Hedge funds and mutual funds ranging from Tiger Global Management to T. Rowe Price have been frequent participants in mega-financing rounds and billion-dollar valuations this year. Now, sovereign wealth funds are also jumping into the fray.
According to CB Insights data, Singapore’s two sovereign wealth funds – Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) and Temasek Holdings – are on pace for an annual deal high in 2014 for private transactions.
Most notably, GIC recently led a $150M investment into closely-watched mobile payments startup Square, bumping up its valuation to $6B. But Square isn’t the only high-profile deal the Singapore SWFs have participated in this year. The two Singapore SWFs also participated in landmark deals to Indian eCommerce giants – Flipkart and Snapdeal. GIC partipated in Flipkart’s $1B financing in July at a valuation of $7B, while Temasek participated Snapdeal’s $100M round in May. Separately, Temasek also led a $50M deal into Internet of Things platform Jasper Technologies in April at a valuation of $1B.
The chart below highlights aggregate disclosed tech investment/M&A transactions by the two SWFs since 2010. Of note, 2014 YTD has already seen 3x more private tech deals than 2013. Note: deals by wholly owned Temasek subsidiaries Vertex Venture Holdings and Pavilion Capital were included in the data.
Given the influx and notable deals this year, will we see more VC-backed U.S. startups look to sovereign wealth funds for funding? Weigh in below. If you need to track SWF deal activity, use the CB Insights private company financing database. Create a free account below.
Photo Credit: Terence S. Jones
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