Consumer

Less than three years after raising money at a valuation of up to $1bn, Essential is shutting down after low sales of its alternative Android smartphone.

The Gojek and Sistema-backed cloud kitchen operator is seeking between $100m and $150m at a $1bn valuation, nearly double the valuation it fetched just six months ago.

Affordable e-commerce platform Brandless is closing its doors, having been valued at $500m in a round backed by SoftBank Vision Fund and GV.

Pidilite Industries led a $40m round for Pepperfry that included existing backer Bertelsmann, lifting the furniture retailer's overall funding to $235m.

Wipro Ventures was given an exit from email security software developer Emailage, which was acquired by LexisNexis Risk Solutions. The sizeable exit is part of the wider cybersecurity space, which has received much attention by corporates over the past decade.

Each Friday the Global Corporate Venturing Deal Net rounds up the week’s smaller deals and tracks the emerging companies accessing corporate funds.

SoftBank Vision Fund doubled its participation in the childcare retailer's series E round to $300m, with a further $100m expected early next year.

Grace Beauty Capital was among the investors in a round that lifted the military-grade personal care brand's total funding to almost $20m.

The Target-backed mattress and bedding brand is floating at the bottom of its range, at a valuation of less than half that of its last funding round.

Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners and Rocket Internet contributed to a $13.3m round that will help the deals-focused e-commerce company grow in the US.

Eight months after Grace Beauty-backed Harry’s agreed to an acquisition by Edgewell for $1.37bn, the US antitrust agency has sued to block the deal on competition grounds.