Strategic View:
Italian tech unicorn Bending Spoons has raised $710 million in a new equity round, valuing it at $11 billion. The syndicate was led by T. Rowe Price, with Baillie Gifford, Cox Enterprises, and Fidelity participating. This club deal fuels the company’s aggressive M&A strategy to roll up digital consumer apps.
Full Story:
Bending Spoons, the Milan-based developer behind apps like Evernote and Meetup, has solidified its status as a European tech titan. The company raised $710 million in a financing round that looks more like a “pre-IPO syndication” than a traditional VC round. Led by T. Rowe Price, the club of investors includes long-term asset managers like Baillie Gifford and family-backed capital like Cox Enterprises.
This club deal is designed to provide “acquisition currency.” Bending Spoons operates as a “Berkshire Hathaway of Apps,” acquiring distressed or undervalued digital products and optimizing them with its proprietary platform. The involvement of such a diverse syndicate validates this roll-up model. The mix of primary and secondary capital also allowed early employees to cash out, cleaning up the cap table* before a potential future listing.
However, the valuation of $11 billion sets a high bar. The company must now deploy this capital efficiently to justify the price tag. The consortium of investors is betting that Bending Spoons can continue to find “value” assets in a tech market that is otherwise frothy.
Why It Matters:
Europe has produced a “Decacorn” aggregator. This club deal proves that European tech can attract top-tier US cross-over capital. It validates the “Buy and Build” strategy for digital apps.
Source(s):
Bending Spoons Raises $710M
Definitions:
*Cap Table: A spreadsheet that shows who owns the securities of a company.
