Good news, cryptocurrency founders! Venture capital activity is increasing in this space, recovering from a multi-year low in investment in late 2023. To put it another way, venture capitalists appear to be more bullish on Web3 than they were a while ago.
But that wasn't the only news item we had to dig into on stocks this morning. Akamai is spending $450 million to acquire her API security company Noname, a deal that TechCrunch previously reported would be worth about $500 million. Still, $450 million is a lot of money, and considering No Name was worth more than $1 billion as of 2021, this deal is worth considering.
Speaking of M&A, Wiz is another name that could turn heads in the cybersecurity space thanks to its recent $1 billion funding. The company intends to strengthen its business by acquiring both distressed unicorns and hot, small startups. The company is currently valued at a whopping $12 billion. (Wayve also raised more than $1 billion, but focuses on the self-driving space rather than security.)
Monzo also won an additional $190 million, bringing its annual funding score to more than $600 million. Meanwhile, TikTok is battling a possible ban in the US and Oyo is trying to raise new capital at a fraction of its previous value.
lastly, Haje brings Pitch Deck Deconstruction to Equity! If you haven't read this series yet (start here), give it a try. Start a new segment by looking at NOQX's deck. We'll take a look at what worked, what didn't, and what's next.
Friday chat!
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