Archives

CIVC Partners, L.P. - a Chicago-based middle market private equity firm - recently announced the completion of fundraising for its latest fund, CIVC Partners Fund VII, with $870 million of commitments.  Launched in June 2023, Fund VII was oversubscribed and surpassed its initial target of $700 million.

ProJenX - a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing novel, brain-penetrant therapies targeting biologically defined pathways for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other debilitating brain diseases - recently announced the initial closing of a $15 million Series A financing. Led by Medical Excellence Capital - which also led the company's seed financing round and created ProJenX in collaboration with Project ALS and researchers at Columbia University - the Series A funding round will fund the continued development of ProJenX's lead compound, prosetin, for the treatment of ALS.

Rush.app is a company that helps e-commerce brands and online retailers increase revenue and turn one-time buyers into repeat customers in just a few clicks through its shipping notifications that take them to high-converting and beautifully crafted tracking pages filled with upsells and cross-sells. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Rush.app’s newly appointed CEO, Mario Peshev.

Won J. You is a seasoned design leader and educator who’s spent over 20 years designing and creating award-winning experiences. Currently, Won leads the charge at Won J. You Studios as chief disruptor and designer for social impact, where he is inspired by creating immersive experiences and elegant and engaging products.

Virdee - a leader in guest experience technology and check-in automation - recently announced that it has raised $12.4 million in an oversubscribed Series A funding round led by Moneta Ventures with participation from Silverton Partners, Koch Real Estate Investments, Alumni Ventures, DJR Advisors, Capital Factory and other strategic partners. And Virdee will use this funding round to further the company’s technological innovation with expanded product features and functionality while growing its workforce and deepening its presence in the hospitality sector.

Qu - an agile restaurant tech company with the industry’s first unified commerce platform for multi-channel ordering - recently announced an investment from Enlightened Hospitality Investments (EHI), a strategic growth equity firm affiliated with Union Square Hospitality Group (USHG). And EHI invests in high-growth, category-leading companies, emphasizing technologies that fuel improved guest and employee experiences.

Terray Therapeutics - a biotechnology company integrating scale experimentation and generative AI to improve the speed, cost, and success rate of small molecule drug discovery and development - recently announced an equity investment by NVentures, NVIDIA’s venture capital arm. Additional financing included a strong syndicate of new and existing institutional investors, including industry leaders John Maraganore, founding Chief Executive Officer of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, and Bassil Dahiyat, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Xencor.

AristaMD - a digital healthcare company specializing in eConsults and referral management services - recently announced it has joined forces with Sitka, a video-consult specialist network supporting value-based care providers, and the close of its latest financing to help expand cost-effective and timely specialty care.

Layer Health is a healthcare AI company that spun out of MIT, and it is backed by $4 million in funding from GV (Google Ventures), General Catalyst, and Inception Health. The company's goal is to solve the information problem in healthcare.

There are nearly one-third of Americans who are dealing with healthcare-related debt, and about half of individuals’ medical debt exceeds $2,000. And to lessen the burden of healthcare costs for small business employees, health benefits startup StretchDollar has partnered with Resolve Medical Bills, a medical debt solution company.

TRAFiX LLC - a leading provider of order and execution management software (OEMS) and FIX connectivity solutions for the global capital markets - recently announced that it has secured a strategic growth investment from Marlin Equity Partners. The deal will enable the company to advance its market position through rapid product development, support its expansion goals, and make continued investments in its people and talent.

Ambyint - a leading provider of AI-powered production and artificial lift optimization software for the energy industry - recently announced the successful closure of its latest capital round and relocation of its head office to Calgary, Alberta.

Refine Intelligence - a pioneer in Financial Crime Greenflagging - recently launched with a $13 million seed funding round led by Glilot Capital Partners and Fin Capital with participation from SYN Ventures, Valley Ventures (the corporate venture capital arm of Valley Bank), and other investors including Ground Up Ventures.

Techstars New York City Accelerator recently announced the 12 remarkable companies selected for the Winter Class of 2023. The Founders of these innovative startups were carefully chosen for demonstrating exceptional promise. They will be participating in an immersive three-month mentorship-driven program where they will receive access to 125+ mentors and support across every facet of their business.

Falfurrias Capital Partners recently announced a platform investment in Synergy ECP, a software engineering, cybersecurity, and systems engineering service provider for the U.S. Intelligence Community and Defense Department. Synergy ECP utilizes these capabilities to deliver essential support to a growing portfolio of National Security missions.

Summer is a company founded by former Airbnb employees offering an innovative approach to short-term rentals and vacation home ownership. And the company recently announced an $18 million funding round from a group of leading investors, including QED and Viola FinTech, and a secured debt facility of up to $50 million from Setpoint Capital.

Ascidian Therapeutics - a biotechnology company focused on treating human diseases by rewriting RNA - recently announced $40 million in Series A extension funding committed by Apple Tree Partners (ATP).

CFX Labs - a future leader in monetizing rapid and secure international payments markets currently operating a nationwide payment network - recently announced it has raised $9.5 million in seed funding. And CFX Labs raised funds from a diverse array of strategic partners, including Shima Capital, Decasonic, Antalpha, CMT Digital, Corazon Capital, Hard Yaka, Kraken Ventures, New Form Capital, and Metropolitan Capital Bank & Trust, amongst others in an oversubscribed round.

Stellaromics - a leading provider of in situ spatial multi-omics technology - recently announced that the company has raised $25 million in a Series A financing round. The Series A funding round included Plaisance Capital Management and a private family office based in Silicon Valley.

BioPhy recently launched its AI operating system to radically accelerate the identification and developing of the most promising drug candidates. And by combining scientific, clinical, and regulatory insights with a proprietary operational assessment model, BioPhy’s AI platform is designed to assess biological feasibility and predict the likelihood a clinical trial will have a positive outcome, steering capital allocation and expediting time to market.

Spark Car Wash - a premier express car wash operator in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania - recently announced that it has raised $30 million of additional growth capital through a Series B round led by GoPoint Ventures. This investment enables Spark to develop its expanding store base further by bringing modern, membership-driven car washes to a region rich with growth potential. Spark currently has three operating washes: four are in active construction, and total pipeline visibility is on over 32 locations.

Rubicon Technology Partners - a leading private equity firm focused on enterprise software investments - recently announced the successful closing of its latest fund, Rubicon Technology Partners IV (Fund IV) at approximately $1.7 billion. And this represents a 34% increase in size from its predecessor fund, Rubicon Technology Partners III, which closed in 2020.

RTC Partners - a growth-focused private equity firm - recently announced it had closed strategic growth investments in four industry-leading, North America-based marketing and sales services firms – fama PR, Intelisent, MarketBridge, and Quarry. By bringing these firms together, it establishes the foundation of an integrated and data-driven platform designed to drive value creation across a wide spectrum of client marketing and sales initiatives.

ReturnGO - an innovative company that enables efficient management of returns and exchanges for products purchased on e-commerce sites - recently announced that it has entered into a first-of-its-kind collaboration with Amazon Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF), which will provide MCF merchants with an integrated solution that automates the entire return and exchange process.

Responsiv - an AI Assistant for in-house legal teams - recently announced it raised $3 million in seed funding led by Greylock with participation from OnDean, the family office of Andrew Sieja, the founder of Relativity, Permanent Capital Ventures, and Julius Genachowski. Responsiv enables attorneys to utilize the power of AI to cut down on research time and get legal answers in minutes.

Atlas - a 3D generative AI platform that partners with game developers and brands to build virtual worlds and experiences in a fraction of the time - recently launched after two years in stealth. This announcement had followed the close of two funding rounds: a $4.5 million round led by 6th Man Ventures (6MV) and a $1.5 million round led by Collab+Currency. Other participants include the a16z Scouting Fund via Shrapnel, Contango, Gaingels, GFR Fund, New Renaissance Ventures, Square Enix, and Wagmi Ventures.

Next DLP - a leader in insider risk and data protection - recently announced a strategic partnership with security hyperautomation pioneer Torq in a deal designed to combat insider risk through heightened detection and automated response actions. And electric adventure vehicle company Rivian will utilize the deep visibility provided by the joint solution to shine a light on insider risk to prevent accidental data loss and stop malicious theft of valuable intellectual property. This will fully integrate Next DLP's Reveal Platform, a user-centric, flexible, cloud-native, AI/ML-powered cybersecurity solution, with the enterprise-grade Torq Hyperautomation platform, which automates and connects complex security infrastructures at a dramatic scale.

Arch - a private investment management platform modernizing K-1 workflows, automating operations, and simplifying reporting for financial professionals - recently announced that it has raised $20 million in Series A funding. This funding round was led by Menlo Ventures, with participation from existing investors Craft Ventures and Quiet Capital and new investors Carta, Citi Ventures, GPS Investment Partners, and Focus Financial Partners.

Solvimon - a next-generation billing platform - recently announced it has raised €9 million from Northzone and select business angels. This seed funding round will be used to continue expanding the team and to accelerate go-to-market.

46 Labs is a company orchestrating the world’s connectivity. Built by the industry-leading PeerEdge Connectivity Fabric and providing the only unified platform to manage global connectivity, 46 Labs empowers IT leaders to deliver value and efficiency through a suite of digital infrastructure and business connectivity solutions. Pulse 2.0 interviewed 46 Labs founder and CEO Trevor Francis to learn more.