Financial

SoftBank’s Latin America Fund helped prayer app developer Glorify raise $40m at a $250m valuation while decentralised derivatives network Hxro Network secured $34m in a round featuring several corporates.

The crowdfunding service increased its latest round to $84.5m and has formed a joint investment vehicle with Lotte.

SoftBank Vision Fund 2 invested in sneaker marketplace operator Soda at a $336m valuation while university application platform developer CollegeDekho increased its series B round to $35m.

Amber Group led the DEX platform’s latest round, participating together with about 50 investors including Gemini Frontier Fund, Alameda Research and Jane Street Capital.

Goldman Sachs and CLSA were among the investors that provided $63.4m to take the online lending marketplace's total funding to over $83m.

Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis made strategic investments in advanced battery developer Factorial Energy while celluar therapy developer Mana Therapeutics closed its $42m series A round.

Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.

The business invoice lender received series D funding from investors including Allianz X and BNY Mellon at a $1.1bn valuation.

From applications in clinical areas such as diagnostics and drug discovery, to the chemical, manufacturing, retail and automotive sectors, artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have disrupted many traditional industries, opening new frontiers and driving the development of ground-breaking solutions.

AI Q4 2021 report editorial by James Mawson, editor in chief, Global Corporate Venturing

Haptic glove developer HaptX hiked a NetEase and Verizon-backed series A round to $28m while several corporates contributed to home care network Welmo's $18.1m series C round.