Term Sheet — Monday, July 23

When I began writing Term Sheet almost a year ago, VCs were skeptical of various crypto projects and rampant initial coin offerings. Needless to say, the conversation has changed.

At Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech conference in Aspen last week, I attended a breakfast roundtable discussion called “Cryptocurrency’s Wild Ride: Far From Over.” The conversation ranged from distributed applications to real estate tokens to the coming blockchain “platform wars.” Traditional investors, bankers, and entrepreneurs took part in the debate on what role cryptocurrencies will play in the broader tech sector.

But one thing that everyone agreed on — the crypto economy is not slowing down. As Fortune’s Jeff Roberts put it, “the next phase of crypto is coming quickly.”

As a result, Fortune just announced Brainstorm Finance, a new franchise that will convene leading figures from crypto, banking and venture. The first Brainstorm Finance will take place next June 19-20 in Montauk, Long Island.

...SPEAKING OF CRYPTO: Floodgate partner Mike Maples published a thoughtful post on crypto investing. He first outlines the differences between fast money & slow money investing:

“Fast Money” investors treat the market like it is a voting machine, a pulse of the current times. They try to out-predict it in the short term. They believe they know something material before others. They are quickly rewarded when everyone catches up and overreacts to new information. Liquidity is paramount to fast money investors because they need to get into and out of a stock or asset quickly.

“Slow Money” investors treat the market like it is a weighing machine. They try to make money by owning a part of a great business that will appreciate faster than the broader market over a very long time. Liquidity matters less to such investors because they might hold for decades.

More from his article:

It’s like the Tortoise and the Hare. Fast Money gets the positive attention and headlines in the beginning, but being patient and right drives the biggest outcomes.

Mark my words: Slow Money founders, builders, and investors will be the biggest winners in crypto. Some will say “it’s different this time,” either because crypto networks are not centrally owned or because of the community aspects of how crypto networks get built and governed. But when the dust settles, my bet is that the people who create value in a focused way for the longest time will rise above the rest.

Read the full post here.

P.S: Maples will write a guest column for Term Sheet in the very near future. Stay tuned.

THE LATEST FROM FORTUNE...

• Volkswagen races to put ‘dieselgate’ in the rear view (by Vivienne Walt)

• He Used to Protect U.S. Presidents. Now, He's Protecting Blockchain (by Polina Marinova)

• Internet Giants Are Transforming China (by Adam Lashinsky)

• Q&A: Accenture CEO Pierre Nanterme on M&A, AI, and Digital Transformation (by Clifton Leaf)

...AND ELSEWHERE:

Alibaba joins $600 million round for AI startup Megvii. Snapchat will shut down Snapcash. Saudi Arabia to spend billions to revive foreign investment. Pat McGrath's makeup line is now worth $1 billion. Ola aims for IPO in 3-4 years.

VENTURE DEALS

• Prescient, a fully-integrated Building Information Modeling design and building platform, raised $50 million in Series E funding at a pre-money valuation of $650 million. Eldridge Industries led the round.

• Orbex, a U.K.-based spaceflight company, raised $39.6 million in funding. Investors include UK Space Agency, Sunstone Technology Ventures, High-Tech Gründerfonds, Elecnor Deimos Space, the European Space Agency and the European Commission Horizon 2020 programme.

• Brightpearl, a U.K.-based purpose-built retail ERP platform, raised $15 million in funding. Cipio Partners led the round, and was joined by investors including MMC Ventures and Notion Capital.

• LoanSnap, a San Francisco-based mortgage startup, raised $8 million in Series A funding. True Ventures led the round, and was joined by investors including Baseline Ventures, Virgin Group, Core Innovation Partners, Liquid 2 Ventures, OVO Fund and Transmedia Ventures.

• Points, a Singapore-based blockchain data collaboration protocol, raised $8 million in funding. Investors include DHVC, Cherubic Ventures, Ce Yuan, Ontology Foundation, Nest.Bio Ventures and Zhong Cheng Xin Credit Technology.

• Ursa Space Systems, an Ithaca, N.Y.-based provider of geospatial intelligence solutions, raised $5.7 million in funding. RRE Ventures led the round, and was joined by investors including S&P Global and Paladin Capital Group.

• HerdDogg, an Ashland, Ore.-based provider of precision livestock and remote animal health, raised $2.3 million in seed funding. Serra Ventures led the round.

• Hemper, a Hauppauge, N.Y.-based cannabis accessories and lifestyle brand, raised $1 million in seed funding. The investor was Evolution Corporate Advisors.

PRIVATE EQUITY DEALS

• Aviation Technical Services, which is backed by JLL Partners, acquired Ranger Air, a Lewisville, Texas-based supplier of aircraft airframe and engine accessories and components. Financial terms weren't disclosed.

• Southfield Capital acquired Match Marketing Group, a Canada-based omnichannel marketing services firm. Financial terms weren't disclosed.

• McNally Capital invested in Federal Data Systems, a Linthicum, Md.-based provider of critical infrastructure and services. Other investors included Profile Capital Management and Pine Crest Capital. Financial terms weren't disclosed.

• Sunrise Strategic Partners, which is backed by Trilantic North America, invested in Little Secrets, a Boulder, Colo.-based clean label chocolate brand. Financial terms weren't disclosed.

• Riskonnect, a portfolio company of Thoma Bravo, agreed to acquire Marsh ClearSight LLC, a Chicago-based provider of safety, and claims software and services. Financial terms weren't disclosed.

• Apollo Global Management LLC (NYSE:APO) is in advanced talks to acquire LifePoint Health Inc (Nasdaq:LPNT). The deal could value LifePoint at close to $6 billion, including debt. Read more.

• A KKR-led consortium is buying LCY Chemical Corp (TSEC:1704) in a deal valued at $1.56 billion.

• Aviation Technical Services, which is backed by JLL Partners, acquired Ranger Air, a Lewisville, Texas-based supplier of aircraft airframe and engine accessories and components. Financial terms weren't disclosed.

IPOs

• China Tower, the Beijing-based telecom operator, has lined up $1.4 billion from investors for a $8.7 billion IPO in Hong Kong, Reuters reports citing sources. Read more.

• Cushman & Wakefield, the Chicago-based real estate firm, said it plans to raise $855 million in an IPO of 45 million shares priced between $16 to $18. The firm posted revenue of $6.9 billion in 2017. TPG (44.7% pre-offering) and PAG Asia (33.6%) back the firm. Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, and UBS are underwriters. It plans to list on the NYSE as “CWK.” Read more.

• Spartan Energy Acquisition, a New York-based blank check seeking a company in the energy business, filed for a $400 million IPO. The firm plans to sell 40 million units priced at $10. Apollo executives back the firm. Citi and Credit Suisse are underwriters. It plans to list on the NYSE as  “SPAQU.” Read more.

• Tenzing Acquisition, a New York-based blank check company seeking a business in India, filed for as $50 million IPO. The firm plans to sell 40 million units priced at $10 apiece. Rahul Nayar and Parag Saxena lead the firm. Maxim Group is underwriter. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “TZACU.” Read more.

• Arlo Technologies, a San Jose, Calif-based security camera firm spinning out of Netgear, said it plans to raise $194 million in an IPO of 10.2 million shares priced between $18 to $20. The firm posted $6.6 million in income on $370.7 million in revenue for 2017. BofA Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank, and Guggenheim Securities are underwriters. It plans to list on the NYSE as “ARLO.” Read more.

• Sonos, a Santa Barbara, Calif.-based wireless speaker maker, said it plans to raise $250 million in an IPO on $13.9 million shares priced between $17 to $19. It posted loss of $14.2 million on revenue of $992.5 million in the year ending Sept. 2017. KKR (25.7% pre-offering), Index Ventures (13%), and former CEO/co-founder John Macfarlane (12.9%) back the firm. Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Allen & Company, RBC Capital Markets, Jefferies, and KKR are underwriters. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “SONO.” Read more.

• Liquidia Technologies, a Morrisville, N.C.-based maker of pulmonary arterial hypertension therapies, plans to raise $50 million in an IPO of 4.54 million shares priced between $10 to $12. The firm posted revenue of $7.3 million in 2017. Jefferies and Cowen are bookrunners. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “LQDA.” Read more.

EXITS

• Onex Corp agreed to acquire KidsFoundation Holdings BV, a Netherlands-based childcare services provider, in partnership with existing management. Financial terms weren't disclosed. The seller was H.I.G. Capital.

• Graycliff Partners LP sold Skandia Inc, a Davis Junction, Ill.-based manufacturer of aircraft interior products, to TransDigm Group Inc for $84 million.

• The Riverside Co acquired a majority of Abracon, a Spicewood, Texas-based provider of passive and electromechanical timing, synchronization, power, connectivity and radio frequency solutions. Financial terms weren't disclosed. Evergreen Pacific Partners was the seller.

FIRMS + FUNDS

• Sun Capital Partners, a Boca Raton, Fla.-based private equity firm, is seeking to raise $2.2 billion for is seventh fund, according to an SEC filing.

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Polina Marinova produces Term Sheet, and Lucinda Shen compiles the IPO news. Send deal announcements to Polina here and IPO news to Lucinda here.