Serena Saitto — The Information

Serena Saitto

Zuora CEO Tien Tzuo. Photo by Zuora.

Benchmark-Backed Zuora Eyes IPO in 2018

By Serena Saitto · Oct. 17, 2017 2:34 PM PDT

Zuora, which makes billing and forecasting software for subscription software firms, is in talks to hire underwriters for an initial public offering next year, co-founder and CEO Tien Tzuo said in an interview. The move is in the latest sign that 2018 is likely to be a busier year for tech IPOs than 2017. “We have passed the magic... Zuora, which makes billing and forecasting software for subscription software firms, is in talks...

Photo: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg

The People Behind SoftBank’s Global Deal Spree

By Juro Osawa and Serena Saitto · Oct. 16, 2017 7:02 AM PDT · 3 comments

SoftBank is synonymous with Masayoshi Son, the charismatic founder of the Japanese telecom and internet giant that is reshaping global tech with its colossal $93 billion Vision Fund. But behind Japan’s richest man is a team of trusted company veterans, recent banking hires and Silicon Valley tech executives. Mr. Son’s management team... SoftBank is synonymous with Masayoshi Son, the charismatic founder of the Japanese telecom and...

Bill Gurley of Benchmark and Masayoshi Son of SoftBank. Photo by Bloomberg.

SoftBank, Benchmark Face Final Hurdle in Uber Deal

By Serena Saitto and Amir Efrati · Oct. 11, 2017 2:38 PM PDT · 1 comment

It’s been a week since the Uber board agreed, in theory, to sell between $7 billion and $10 billion worth of Uber’s shares to SoftBank—yet nothing has happened. The reason: SoftBank and major Uber investors, including Benchmark, still haven’t been able to agree on the deal’s structure and price.Benchmark wants every... It’s been a week since the Uber board agreed, in theory, to sell between $7 billion and $10...

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. Photo by Bloomberg.

Uber Tender Gives Employees Chance to Realize Profits

By Serena Saitto, Alfred Lee and Amir Efrati · Oct. 4, 2017 3:16 PM PDT · 1 comment

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. Photo by Bloomberg.

Uber Tender Gives Employees Chance to Realize Profits

By Serena Saitto, Alfred Lee and Amir Efrati · Oct. 4, 2017 3:16 PM PDT · 1 comment

Uber is expected to sign an agreement with SoftBank later Wednesday paving the way for the start of a tender offer for Uber shares that could be worth $8.5 billion.The offer is a big deal for Uber investors, including some of its 16,000 employees. While private tech firms often run tender offers to give employees and other shareholders an... Uber is expected to sign an agreement with SoftBank later Wednesday paving the way for the start...

Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google Enterprise

Women Sue Oracle Alleging Pay Discrimination

By Serena Saitto · Sept. 29, 2017 11:50 AM PDT · 4 comments

Three women have sued Oracle for allegedly paying women less than men in similar jobs, highlighting how the fight for gender equality extends to older tech companies as well as newer firms like Google.The suit, which hasn’t previously been reported, was filed on Aug. 28 in a California state court. The plaintiffs plan to seek class-action... Three women have sued Oracle for allegedly paying women less than men in similar jobs,...

Symphony CEO David Gurle. Photo by Bloomberg.

Markets Startups

Goldman-Backed Symphony to Raise $100M to Expand Beyond Banking

By Serena Saitto · Sept. 25, 2017 10:20 AM PDT

Symphony Communication Services, the bank-backed messaging startup taking on Bloomberg LP in a key part of its business, is in talks to raise at least $100 million from new investors. The company plans to use the money to finance an expansion into health care, government, insurance and accounting, according to CEO and founder David Gurle. In an... Symphony Communication Services, the bank-backed messaging startup taking on Bloomberg LP in a...

Source: Dealogic

Media/Telecom Enterprise

Tech IPO Hopes Turn to 2018

By Serena Saitto · Sept. 12, 2017 7:02 AM PDT

This hasn’t turned out to be the boom year for tech IPOs that some expected, so bankers and investors are turning their attention to 2018. At least a couple of high profile U.S. unicorns are expected to go public next year, including Dropbox and Peloton and maybe Airbnb. Less likely is Lyft, which now isn’t expected to go public... This hasn’t turned out to be the boom year for tech IPOs that some expected, so bankers and...

Art by Matt Vascellaro

Silicon Valley’s Favorite Dealmakers

By Serena Saitto · Aug. 21, 2017 7:01 AM PDT · 2 comments

Art by Matt Vascellaro

Subscriber Survey

Silicon Valley’s Favorite Dealmakers

By Serena Saitto · Aug. 21, 2017 7:01 AM PDT · 2 comments

For the second year in a row, Goldman Sachs was overwhelmingly the favorite choice of investment bank in our subscriber poll. Not only would more subscribers pick Goldman to handle their company’s IPO than any other firm, but Goldman bankers were nominated more often as favorites than those from any other firm.In both categories, Morgan... For the second year in a row, Goldman Sachs was overwhelmingly the favorite choice of investment...

Source: Court Filings. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Venture Capital Uber/Lyft

Kalanick Believes He Still Has Right to Appoint New Uber Directors

By Amir Efrati, Jessica E. Lessin and Serena Saitto · Aug. 10, 2017 3:51 PM PDT · 4 comments

Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick plans to dispute a claim by Benchmark Capital in a lawsuit filed Thursday that he agreed in June to give up the right to unilaterally name two new directors to the board, according to a person familiar with the situation. And he may soon try and name directors to the board without the approval of existing... Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick plans to dispute a claim by Benchmark Capital in a lawsuit filed...

Earnest co-founder and CEO Louis Beryl. Photo by Bloomberg.

Online Lender Earnest Seeks to Raise $50 Million or Find Buyer

By Serena Saitto · Aug. 8, 2017 10:49 AM PDT · 1 comment

Earnest, the online lending startup, is seeking to raise $50 million in new equity as it simultaneously looks for a buyer, according to people familiar with the situation.The San Francisco-based company hired Barclays as an adviser to pursue the so-called “dual-track” process, the people said. One of the people confirmed a Bloomberg... Earnest, the online lending startup, is seeking to raise $50 million in new equity as it...

SoftBank Chairman Masayoshi Son. Photo by Bloomberg.

Venture Capital Asia

At $45 Billion Price, SoftBank Talks Enflame Uber Tensions

By Jessica E. Lessin, Serena Saitto and Amir Efrati · Aug. 4, 2017 1:10 PM PDT · 2 comments

Three weeks ago, Benchmark partners Matt Cohler and Peter Fenton flew into Sun Valley, Idaho for a private meeting with Masayoshi Son of SoftBank, according to three people told about it. On the outskirts of the annual Allen & Co. media confab, the group tried to hammer out a deal for SoftBank to buy shares in Uber from existing investors... Three weeks ago, Benchmark partners Matt Cohler and Peter Fenton flew into Sun Valley, Idaho for...

Sand Hill Road, where Greylock is based. Photo by Bloomberg.

Greylock COO Tom Frangione Left Firm After ‘Lapse of Judgment’

By Serena Saitto · Aug. 2, 2017 3:19 PM PDT · 15 comments

Sand Hill Road, where Greylock is based. Photo by Bloomberg.

Greylock COO Tom Frangione Left Firm After ‘Lapse of Judgment’

By Serena Saitto · Aug. 2, 2017 3:19 PM PDT · 15 comments

Greylock Partners COO Tom Frangione stepped down at the firm’s request last month, after Greylock “learned of some behavior which would represent a significant lapse of judgment,” a Greylock spokeswoman said.According to a person familiar with the situation, Mr. Frangione had an inappropriate relationship with an... Greylock Partners COO Tom Frangione stepped down at the firm’s request last month, after...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Heidi Roizen on Taking Risks and Having a ‘Thick Skin’ as a Woman in VC

By Serena Saitto · Aug. 2, 2017 7:01 AM PDT · 4 comments

As one of the few women in the venture capital world both when she entered the field and to this day, DFJ operating partner Heidi Roizen has written about sexism and lewd behavior she has encountered during her career. While she advocates walking away from any business deal where someone behaves inappropriately, she doesn’t necessarily... As one of the few women in the venture capital world both when she entered the field and to this...

Source: PitchBook

More VCs Investing in Insurance Startups as Lending Fades

By Serena Saitto and Mike Sullivan · July 26, 2017 7:01 AM PDT · 3 comments

As the rush of venture capital money into online lending dissipates, VCs have turned their attention to another fintech sector: online insurance startups. Venture capital investments in insurance startups rose 50% to $1.4 billion in 2016 from a year earlier, even as money flowing into lending startups fell by more than half to $2.1 billion from... As the rush of venture capital money into online lending dissipates, VCs have turned their...

Union Square Ventures partner Fred Wilson. Photo by Bloomberg.

Venture Capital

Risks Facing VCs Planning to Invest in Cryptocurrencies

By Jon Victor and Serena Saitto · July 12, 2017 7:01 AM PDT · 5 comments

Some venture capital firms, including Bessemer Venture Partners and Union Square Ventures, are planning to invest in initial coin offerings, giving them direct exposure to cryptocurrencies after years of investing in startups operating in the sector. Making such investments would be risky and unorthodox for VCs.ICOs are crowdfunding campaigns... Some venture capital firms, including Bessemer Venture Partners and Union Square Ventures, are...

BlackRock's headquarters in New York. Photo by Bloomberg.

BlackRock Gets Wiped Out on Jawbone

By Serena Saitto and Alfred Lee · July 7, 2017 1:06 PM PDT · 1 comment

BlackRock's headquarters in New York. Photo by Bloomberg.

Venture Capital Asia

BlackRock Gets Wiped Out on Jawbone

By Serena Saitto and Alfred Lee · July 7, 2017 1:06 PM PDT · 1 comment

Funds overseen by BlackRock expect to lose at least 96% of the roughly $300 million loan they made two years ago to Jawbone, which is going out of business, government filings show.The New York-based asset manager marked down the value of the debt it held in Jawbone by nearly 98%, according to a Wednesday filing with the SEC. Slightly offsetting... Funds overseen by BlackRock expect to lose at least 96% of the roughly $300 million loan they...

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange when Snap went public in March. Photo by Bloomberg.

Media/Telecom Entertainment

Pace of Tech IPOs Remains Muted Despite Strong Market

By Serena Saitto · June 21, 2017 7:02 AM PDT

The year started well for the U.S. market of technology initial public offerings. Unicorns like Snap and Cloudera went public with a pop. Stock indexes soared. Now, though, tech bankers and investors say that 2017 won’t be the boom year they expected it to be. But they are still hopeful things will turn around in coming months. “This... The year started well for the U.S. market of technology initial public offerings. Unicorns like...

Angry Birds toys in display in Finland. Photo by Bloomberg

Tencent Explores Acquisition of Angry Birds Maker Rovio

By Serena Saitto and Juro Osawa · June 15, 2017 10:53 AM PDT · 1 comment

China’s Tencent is pursuing an acquisition of Rovio Entertainment, the Finnish maker of the Angry Birds game, according to people briefed on the situation. Such a deal would consolidate Tencent’s stranglehold on the gaming business.Tencent is among several companies to approach Rovio about a possible purchase, one of the people said.... China’s Tencent is pursuing an acquisition of Rovio Entertainment, the Finnish maker of the...

Jared Kushner. Photo by Bloomberg.

Kushner’s Cadre Raising $65M at More Than $800M Value

By Alfred Lee and Serena Saitto · May 31, 2017 6:01 PM PDT · 1 comment

Cadre, a New York-based real estate startup partly owned by Jared Kushner, is seeking to raise about $65 million, at a valuation of more than $800 million, according to a corporate filing and a person familiar with the fundraising efforts.The company came under the spotlight earlier this month when the Wall Street Journal reported that Jared... Cadre, a New York-based real estate startup partly owned by Jared Kushner, is seeking to raise...