Startups

Sector focus: Media

Medical device producer NeoTract has agreed to be acquired by Teleflex for $1.1bn, giving an exit to Johnson & Johnson, a notable deal in a field where corporate commitments have been on the rise.

Following on from successes, such as eLong in China, and Expedia's former CEO Dara has a storied track record in using tools to keep its global edge.

Vision Fund's $2.5bn investment in Flipkart last week, together with its huge bets on Fanatics and Roivant, could indicate where it plans to invest in the longer term.

It is, as these deals in the past week show, a remarkable time in sports and content as the change in distribution routes also affects the $40bn advertising industry.

The pharmaceutical company's acquisition of Novartis-backed IFM Therapeutics, consisting of $300m upfront and up to $2bn in milestone payments, is its fourth purchase of a CVC-backed company in under four years.

More value and focus should be on the investors scaling up the business rather than those coming up with the idea and helping the entrepreneur set up a business.

Existing investors SoftBank and Didi Chuxing invested $2bn at a $6bn post-money valuation, and Grab aims to use the money to expand its services far beyond ride hailing.

Uber's operations in four Eastern European countries will merge with Yandex Taxi in a deal that could signify it plans to take a less direct, CVC-influenced approach to some markets.

University corner: venture has increasingly become the tip of the innovation spear