At the height of the popularity of flash sales sites, Fab.com was one of the hottest startups. Investors poured $336 million into it and its valuation skyrocketed to $1 billion. But in the end, it was acquired by PCH International for an estimated $15 million-$50 million. >>>
According to market reports, the healthcare costs in the United States grew 5% annually over the past ten year period to $3.2 trillion in 2015. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expects the healthcare costs to continue to grow at 6% annually through 2024. Of the $3.2 trillion spend in the industry, the US federal government estimates that inaccurate provider claim submissions ranged from 3%-10%. Cotiviti Holdings is hoping to reduce this inaccuracy through its analytical engine.
At one time, the flash sales sector was a favorite with investors. We saw the valuation of several companies like Groupon, Gilt Groupe, LivingSocial, and Zulily skyrocket. But as the sector got washed in funding, companies stopped delivering on hyper growth. Investors fled from the scene and the companies collapsed. Gilt Groupe was acquired by Hudson Bay for a quarter of its estimated value at its peak. >>>
After raising an enormous amount of money over a decade, Mode Media, formerly Glam Media, finally gave up fighting the uphill battle of trying to run a vertical ad network and content platform that could be scaled while being profitable and relevant. >>>
Smartwatch maker Pebble was one of the most heavily funded startups on crowdfunding platform Kickstarter. It grew rapidly, but could not sustain its hyper growth pressures. Fitbit acquired it recently for its software assets and it does not plan to continue with its products. >>>
Over the past decade, online clothing sales have ballooned and Nasty Gal and its founder Sophia Amoruso had managed to build a big brand and fan following among millennials. However, the company filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2016. >>>
According to a recent report published by online real estate firm Zillow, the new year 2017 is expected to set a new stage of the post-recession housing recovery with deceleration expected in home price growth. However, Zillow expects more millennials to become homeowners, thus driving home ownership rates in 2017. Billion Dollar Unicorn club member Opendoor Labs is helping to simplify the process of home ownership in the country. >>>
Uber has become the poster child of the sharing economy. But according to VBProfiles, the sharing economy has received $15 billion in funding, giving rise to several unicorns. Private jet booking app JetSmarter is the latest to fly into the Billion Dollar Unicorn Club. >>>
According to a report from CBInsights, funding in construction tech has grown over five times from 2010 to $254 million in 2015. There are over 30 startups in this space, leveraging mobile and the cloud to facilitate construction design, team collaboration, and project site management. Procore is one such construction tech startup that has just joined the Billion Dollar Unicorn Club. >>>
Oracle has spent more than $10 billion this year on nine acquisitions this year. More than five of them, including the $9.3 billion acquisition of NetSuite, are focused on its cloud strategy. In its recent quarter, it reported a stellar quarter for its cloud business, which for the first time surpassed the $1 billion milestone. >>>