Bidding War

Private Equity Firms Look to Shop at SVB, General Catalyst Looks to Raise Record Twelfth Fund, and Adept's AI Ambitions Get a Boost.

Author

Adam from VC Brags
March 15, 2023

Welcome Shareholders,

In this daily edition of the Brags Newsletter, we'll cover how the largest private equity players are looking to feed on SVB's loan portfolio, how a venture firm looks to raise record funding, and an AI startup looks to turbocharge its capabilities with new funding.

So sit back, grab a snack, and enjoy!

Venture Today 👏

  • Apollo, Blackstone, and KKR are eyeing a loan book from Silicon Valley Bank, which was recently seized by federal regulators.

Apollo, Blackstone, and KKR are three of the world's largest alternative asset managers and are looking to grab a slice of the roughly $73.6 billion in assets that SVB held at the end of December 2022. Blackstone is also currently in talks with the Bank to purchase other assets.

The loans held by Silicon Valley Bank are made primarily to early-stage and growth startups, as well as providing credit to entrepreneurs and venture firms. Industry insiders claim that the Bank's loan portfolio is an attractive buy and wasn't the primary reason for sparking a bank run that ultimately led to the collapse of the Bank. SVB Financial, which is the holding company of SVB, is also in talks with suitors to sell its venture and securities division.

Who's Raising?

  • Cambridge, Massachusetts-based General Catalyst is planning to raise at least $5 billion for its twelfth flagship fund.

The new funding would be a modest step up over the $4.6 billion raised from its previous funds in February 2022 . General Catalyst has a proven track record of backing successful startups, including Stripe, Airbnb, Snap, Warby Parker, and Instacart.

The firm invests in a diverse range of industries, such as health care, fintech, crypto, artificial intelligence, climate, and education. If the new fund surpasses $5 billion, it will make it the fourth-largest US-based venture fund ever recorded. In the current economic environment, General Catalyst's latest fundraising campaign will serve as a litmus test to determine whether investors still have an appetite for startups.

Startup of the Day

  • Adept, an AI startup, announced that it raised $350 million in a Series B funding round led by General Catalyst and Spark Capital, bringing the company's valuation to $1 billion.

Having raised $65 million in April 2022, Adept now plans to use the new funds to launch its initial products, train models, and onboard more talent. Adept is developing AI models that go beyond just responding to text commands, like a chatbot, by actually turning those commands into actions.

The company's generative AI has the potential to help users perform a variety of tasks, from browsing the internet to navigating enterprise software tools. Adept said that its latest funding round featured not only participation from existing investors and new financial partners but also some of the most iconic companies in technology.

Memes and Other Things

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