Select deals from last week:
🇺🇸 Better Mortgage, a NY-based digital mortgage company, raised $750 million from SoftBank and Aurora Acquisition Corp. Back in May, Better agreed to go public via a reverse merger with Aurora Acquisition Corp. However, the terms of the deal were changed. Better received half of the pre-agreed capital infusion of $1.5 billion to strengthen its balance sheet and accelerate the growth of its business as it prepares for an IPO. CEO Vishal Garg subsequently laid off 900 employees via a single zoom call. Since it was established in 2016, Better has underwritten $31 billion in home loans and has positioned itself as a leading digital mortgage lender in the US. There are 14 other mortgage lenders in this interactive landscape of startups that help consumers buy, sell and own a home.
🇮🇳 Upstox, a Mumbai-based stock trading platform, joined the unicorn club following a $200 million investment at $3.5 billion valuation. Retail-oriented stock trading platforms have surged in popularity in the last 24 months as amateur investors bet on market recovery. However, privacy and transparency remain a challenge, even for the largest of them all, Robinhood. There are 83 retail-focused stock trading apps in this interactive landscape.
🇬🇧 Carwow, a UK-based car buying and selling platform, secured $55 million to accelerate growth of its new "Sell my car" product. Following the acquisition of Wizzle in June this year, Carwow launched a new product allowing customers to search for dealers and sell their current vehicle. As we've written before, a perfect storm has contributed to car marketplaces having a real moment. However, competition in the category is heating up with 900+ transportation marketplace operators globally, including well-capitalized players such as Cazoo, Kavak, Auto1 and Carvana, among others.
Other notable marketplace deals from the last week:
🇺🇸 JOKR, a NY-based ultrafast grocery delivery service, became a unicorn following a $260 million Series B. Launched earlier this year, JOKR is definitely one of the fastest companies to reach unicorn status. Investor interest in grocery delivery services went through the roof in 2021. VC investment reached $10 billion, more than the previous two years combined. The question remains if brands can stand out.
🇫🇷 Upway, a used electric bike marketplace, raised $5.7 million in seed funding. The bikes tends to be from well-known brands such as VanMoof and Cowboy, and are 20-50% cheaper than their original cost.
🇩🇪 Cirplus, a B2B marketplace for recycled plastic, raised €3.3 million Seed. The market for recycled plastics remains extremely fragmented. A marketplace can reduce costs for both processors and recyclers.
Read up on all the latest marketplaces deals in Dealroom.co
Exits:
🇬🇧 Selina, a London-based alternative accommodation platform, to go public via a SPAC. The deal values Selina at $1.2 billion.
Read up on all the latest marketplaces exits in Dealroom.co
