelerate its mission of quantifying and preventing human risk in global enterprises and empowering people to do their best work without security getting in the way. The company will expand its platform’s capabilities, helping companies replace their secure email gateways and legacy data loss prevention solutions, and will soon expand beyond email to secure other interfaces like messaging, web, and collaboration platforms. Also, Tessian eyes to triple its rapidly growing employee base with a specific focus on its sales team in North America.
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Overture Life, the IVF process automation startup recently announced that it has raised $15M in Series B funding, bringing its fundraising total to $37M as it continues to attract investments in its mission to democratize in-vitro fertilization (IVF).
The round was led by London-based Octopus Ventures, one of Europe’s largest and most active early-stage investors, Google Ventures also participated in the round, in its first Spain-based investment. Additional investment was received from existing investors such as Khosla Ventures, Felicis Ventures, and Marc Benioff, who were all early backers of the company.
Overture Life strives to democratise processes in assisted reproduction to make them more accessible, simplify techniques, and optimise use of resources. The company is developing medical devices and novel embryo testing methodologies that will automate all stages of the IVF process, lowering costs and increasing throughput for IVF practitioners.
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While, the global coronavirus pandemic affected mental health around the world — ICAS World Ltd (ICAS), a leading global provider of mental health and employee wellness services, has acquired the NHS-commissioned mental health tech startup, Hello Tomo. The financial details of the deal remain undisclosed.
The acquisition is the first major milestone for ICAS as it rolls out its new global digital health strategy, tapping into the $121 billion mental wellness market and expanding its support for the 790 million people around the world currently affected by a mental health condition.
Hello Tomo founded in 2016 to help users build and maintain healthy habits to manage depression, anxiety, and overall mental health. The app encourages users to create an anonymous peer support community through photo sharing. It also helps people to form positive associations between their actions and feelings to improve self-management, build resilience and reduce the risk of acute episodes.
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Dianomi, a London-based provider of native digital advertising services, has today listed itself on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange. Notably, Dianomi is the first UK company to go public under the Business Growth Fund (BGF) portfolio.
The IPO price represents a market capitalisation on the admission of £82 million. In 2018, BGF – the UK & Ireland’s most active growth capital investor – invested £6.3 million in Dianomi.
Founded by Rupert Hodson (CEO), Raphael Queisser (COO), and Cabell de Marcellus (CTO) in 2003, the company enables premium clients to deliver native advertisements to a targeted audience across the desktop and mobile websites and Apps of premium publishers.
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Trade Republic, a leading European online brokerage that offers commission-free trading similar to Robinhood in the United States, said on Thursday it had raised $900 million from investors at a valuation of more than $5 billion.
The funding round at Trade Republic, which was founded six years ago in Berlin and counts over a million customers in Germany, France and Austria, was led by Sequoia, the storied Silicon Valley investor that recently opened a London office.
Co-founder Christian Hecker told Reuters that Trade Republic would invest the proceeds in expanding across the entire euro zone over the next two years, with market launches in Spain and Italy planned next.
"We want to build the bank of the future," Hecker said in an interview.
"We are the only online broker in Europe that has a banking licence and its own technology."
Like Robinhood, which has spawned a new class of U.S. retail investor that has powered the latest bull market in stocks, Trade Republic offers commission-free investment via an easy-to-use smartphone app.
The hype around retail investing has drawn attention to Trade Republic, Hecker said, adding however that its focus was on helping millennials invest over the longer term at a time of negative interest rates and pension shortfalls.
Trade Republic offers free exchange-traded fund savings plans and commission-free investing in shares and cryptocurrencies.
It manages 6 billion euros ($7.3 billion) in assets. Half of its customers have never invested before in their lives before signing up, said fellow co-founder Thomas Pischke.
Sequoia backed Silicon Valley giants Apple and Google and more recently invested in Stripe, the payments company founded by two Irish brothers, and Klarna, the Swedish 'buy now, pay later' fintech that is eyeing a stock market listing.
“The democratization of financial markets will be one of the most important consumer trends of the next decade," Doug Leone, partner at Sequoia, said in a statement.
"Trade Republic is on the leading edge of this trend and has attracted an untapped generation of European savers who demand increased financial accessibility."
Joining the investment round were TCV and Thrive Capital, as well as existing investors Accel, Founders Fund, Creandum and Project A.
Swedish vegan milk maker Oatly Group AB (OTLY.O), which counts celebrities Oprah Winfrey and Natalie Portman among its backers, raised $1.4 billion in its U.S. initial public offering on Wednesday, the company said in a statement.
The company, whose investors also include rapper Jay Z and former Starbucks Corp head Howard Schultz, said it priced 84.4 million American depositary shares in the initial public offering at $17 each, at the top of its indicated range. This implies a valuation for the company of $10 billion.
Oatly's share sale comes in the middle of a crucial juncture for the U.S. IPO market, which is facing significant volatility due to inflation fears that have forced investors to abandon high-growth stocks, focusing on value stocks instead.
The outcome of offerings this week is being watched for clues on the near-term future of the U.S. capital markets, which have witnessed a stunning rally over the past 15 months as share sales of hundreds of companies, including big names such as Airbnb (ABNB.O), Snowflake (SNOW.N) and DoorDash (DASH.N), breached all-time records.
Last week, at least three IPOs, including mortgage insurer Enact Holdings Inc and hearing care services company Hear.com, were pulled due to choppy market conditions.
The Malmö, Sweden based maker of dairy alternatives sells its products in more than 20 markets across Europe, the United States and China. Known primarily for its oat milk products, it has tie-ups with several cafes in the United States, including Starbucks. It also sells its products online and through food retailers like Target Corp (TGT.N) and Tesco.
The stock market listing comes at a time when the plant-based food sector continues to attract mainstream investor attention, especially as fast-food chains and upscale restaurants create new menus to draw in health and environment-conscious diners.
Much of the demand for plant-based food is being led by millennials and generation Z consumers, who are more than willing to spend on sustainable products that are also healthy.
Last year, Oatly, founded by brothers Rickard and Björn Öste in 1990, raised $200 million in a star-studded investment round led by private equity firm Blackstone Group (BX.N) and including Winfrey, Portman, an entertainment company founded by Jay Z and Schultz.
Oatly's biggest shareholder is a partnership between Belgian investment firm Verlinvest and an entity called Blossom Key Holdings, which is controlled by China Resources Co Ltd, a Chinese government-owned company.
Verlinvest is the investment company of the family behind brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABI.BR). Private equity firm Blackstone also owns a sizable stake in Oatly.
Morgan Stanley, J.P.Morgan and Credit Suisse are among the lead underwriters for the offering.
Cognite, an industrial software-as-a-service (SaaS) company, today announced it has raised $150 million in an equity funding round led by TCV at a $1.6 billion post-money valuation. Cognite says this investment marks one of the largest funding rounds for a SaaS company in Europe and will be used to expand its platform and support hiring efforts.
According to a 2020 PricewaterhouseCoopers survey, companies in manufacturing expect efficiency gains over the next five years attributable to digital transformations. McKinsey’s research with the World Economic Forum puts the value creation potential of manufacturers implementing “Industry 4.0” — the automation of traditional industrial practices — at $3.7 trillion in 2025.
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An incoming president will always create a long list of tasks for the team in charge of running the White House. Moving a whole family out and a new one in is bound to have its challenges.
However, Joe Biden has apparently already tested the Secret Service - with his workout equipment. It’s led to some intense dialog about America's cybersecurity as a whole, and even its status as a global player in protecting against digital attacks. Let's take a look at how this played out.
Fitness-conscious 78-year-old Biden is reportedly a fan of the Peloton stationary bikes, sales of which soared when gyms were closed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
But the problem is that the interactive machines come equipped with webcams and microphones to allow users to stream classes and talk to instructors. Not only could this mean the POTUS may turn up in a class with other startled participants, but it also has negative implications for the security of the White House.
Cybersecurity expert Max Kilger at the University of Texas told Popular Mechanics magazine there’s a risk that malicious parties could target the Peloton as a way of getting to Biden and spying not only on his home, but on his workplace.
The expert pointed out that it isn't just the bike either, as that could simply be used as a jumping-off point to access smartwatches and TVs within the White House, should someone successfully install malware.
The Secret Service and the National Security Agency (NSA) have already spoken out to insist they’ll be making changes to the bike's IT infrastructure to mitigate the risk, including removing cameras and microphones and constantly changing the passwords.
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Launched in April 2020 and with a hard cap of £1.25bn, this fundraise marks the firm’s largest to date – nearly double the size of its predecessor fund Livingbridge 6, which closed at £660m in November 2016.
Commitments have been accepted from a global investor base, comprised of a strong network of existing investors bolstered by new, blue-chip Limited Partners (LPs) across the UK, Europe, and the US. For the first time, investors from the Middle East, Asia and Latin America have also committed to the Livingbridge platform.
Livingbridge 7 will focus on investing equity of up to £150m in high-growth, entrepreneurial businesses with enterprise values of up to £300m, over a five-year period. The firm’s investment strategy will remain focussed on its key sectors, including services, technology, consumer and healthcare & education.
Target companies will predominantly be based in the UK, with several investments expected from Livingbridge’s offices in Melbourne, Australia. Transformational M&A and international expansion plans for the Fund’s portfolio companies will be supported by Livingbridge’s US team based in Boston, Massachusetts.
Fund 7 has already secured its first transaction, with Livingbridge’s investment facilitating the merger of two Australian GP groups Better Medical and SmartClinics in January 2021 creating the fifth-largest general practice platform in Australia.
Fiona Dane at Livingbridge, said: “We are thrilled to welcome commitments from such a high-quality pool of global investors, with the strong re-up rates from existing partners a testament to our deep relationships and excellent track-record in providing our investors with strong returns. We are very grateful for their ongoing support.”
“Despite the fund launching just before the pandemic took hold, we successfully secured investments from new LPs entirely virtually, thanks to our established brand and long-standing leadership team.”
Panaseer, a London, UK- and NYC-based Continuous Controls Monitoring platform for enterprise security, secured $26.5m in series B funding.
The round, which brought total funding raised to date to $43m, was led by AllegisCyber Capital with participation from existing investors Evolution Equity Partners, Notion Capital, AlbionVC, Cisco Investments and Paladin Capital Group, as well as new investor, National Grid Partners.
The company intends to use the funds to continue to expand operations, its development efforts and business reach.
Led by Jonathan Gill, CEO, Panaseer provides a Continuous Controls Monitoring (CCM) platform for enterprise security. The CCM platform uniquely correlates data from all security tools to identify and measure missing assets, control gaps, and advise on underperforming controls.
Clients include the world’s largest institutions and enterprises.