Greetings from Los Angeles, where peHUB Across America kicks off this evening. Can’t wait to see a bunch of you tonight, and then later this week in Chicago, DC, New York and Boston (airline-willing, of course). Now onto the business of business:
*** The Blackstone Group has hired Ivan Brockman away from Citi, where he was co-head of West Coast technology I-banking. He’s expected to formally join later this summer — one source referred to the interim period as “gardening leave” — at which point he’ll focus on private equity transactions in the tech sector.
Brockman would be Blackstone’s second senior PE pro in Silicon Valley, joining John Hodge (Menlo Park). The firm also around half a dozen folks in a downtown San Fran office, but they mostly focus on real estate and asset management.
A Blackstone spokesman declined to comment. Messages left with Citi and Brockman (at his home) were not returned.
*** Freescale today announced that it’s spinning off its MRAM unit into a new company called Everspin. The deal also includes a $20 million equity infusion for Everspin from VC firms New Venture Partners, Lux Capital, Sigma Partners, DFC and Epic Ventures.
My original thought was that this may be an example of Freescale generating some liquidity, in order to help pay off its leveraged loan interest. But I was told emphatically by multiple people that such a read was incorrect, as almost all of the money is being used as growth capital for EverSpin. Freescale is basically contributing the team and IP, and in exchange will remain the independent company’s largest single shareholder. I also asked about future funding, and was told that some is likely — but that EverSpin will not be the type of semiconductor company that needs hundreds of millions of dollars.
*** Erin on contrarian numbers for Contrarian Capital.
*** Today’s magic number is 6. That’s the number of times yesterday I was jeered while taking a walk outside my hotel. Seemed to have something to do with my Celtics cap, and my proximity to the Staples Center (which was showing the game on the jumbotron).
*** peHUB First Read, including how horse trainers are raising “thoroughbred funds,” complete with 2% management fees and 20% carried interest. Hope they didn’t invest in Big Brown Saturday.
In Memoriam: Nicola Campbell
Some very sad news to report out of Silicon Valley, where venture capitalist Nicola Campbell has passed away at the age of 37. She was serving as a partner with Sofinnova Ventures, and before that had been with BA Venture Partners (now Scale Venture Partners) and Burrill & Co. Her deals included Alimera Biosciences, Cellective Therapeutics, Marinus Pharma and Phenomix.
Nicola had begun her career as an immunologist, receiving her PhD from Mount Sinai Medical Center, and then working with Genentech. Part of her passion for the work was sparked by her own battle with Crohn’s Disease, although it is unclear if that condition led to her untimely passing.
I have not yet been able to connect with Sofinnova, but have spoken to others who knew Nicola far better than I. They all described her as cheerful and energetic, and noted how she had successfully launched a Bay Area program that connected life sciences VCs with area physicians and medical researchers.
Nicola will be buried in a ceremony in her native Canada. Her parents request that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America. I also invite you to share remembrances of Nicola here.
Top Three
RockYou a San Mateo, Calif.-based developer of social widgets, has raised $35 million in Series C funding led by DCM. The company did not say if existing shareholders Sequoia Capital or Lightspeed Venture Partners also participated.
The Carlyle Group and JMI Equity have agreed increased their acquisition price for Gencom Software International Inc. (TSX: GCM), a Canadian supplier of mining productivity solutions. The original deal was to pay Gencom stockholders C$2.90 per share, but it’s now been raised to D$3.05 per share. That increases the overall deal value from C$180 million to C$190 million.
The Carlyle Group and JMI Equity have agreed increased their acquisition price for Gencom Software International Inc. (TSX: GCM), a Canadian supplier of mining productivity solutions. The original deal was to pay Gencom stockholders C$2.90 per share, but it’s now been raised to D$3.05 per share. That increases the overall deal value from C$180 million to C$190 million.
VC Deals
RockYou, a San Mateo, Calif.-based developer of social widgets, has raised $35 million in Series C funding led by DCM. The company did not say if existing shareholders Sequoia Capital or Lightspeed Venture Partners also participated.
Entellus Medical Inc., a Maple Grove, Minn.-based developer of a sys>tem for treating sinusitis, has raised $15 million in third-round funding. Montagu Newhall Associates led the round, and was joined by return backers Split Rock Partners and SV Life Sciences. www.entellusmedical.com
Icynene Group Ltd., a Mississauga, Ontario-based maker of spray foam insulation, has raised $15 million in VC funding, according to VentureWire. No investor details were reported. www.icynene.com
GenVault Corp., a Carlsbad, Calif.-based provider of room-temperature biosample management, has raised $13 million in new VC funding. Montagu Newhall Associates led the round, and was joined by return backers Cross Creek Capital, Domain Associates and QuestMark Partners. The company has now raised around $55 million in total funding since 2002.
ClickFox Inc., an Atlanta-based provider of customer experience analytics, has raised $12.5 million in Series B funding. Ascent Venture Partners led the round, and was joined by return backers Cedar Fund, Delta Ventures and Veritas Venture Partners.
Bihu.com, a Bejing-based provider of in-game advertising and instant messaging, has raised $10 million in first-round funding from Sequoia Capital China, according to SinoCast. The company is planning an IPO on the Nasdaq for the second half of 2009. www.bihu.com
Innotas, a San Francisco-based on-demand PPM vendor, has raised $6 million in Series C funding. Backers include ArrowPath Venture Partners, Velocity Interactive Group and several undisclosed “strategic investors.”
Krillion Inc., a Palo Alto, Calif.-based maker of PC and mobile software that lets retailers keep track of inventory, has $6 million in additional Series A funding. The round total is now $9.1 million. Leapfrog Ventures led the extension, and was joined by return backer Hummer Winblad Venture Partners. led the deal, with Ann Winblad taking a board seat. Company CEO Joel Toledano was previously the director of business development for Yahoo Search. www.krillion.com
Symplified, a Boulder, Colo.-based identity management company formed by the founding team of Securant (sold to RSA Security in 201), has raised $6 million in Series A funding. Granite Ventures and Allegis Capital co-led the round.
Roamware, a San Jose, Calif.-based provider of roaming solutions for mobile communications, has raised an undisclosed amount of strategic funding from T-Mobile Venture Fund. It had previously raised VC funding from firms like DCM-Doll Capital Management, Accretive Technology Partners and shelter Capital Partners — including a $14 million Series C round in 2005. www.roamware.com
Buyout Deals
The Carlyle Group and JMI Equity have agreed increased their acquisition price for Gencom Software International Inc. (TSX: GCM), a Canadian supplier of mining productivity solutions. The original deal was to pay Gencom stockholders C$2.90 per share, but it’s now been raised to D$3.05 per share. That increases the overall deal value from C$180 million to C$190 million.
Nord Anglia Education (LSE: NAE) has rejected a 450 pence-per-share buyout offer from Baring Private Equity Asia, arguing that it did not adequately reflect the company’s growth prospects. The bid represented a 45% premium to Nord Anglia’s closing price last Friday, and would have valued ! the company at around £180 million. www.nordanglia.com
Tuleh LLC, a couture fashion house, has raised an undisclosed amount of private equity funding from Trilea Partners.
Human Resources
John Gage has joined Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers as a partner. He was a co-founder of sun Microsystems, where he most recently served as chief researcher and vice president of the Science Office.
Andrew Goodson has joined Babson Capital Europe as head of distribution. He previously was with Citi, where he ran syndicate for CDOs and structured credit in Europe.
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