Companies are staying private longer than ever before, leading to what many have called the “private IPO” trend, with late-stage financing and $100M+ mega-rounds allowing tech startups to access the funding they might have formerly found in the public markets.
Many of these deals are driven by crossover investors, including hedge funds and mutual funds normally focused on the public markets.
But the mega-round trend has cooled. After Q3’15 saw 72 $100M+ equity financings to VC-backed companies, the mega-round trend slipped in Q4’15, with just 38 such deals.
Both North America and Asia saw a significant decrease in mega-rounds vs. the exuberant levels seen in Q3’15. The quarter saw mega-financings dip in number to levels last seen in Q3’14.
Overall the mega-rounds in major markets in Q4’15 raised over $11.4B vs. $20.3B in Q3’15.
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