Actors on stage…
Long before ‘lights, camera, action’ are the auditions. In the startup world, those auditioning are likely the startup’s founders. However, many startups should take a different approach and have the VCs audition. There’s a lot at stake if the startup takes VC monies from the wrong investors…
“Efforts to predict the success of startup ventures using data and statistical modeling have been around for a while. But what about turning the tables on VCs?” – Crunchbase
What a novel idea! Once startups fully understand who the director is, perhaps it is time for them to say, “Next, please,” and exit off-stage to the next potential funding opportunity.
Some notable trends this week:
- ‘Unlocation’ based startups are making waves
- Domestic deals were on ‘vacation’
- Blockchain picks up speed
Here are this week’s top 5 VC deals…
1Alpheya
$300M, Capital| Equity | UAE | Wealthtech | Lunate, BNY Mellon | https://www.alpheya.com/
LinkedIn Overview:
“Alpheya offers a full suite of cloud-native, AI-powered wealthtech solutions designed to strip away the complexities of wealth management and deliver differentiated experiences, insights, and new opportunities for your business.“
2Indy
$44M, Capital| Equity | France | Fintech | BlackFin Capital Partners, La Maison, iXO | https://www.indy.fr/
LinkedIn Overview:
“Indy is today’s most-advanced AI-powered DIY bookkeeping & accounting software.“
3Blast
$20M, Capital | Equity | Ethereum Layer 2 blockchain protocol | Blockchain | Paradigm, Standard Crypto | (no website available)
Coindesk Description:
“Blast natively participates in ETH staking, and the staking yield is passed back to the L2’s users and dapps…“
4Privy
$18M, Series A, Capital| Equity| Startup that build blockchain-based tools for their operations | Blockchain | Paradigm, Sequoia Capital, Blue Yard, Archetype, Justin Waldron, Ben Leventhal, Dan Romero, James Prestwich, Tarun Chitra, Linda Xie, Patricio Worthalter, Cooper Turley | https://www.privy.io/
LinkedIn Description:
“Easily onboard your users to web3 with a simple, robust library. Add beautiful authentication flows in minutes and serve every user, whether they have a wallet or not, across mobile and desktop.“
5Kiwi
$13M, Series A, Capital |Equity | India | Blockchain | Omidyar Network India, Nexus Venture Partners, Stellaris Venture Partners | https://gokiwi.in/
LinkedIn Description:
“Discover a new way to pay! Bringing about India’s Credit-UPI revolution. Pay With Credit, Scan With Kiwi.“
