The Road Ahead
Welcome to i80 Group’s newsletter! Our team has curated a list of top headlines that impact the fintech and innovation economy. We aim to provide ecosystem participants with vetted, high-quality, and relevant resources. We hope you enjoy…
Theme of the week
A heightened focus on the global banking system in the aftermath of the SVB and Credit Suisse purchases. Editorials highlight the market participants that are stepping in to fill the gap.
Market Insights
A Morning Consult survey of 8,814 US adults reveals that 30% of Gen Z report having credit card debt, 10% lower than older generations. Data has long suggested that Gen Z is reluctant to use credit cards, though this survey adds a new wrinkle—at ~63%, their plastic ownership is on par with all US adults (Pipe Newsletter).
Mezzanine debt re-emerges as senior lenders turn more cautious (Pitchbook)
The real “dry powder” in the startup ecosystem: IPO backlog (LinkedIn – Ihar Mahaniok)
It’s tough to be a late-stage startup out there (LinkedIn – Peter Walker)
Editorials
Investors propose some struggling founders close shop and return funding (Techcrunch)
Credit Suisse’s death gives birth to new type of bank crisis (WSJ)
SVB is sold, but other banks are already filing the void (The Information)
Commercial real estate is the next shoe to drop for regional banks and the stock market (Yahoo Finance)
For Founders
Debt grows more expensive, harder to get for startups after SVB collapse (WSJ)
Product-market fit framework (LinkedIn – Gabby Zaeau)
VC Insights
Advice to startup founders and employees: strength doesn’t always come in numbers (Chamath Palihapitiya)
Total addressable market is useless (Forbes)
VC Fundraises
Torch announces $200M for funding consumer-facing startups (Pitchbook)
Dan Teran shares Gutter Capital’s challenge of closing its first fund (TechCrunch)
OpenView goes bigger with seventh fund, closing on $570M to invest in business software startups (TechCrunch)
Notable capital raises
Rain, a Venice, Calif.-based employee payment platform, raised $66 million in funding Series A funding. QED Investors and Invus Opportunities co-led the round and were joined by WndrCo, Tribe Capital, and Dreamers VC (Termsheet)
StellarFi lands $15M to help people build credit by paying bills, rent on time (TechCrunch)
Home insurance company Kin pulls in extra $15M for Series D round (Fintech Global)