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Happy Monday, Term Sheet readers!
It’s great to be back from vacation in the Catskills—though the news certainly has not taken a break.
TikTok is scrambling to hash together a plan B as President Donald Trump’s administration threatens to ban the app in the U.S. Due to its Chinese ownership. Even as it negotiates a potential deal to sell its operations to Microsoft, TikTok is now planning to sue the Trump administration over the president’s executive order, per NPR.
Twitter is also now in the running to merge with TikTok’s U.S. Operations, per the Wall Street Journal. But Microsoft is still in the lead to snap up parts of TikTok.
There’s good reason to fight the ban rather than try to go through with a merger: Finding a buyer is one thing—closing a deal and extricating TikTok from its Chinese operations in a way that satisfies Washington is a whole other ballpark. Deals of over $25 billion took an average of nine months to close, per a Gartner study, a timeline that lengthens depending on the complexity of the deal. And heck, if this deal is not complex, I don’t know what is.
So what happens to TikTok’s operations as it seeks to turn a potential breakup with Bytedance into reality over a course of at least several months?
Forty-five days is one timeline to watch: Another deadline to eye is the U.S. Presidential election. U.S.-China geopolitical tensions have contributed to the pressure on TikTok, but domestic politics have also played a role. Trump, at one point, sought to ban TikTok outright, dismissing the idea of a sale to Microsoft. So why did he change his mind? Many in the Republican party worried a ban would alienate young voters ahead of the election, according to Reuters.
The Coins2Day Global 500: Coins2Day’s 2020 list of the top 500 companies in the world by revenue went live today. Included in the package is a fascinating story on India’s Jio Platforms, the mobile phone company that has lately garnered billions from Google, Facebook, KKR, and Silver Lake, and is now seeking to become the next big tech giant by capitalizing on the world’s second largest country by population.
Per the story, by my colleague Vivienne Walt: “Jio’s extraordinary season of fundraising might never have happened had it not been for a persistent complaint by [Mukesh] Ambani’s teenage twins that will sound familiar to any parent: The Internet was too slow to adequately run the sites other kids were consuming every day.”
I single out Jio because its story fits into the larger narrative of rising geopolitical tensions around the world: Smartphones made by Chinese company Xiaomi have become the market leader in recent years in India (though studies suggest smartphone penetration is still low—about a quarter of the population own one). Jio is now working with Google to build an entry-level smartphone. That news came as India itself has sought to distance itself from Chinese-backed companies.
Coins2Day is collecting nominations for our annual Most Powerful Women lists: We’re shaking things up a little this year, adding a new criterion: how the executive wields her power to shape her company and the wider world for the better. (Examples might include instituting hazard pay for frontline employees during the pandemic, instituting gender/racial pay parity, creating a program or business unit that serves a disadvantaged population, measurably reducing the company’s carbon footprint, or creating new hiring pipelines that have resulted in a more diverse workforce.)
We’re accepting submissions through this online form. The deadline for applications is Aug. 24.
Lucinda Shen
Twitter: @shenlucinda
Email: [email protected]
VENTURE DEALS
- Skillshare, a New York-based online learning platform, raised $66 million in funding. OMERS Growth Equity led the round.
- Routable, a San Francisco-based business-to-business payments service, raised $16 million total with $12 million in Series A funding from Y Combinator, Founders Co-Op, Lee Fixel, Box Group, as well as Liquid 2 Ventures, Jason Gardner, Gokul Rajaram, Aaron Schildkrout, Sam Hodges, and Immad Akhund.
- Vicarious Surgical, a Boston, Mass.-based maker of a surgical robotics platform, raised $13.2 million in funding. Philip Liang of E15 Capital led the round and was joined by investors including Bill Gates, Khosla Ventures, Innovation Endeavors, and AME Cloud Ventures.
- Oomnitza, a San Francisco-based platform for tracking and securing digital assets, raised $12.5 million in Series B funding. Shasta Ventures and Riverside Acceleration Capital led the round.
- IRONSCALES, a Tel Aviv-based email security platform, raised $8 million in extended Series B funding. Jump Capital led the round and was joined by investors including K1 Investment Management.
- WorkPatterns, a Marina Del Rey, Calif.-based people analytics platform, raised $2.8 million in seed funding from investors including Javelin Venture Partners and Pathfinder (Founders Fund’s early stage vehicle).
- Keyless, a London-based cybersecurity company, raised $2.2 million in funding. P101 SGR led the round and was joined by investors including Maire Investments, Luiss Alumni 4 Growth, Primomiglio SGR, and Xpring.
- Brio Systems, a Boston, Mass.-based maker of a Covid-19 testing system for the workplace, raised $1.9 million in seed funding. Investors included One Way Ventures, Techstars Ventures, Nimble Ventures, and Castor Ventures.
PRIVATE EQUITY
- OceanSound Partners recapped Netrix, a Bannockburn, Ill.-based provider of cloud infrastructure, collaboration, data, and development services and solutions to small and midsize enterprise customers. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Infinedi Partners invested in Cultural Experiences Abroad, a Phoenix, Ariz.-based provider of study abroad educational programs for U.S. University students in foreign countries. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Marlin Equity Partners invested in Pentalog, a French IT outsourcing company. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Intelerad Medical Systems, backed by Hg, acquired Radius, a Nashville, Tenn.-based provider of private and public cloud hosting. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Apollo Global Management is mulling a 3 billion-pound ($3.9 billion) takeover bid for AA, a U.K. Roadside recovery service AA Plc, per Sky News. Read more.
- BGH Capital agreed to acquire Village Roadshow (AUX:VRL), an Australian theme parks and movie theater operator for an enterprise value of up to A$758 million ($548.41 million). Read more.
OTHERS
- Aveva Group is in advanced talks to acquire OSIsoft, a San Leandro, Calif.-based industrial software maker , for about $5 billion, per Bloomberg citing sources. Read more.
- TGS offered to acquire PGS’s multi-client data library for $600 million in cash.
- Third Point Re agreed to acquire Sirius International, a Sweden- and Bermuda-based reinsurer, for roughly $788 million in cash and stock. The combined company is valued at about $3.3 billion.
BREAKUPS, HANGUPS, AND BANKRUPTCIES
- Pacific Drilling SA, a Luxembourg-based offshore oil and gas drilling contractor, may seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Read more.
- Learfield IMG College, a multimedia business that owns broadcast rights for several collegiate sports programs, is preparing for a possible financial restructuring, per the Wall Street Journal. Read more.
- Temasek Holdings terminated its S$4.1 billion ($3 billion) conditional offer for Keppel Corp, a Singapore conglomerate with marine businesses, by invoking a material adverse change (MAC) clause. Read more.
IPOS
- Xpeng, an Guangzhou, China-based electric luxury car maker, filed for an $100 million IPO. It posted revenue of $328.5 million in 2019 and a loss of $657.6 million. Firms including GGV and Taobao backed the Xpeng. It plans to list on the NYSE as “XPEV.” Read more.
- KE Holdings, a Beijing-based housing platform, plans to raise $1.9 billion in an offering of 106 million ADSs priced between $17 to $19 (About $800 million worth of ADSs acquired by insiders). The company posted revenue of $6.5 billion and losses of $308.5 million in 2019. Firms including Tencent, SoftBank, and Hillhouse back the firm. It plans to list on the NYSE as “BEKE.” Read more.
- Vistas Media Acquisition, a SPAC targeting companies in the media and entertainment industry, raised $100 million. The firm is led by Jacob Cherian, the former CEO of I-AM Capital Acquisition. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “VMACU.” Read more.
- FTAC Olympus Acquisition, a SPAC formed with the management of The Bancorp, filed for a $750 million IPO. The firm is targeting a fintech. It is led by Chairman Betsy Cohen, the founder of The Bancorp, and CEO Ryan Gilbert, a General Partner at Propel Venture Partners. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “FTOCU.” Read more.
- CF Finance Acquisition II, the second blank check company formed by Cantor Fitzgerald, filed for an $525 million IPO. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “CFIIU.” Read more.
- Hims, a San Francisco-based digital health company that sells wellness and health-care products, is in talks to go public via merger with SPAC Oaktree Acquisition Corp. In a deal that could value the firm at $2 billion, per Bloomberg citing sources. Hims is backed by firms including Institutional Venture Partners, Forerunner Ventures, and Redpoint Ventures. Read more.
- Canoo, a California-based EV startup, is in talked to go public by merging with an SPAC, Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp. IV. The SPAC is seeking to raise $300 million in new equity for the deal which would value the startup at over $2 billion, per Bloomberg citing sources. Read more.
- Ucommune, China’s biggest workspace provider, withdrew plans for an $100 million IPO. It posted net revenue of $62.7 million in 2018 and loss of $60.1 million. It planned to list on the NYSE as “UK.” Read more.
EXITS
- Roper Technologies Inc (NYSE: ROP) is in talks to acquire Vertafore, an insurance software maker backed by Vista Equity Partners and Bain Capital, for close to $5.5 billion. Read more.
- TA Associates acquired Surfaces Group, a Cenate Sotto, Italy-based supplier of abrasive tools used to smoothen, cut and polish high-end ceramic tiles, stone slabs, glass panes and metal objects, from Astorg. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
F+FS
- Clearlake Capital Group is expected to surpass its $1 billion target for Clearlake Flagship Plus Partners LP fund, used to supplement large investments and to find opportunities created from the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic, per the Wall Street Journal. Read more.
PEOPLE
- Wendell Brooks resigned as president of Intel Capital. Anthony Lin, who has led the round mergers and acquisitions and international investing, will takeover on an interim basis.
- Blake Heyde, Philip Purcell, and Mike Manno were promoted to vice president at Flexpoint Ford.
- Weston Moyer was promoted to principal from senior associate at Spike Ventures, the Stanford alumni fund of Alumni Ventures Group.
