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On Tuesday, AngelList Venture closed its first round of funding since the turnaround in 2020. The $100 million round, led by Tiger Global and Collaborative Company, valued the business at $4.1 billion.
It is not necessarily expected. This round comes just weeks after the organization’s CEO, Avlok Kohli, told me that the company doesn’t need venture money, a stance that AngelList, which was founded in 2010 and split into AngelList Venture and AngelList Talent in 2020 – each with their own CEO and board of directors – has long held accept.
Despite its business of helping other startups raise money, AngelList itself has largely resisted the call for venture capital and operates on what others might see. is a tight budget. Indeed, prior to raising this massive new round, the larger company had, prior to its launch, raised $124 million over multiple rounds over the years – some unannounced.
Likely, their views on venture funding stem in part from prior experience involving founder Naval Ravikant, who once felt cheated by selling a previous company he co-founded. foundation, Epinions, to the point where he sued its staunch venture backer, Benchmark.
However, as Kohli explained in our recent conversation, the philosophy of AngelList has long been that companies raising too much money can hinder their growth because hiring takes the center stage. mind, slowing down other aspects of the business. “If your whole focus is on shipping speed and shipping great products, then increasing headcount really goes against that,” he says. So what changed and inspired AngelList to pursue Tiger’s seal of approval? Hedge funds have been seeding the early-stage market, making investing more interesting.
For full coverage of the topic, check out my TechCrunch+ column,”AngelList Venture has a new look.“For the rest of this newsletter, we’ll talk about an inclusive and disruptive LatAm startup, the community beyond capitalism, and why SPAC is on the news. As always, you can support me by sharing this newsletter, follow me on twitter or Subscribe to my personal blog.
Trading of the week
I would like to thank Mara, a startup to “reinvent” the grocery shopping experience for the underserved in Latin America, raised $6 million this week. The startup offers supermarket items at wholesale prices and allows people to order a shopping cart through websites – instead of hard-to-access phone apps. It also has delivery points where customers can pick up and pay for their groceries.
Here’s why it’s important: Grocery delivery is a tough business, let alone one that is hoping to make it cheaper and more convenient for low-income families. That’s why I’m interested in the fact that the company is avoiding a growth mindset at all costs. Mary Ann reports that Mara is taking an approach that focuses on one area at a time, making sure it “compounds breakeven” there before moving into another.
Honorable mention:
Image credits: Jordan Lye (Opens in a new window) / Beautiful pictures
Communities Outside of Capitalism
No buzzwords are unchecked, that’s why I decided to find out the real impact of the community — and how capitalism both complicates and changes its implications in startups. After all, bringing people together to put together a product and idea is not a new phenomenon.
Here’s why it’s important: After much attention, we started to see which community efforts had a real impact. This week, Lolita Taub Starts Her Own Venture Capital Firm, supported by and from the community she’s aggregated over the past decade in startups. Ganas Ventures, her pre-seed and seed company, is even raising the rest of her first fund from Taub’s followers.
Followers are friends, not food:
Image credits: Lolita Taub
SPAC is a four letter word (again)
On Equity Live this week, we came to the conclusion that SPAC is again a four letter word. The stock transfer route is no longer in vogue, with companies like Better.com and Kin abandoning their plans (and Acorns raising more capital after pausing interest in them).
Here’s why it’s important: The IPO window is pretty much closed at this point. While I expect to see startups stay private for longer, the late-stage market is softening. Oh oh. Late-stage companies that need more capital may not have access to some if they don’t have a solid business model. Expect the axes to continue.
2022 feels different than 2020:
Image credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch
In Week
We can hang out live! Early! Techcrunch Early Stage 2022 is April 14, aka near, and takes place in San Francisco. Join us for a one-day founders summit with teachers Terri Burns, Greylock’s Glen Evans, and Felicis’ Aydin Senkut. The top team of contributors is looking to get in touch directly, so don’t be surprised if the dashboard is a bit worse than usual.
Here is the full agendaand Get your launch ticket here.
Plus, follow our latest maker for Equity: Maggie Stamets!
Seen on TechCrunch
Uganda stands out as country’s startups attract YC, Google
Stripe becomes crypto-friendly again
Touch ID forever, Face ID never
Better.com employees learned about layoffs when a severance check appeared in the payroll app
Fintech calls for providing students with loan relief options
Seen on TechCrunch +
6 technologists discuss how codeless tools are changing software development
How to calculate your startup’s TAM, SAM and SOM
A rough sketch of the thorny kick-off scene heading into Q2
As war escalates in Europe, it is a ‘shield’ for the cybersecurity industry
Until next time,
