Early Exit

Welcome Shareholders,

First off, a huge thanks to all of the new shareholders joining us. In this daily edition of the Brags Newsletter, we'll cover how Founders Fund made a killing by exiting early from its crypto investments, the latest on the world's largest online fashion retailer and a BNPL startup that has avoided the sector's pitfalls with its recent raise. So sit back, grab a snack and enjoy.

Venture Today 👏

Peter Thiel's VC Firm Made Close to $2 Billion in Crypto Exit Before Crash

• Billionaire Peter Theil's Venture Firm Founders Fund unwound eight years of cryptocurrency investments before the market crashed last year.

According to a report from the FT, Founders Fund generated $1.8 billion after selling the majority of its crypto holdings by March 2022. Nearly 65% of the firm's investments were in Bitcoin, and the exit was timely since the price of the cryptocurrency tanked 70% after its exit.

Largely because of its crypto exit and public exits such as Airbnb and Palantir, Founders Fund returned $13 billion to investors between 2020 and 2022. Founders fund first bought Bitcoin in 2014, when it was trading under $1,000, and subsequently upped its stake over the next eight years. Theil was one of the first notable investors to put money into bitcoin. Founders Fund currently has $11 billion in assets under management.

Who's Raising?

Shein May Lower Valuation by 36% to $64 Billion in New Raise

• Chinese Fashion Retailer Shein is currently in talks to raise $3 billion from investors at a revised valuation of $64 billion.

The new Valuation will be a 36% reduction compared to the $100 billion that the company raised money at its last funding round last year. Investors in the new round include participations from Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, Sequoia China, and Private Equity Firm General Atlantic.

Shein, which was founded in 2008, is the largest online fashion marketplace in the world, selling clothes produced in china in the US, Europe, and Asia. The company was planning a US IPO early last year but shelved plans after increased volatility in capital markets and the emergence of war in Ukraine.

Startup of the Day

BNPL Firm Tabby Raises $58 Million at $660 Million Valuation

• MENA-based buy now, pay later startup Tabby has raised $58 million in a new round led by Sequoia Capital India and STV.

Other investors in the raise include PayPal Ventures (the venture arm of PayPal), Mubadala Investment Capital, Arbor Ventures, and Endeavor Catalyst. Tabby said that it would use the money raised to expand its product line and support its growth in new regions such as Egypt. Since its inception in 2019, Tabby has raised more than $410 million through a combination of debt and equity.

With its most recent raise, Tabby has more than doubled its Valuation from 18 months ago (the company was valued at $300 million in August 2021) and is now one of the most valuable startups in the MENA region. The financial services firm now has over 3 million active users shopping from 10,000+ brands, including nine of the ten largest retailers. The company, which recently surpassed issuing 150,000 Tabby Cards six months after launch, has seen its revenues increase 5x over the last year.

Memes and Other Things

Or, at the very least, sold a gang of secondary 😤😤😤