Venture Capital

We have counseled numerous unicorns from their inception as emerging companies to, in some cases, their post-initial public offering (IPO) maturity. Examples of these relationships and other venture capital investments include representation of:

• Allianz X, the strategic investment arm of Allianz Group, in its $350 million strategic investment as co-lead investor alongside TPG, with participation from State Farm, in Cambridge Mobile Telematics, to accelerate AI-driven road safety

• Latin American neobank Ualá in its $195 million Series E-X preferred equity financing at a post-money valuation of $3.2 billion, its $366 million Series E preferred equity financing, its $350 million Series D preferred equity financing as well as all of Ualá’s prior financing rounds, raising funds from Allianz X and affiliates of Tencent, Softbank, Goldman Sachs Investment Partners, Soros Fund Management, Monashees, Ribbit Capital, Jefferies, Stone Ridge Holdings Group, D1 Capital Partners and Pershing Square Foundation, among others

• Mercedes-Benz on its investment in humanoid robotics company Apptronik's $403 million Series A funding round

• Southeast Asia’s leading super app Grab Holdings Inc. in the following transactions:

  • Its “going public” transaction by way of a merger with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Altimeter Growth Corp., the largest SPAC merger ever, ascribing to Grab a pro forma equity value of approximately $40 billion

  • $6 billion-plus Series H and $1.5 billion-plus Series G equity financing rounds, including investments by SoftBank, MUFG, Booking Holdings, Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp., Microsoft Corp., Toyota Motor Corp. and Didi Chuxing, with one round of investments chosen as “Best Singapore Deal” at the FinanceAsia Achievement Awards

  • A $300 million-plus Series A equity financing round of Grab’s financial services business, led by South Korean Hanwha Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s digital banking joint venture

• Leading Korean e-commerce group Coupang in its $4.6 billion IPO, giving Coupang a market value of approximately $60 billion, and in numerous rounds of equity financing, from the seed round to a $1 billion round and a subsequent $2 billion round led by SoftBank

• The founder and CEO of Deliveroo in connection with the British food delivery startup’s IPO on the London Stock Exchange and related debt transactions

• Brazilian social commerce platform Trela in its $25 million Series A funding round led by SoftBank’s Latin America fund; additional investors included Kaszek, Y Combinator and General Catalyst

• Grupo Globo in numerous venture capital investments in Brazilian, Colombian, U.S. and Israeli startups in the transportation, technology, fashion, software, sports and entertainment industries, among others

• The venture capital arm of a major publicly traded U.S. pharmaceutical company in numerous venture capital investments in biotech startups

• A Fortune 500 energy provider in numerous venture capital investments in startups in the alternative energy, solar energy and air conditioning industries, among others

• Venture capital-backed Julep Media, Germany’s largest independent podcast monetization platform, in its exit sale to U.S.-based Liberated Syndication Inc.

• Sony Music Entertainment in numerous venture capital investments in media- and entertainment-related startups, including Pandora, the music streaming service, and Ultra Music, an independent dance label

We take an interdisciplinary approach to venture capital matters and offer guidance not only on corporate formation, corporate governance, investment activities, mergers and acquisitions, and venture finance, but also on relevant specialty areas such as employment, employee benefits and executive compensation, intellectual property, litigation, estate planning, data privacy and cybersecurity, real estate, tax, and commercial and technology transactions.

We advise leading industrial and operating companies looking to invest in venture funds in their sectors, providing insights and recommendations on cutting-edge products, potential customers and technologies that may enhance, complement or disrupt the investor’s business sector. We review fund and investment documents, identifying risks and commercial terms that may be improved through negotiation of the principal documents and side letters. We also assist with due diligence, negotiate co-investment rights and, for non-U.S. clients accessing U.S. funds and companies, assist with CFIUS compliance if necessary. We provide similar services to family offices.