Apollo Global Management Inc.’s recent overture to buy Covestro AG is the latest sign the chemicals sector will be a busy space for dealmaking.
September 28, 2020
Cyndx Insights is your daily window to the business world, focusing primarily
on M&A activities, capital markets, and important technology trends.
Daily Insights reports and categorizes financial news from U.S., Europe and Asia for full global insights.
U.S. & Canada
Buyout Titan Apollo's Plastics Play Hints At Next Hotbed of Dealmaking
Apollo Global Management Inc.’s recent overture to buy Covestro AG is the latest sign the chemicals sector will be a busy space for dealmaking. “Interest in chemicals remains very high, both from PE as well as corporates...,” said Telly Zachariades, a managing director at the Valence Group investment bank
Read more on middlemarket.com
Image: manine99i / Shutterstock.com
Cleveland-Cliffs to Buy U.S. Assets of ArcelorMittal
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc, the largest U.S. producer of iron ore pellets, has agreed to buy the U.S. assets of the world’s largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal SA for about $1.4 billion in cash and shares.
Read more on Reuters.com
Image: Shestakov Dmytro / Shutterstock.com
Apple Buys Startup That Makes Listening To Podcasts More Like Tuning Into Radio Stations
Apple Inc. acquired a startup that makes listening to podcasts more like tuning into radio stations, seeking to improve its service amid growing competition from Spotify Technology SA. The technology giant earlier this year bought Scout FM, which was a popular podcast app on iPhones, Android devices and Amazon smart speakers, according to people with knowledge of the deal.
Distressed US Commercial Real Estate Lost 27 Pct of Value: Wells Fargo
Commercial properties in the U.S. may have lost as much as 25 percent of their value as the impact of the coronavirus has taken its toll on hotels, malls and other commercial buildings. It raises questions over the value of these properties as collateral backing commercial mortgages.
Read more on pymnts.com Image: MaxyM / Shutterstock.com
Commerce-as-a-Service Takes The B2B Venture Capital Lead
eCommerce-as-a-Service startup that secured the largest funding this week, coming in a $300 million, showcasing investors' appetite for companies looking to help other businesses with their digital migrations.
Read more on pymnts.com
Image: Golden Sikorka / Shutterstock.com
Brands Will Dedicate $58.6B to eCommerce Advertising
Amid the pandemic and the increase in eCommerce during the health crisis, WARC Data’s Global Advertising Trends report found that brands worldwide will put $58.6 billion toward online shopping advertising. Marketing on sites such as Rakuten and TikTok is forecasted to rise 18.3 percent globally, surging 30 times quicker than the broader digital advertising market, MediaPost reported.
Read more on pymnts.com Image: Alex Ruhl / Shutterstock.com
Epic Games Acquires Kid Tech Platform SuperAwesome
Epic Games has announced the acquisition of SuperAwesome, a pioneer in the “kid tech” market that provides children with what it says are safe digital experiences and age-appropriate advertising. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Read more on Venturebeat.com Image: courtesy of SuperAwesome
3D Printing Investment Going Vertical As Big Exit Looms
While 3D printers haven’t become a ubiquitous presence in our homes, the technology has increasingly become a driving force of innovation in the manufacturing sphere. In the past year, VCs have invested over $600 million in at least 45 startups devoted to 3D-printing technology or making products with 3D printers, per Crunchbase data.
Read more on Crunchbase.com
Image: Alexander Tolstykh / Shutterstock.com
2021: Fintech Trends to Watch
Financial technology, has also improved many lives. Thanks to fintech, we’ve got more convenience than ever before. Although modern technology has been used for economic purposes for years, the sector is growing rapidly. While nobody can infallibly predict the future, we’re confident that the following trends will soon become widespread movements in fintech.
Read more on finsmes.com
Image: Rawpixe.com / Shutterstock.com
U.S. Funding & Capital Raising Round Up
The following capital raises were reported yesterday and this morning:
Humane, Inc., a San Francisco, CA-based company advancing a new platform for the next era of computing, raised $30m in Series A funding. The round was led by Sam Altman and Lachy Groom. finsmes.com
Spiceology has closed a $4.7M round of financing. The round was led by Ty Bennett, with participation from the Cowles Company, Kickstart Funds III & IV and a collection of angel investors. VCNewsdaily.com
Palladio Biosciences, Inc., a privately-held, clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing medicines for orphan diseases of the kidney, announced today the completion of a $20 million Series B investment. The financing was led by new investor, Samsara BioCapital. vcnewsdaily.com
SideQuest, the sideloading platform is taking $650K in early investment from BoostVC, Oculus founder Palmer Luckey, and The Fund. The relatively small preseed funding will help SideQuest’s Shane Harris and Orla Harris build a testing service and other tools for virtual reality developers. Venturebeat.com
Brightline, the only private passenger rail service in the U.S., is moving ahead with an offering of up to $3.2 billion of tax-exempt bonds for a high-speed train line connecting Las Vegas to Southern California. Forbes.com
Alexis Ohanian, the co-founder of Reddit and early-stage VC firm Initialized Capital, is raising a new fund, named 776, with a target of $150 million. It is rumored Ohanian is investing in pre-seed and seed startups. Techcrunch.com
Palladio Biosciences, Inc., a privately-held, clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing medicines for orphan diseases of the kidney, announced the completion of a $20 million Series B investment led by Samsara BioCapital. VCOnline.com
NeuroTherapia, Inc., a Cleveland, OH-based clinical-stage company focused on developing therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, closed its Series A financing of $8.8M. The round was led by Brain Trust Accelerator Fund II. finsmes.com
IONpath, Inc., a Menlo Park, Calif.-based developer of high-definition spatial proteomics, closed a $18m Series B financing. The round was led by Samsara BioCapital. Finsmes.com
SketchyMedical, a Los Angeles, CA-based online education company that teaches complex concepts through visual memory techniques, received a $30m majority-stake investment from TCG. Finsmes.com
LB Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a NYC-based biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing novel and improved versions of CNS treatments, closed a $10.0m convertible note offering through a private placement to existing and new investors. Finsmes.com
Galecto, which develops drugs that target galectin, a protein thought to play a role in fibrosis,has raised $64 million to advance clinical development of its lead compound and others in its pipeline. The financing announced Friday was led by Soleus Capital, which was joined by Eir Ventures. Xconomy.com
U.S. & Canada
Deals of the Day: M&A and Strategic Investments
TMX Group Limited announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire AST Investor Services Inc., and its subsidiary AST Trust Company, from a subsidiary of Armor Holdco, Inc, for $165 million in total consideration. finextra.com
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc, the largest U.S. producer of iron ore pellets, said on Monday it had agreed to buy the U.S. assets of world’s largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal SA for about $1.4 billion. Reuters.com
Cyndx International News - Europe & Asia
Undeterred by Pandemic, Aldi Keeps UK Store Expansion Plan
The British arm of German discount supermarket group Aldi said on Monday it would invest 1.3 billion pounds ($1.7 billion) over the next two years, sticking with its store opening plan despite the pandemic’s impact on shoppers’ behaviour.
Read more on Reuters.com Image: Joe Seer / Shutterstock.com
Open Banking Product Usage Surges in UK
Open banking is taking a firm hold in the UK, with user numbers doubling to two million in just over six months. According to the survey of 2000 UK adults in early July 2020, one in five started using online banking apps during lockdown and 54% now use them regularly.
Read more on Finextra.com Image: Lauren T / Shutterstock.com
What Will Drive Capital Markets Firms to Migrate to the Cloud in 2020?
Capital markets firms are adopting the AWS cloud in order to discover new opportunities, re-think and re-design how technology operates within an organisation, and implement cost-saving measures that increase efficiency.
Read more on Finextra.com
Image: metamorworks / Shutterstock.com
EU Proposes First Set of Rules for Crypto Assets
The European Union has taken a major step forward in its bid to regulate the crypto assets world after its executive branch issued its most extensive proposals to date for supervising the growing sector. Tye measures suggested within the EU's digital finance strategy include cryptocurrencies not presently included in general regulation as well as a number of so-called stablecoins.
Read more on finextra.com
Image: rawf8 / Shutterstock.com
Harley-Davidson To Exit World's Biggest Bike Market
Harley-Davidson is pulling out of India, the world's biggest motorcycle market. The iconic US motorcycle brand is stopping manufacturing and massively scaling back its sales operations.Harley's decision comes weeks after Toyota said it wouldn't expand further in India due to the country's high tax regime.
Read more on BBC.com Image: Fotos593 / Shutterstock.com
William Hill: Takeover Battle Looms for UK Bookmaker
A bid battle is looming for UK betting giant William Hill, which has 1,500 UK outlets, after it received two rival takeover approaches. The company confirmed it had received proposals from US-based private equity firm Apollo and casino giant Caesars Entertainment.
Read more on BBC.com
Image: Roger Utting / Shutterstock.com
This New Souteast Asian Fund Has its Eye on Chinese Cross-Border Firms
Singapore-based Altara Ventures debuted this week with a goal to raise more than $100 million for its first fund focused on early-stage tech startups in Southeast Asia. The financial vehicle was co-founded by Dave Ng, former head of Eight Roads Ventures.
Read more on Techcrunch.com
Image: VideoFlow / Shutterstock.com
Europe & Asia Funds & Capital Raising Round Up
The following capital raises were reported yesterday and this morning:
SPARQ, the Estonian fintech startup which promises to change how we manage personal finances, has secured financial backing of €450K from the Baltic International Bank. Eu-startups.com
Mosa Meat, a Maastricht, Netherlands-based food technology company, held first closing of $55M as part of a larger Series B funding round. The round was led by Blue Horizon Ventures. finsmes.com
MotorK, a Milan, Italy-based automotive sales and marketing technology company, raised more than €10 in equity and debt financing. The round was led by Real Web. Finsmes.com
Luckabox, the Winterthur-based VentureKick and KickStart alum recently secured a seven-figure pre-Series A round from existing investors Alpana Ventures, SICTIC and DAA Capital. Eu-startups.com
Acin, the data standards firm that is digitising operational and non-financial risk, today announces it has secured around €10.3 million in Series A funding, in a round led by leading European SaaS investor Notion Capital. Eu-startups.com
Urban, an On-demand wellness app has raised around €6.5 million on investment platform Seedrs. This is Seedrs’ third largest raise this year, and with over 800 investors, ranks in their top 20 in terms of investor numbers. Eu-startups.com
Europe & Asia
Deals of the Day: M&A and Strategic Investments
Aviva AV.L is weighing a piecemeal sale of its Italian business which consists of two joint venture agreements focused on life insurance as well as general insurance policies handled by a network of agents. Reuters.com
Kioxia Holdings Corp, the world’s second-largest flash memory chipmaker, said on Monday it would postpone plans for an initial public offering amid uncertainty in the global chip market stemming from U.S-China tensions. Reuters.com
PayMongo, which offers an online payments API for businesses in the Philippines, has announced a $12 million Series A investment from Stripe. Techcrunch.com
Neiman Marcus Holding Co said on Friday it has completed its Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection process, emerging from one of the highest-profile retail collapses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Financialnewsletter.com
The Bank of England has conceded that it could have moved more quickly to identify a security breach that allowed hedge funds to gain unauthorised access to press briefings and hear about sensitive market information ahead of their rivals. Finextra.com
Cyndx makes it faster and easier for investors and companies
seeking growth opportunities to find one another.
We offer the best search tools for acquisition targeting or
capital raising across any industry.
