With Uber, Lyft, and Pinterest now public companies, all eyes are on other billion-dollar businesses in the IPO pipeline.
2019-05-16
According to a new report from CB Insights , early-stage tech investing firms SV Angel and Y Combinator are poised to make a hefty return if either Airbnb or Instacart go public in 2019 . The two firms are early investors in both companies, which are each valued well above $1 billion.
The CB Insights report lays out which investors have staked early claims in the elite group of "unicorns" — startups valued by private investors at $1 billion or more — with SV Angel coming out on top with 18 unicorn feathers in its proverbial cap. SV Angel's stake in Airbnb is not publicly disclosed, but according to Pitchbook data , the firm would have bought shares at $0.42 each in the round, meaning it's likely to turn a big profit if and when Airbnb IPOs.
Read More: Check out the pitch deck that Sandbox VR used to get Andreessen Horowitz as lead investor in a $68 million round, and watch the investors discuss the pitch
Notable startup incubator Y Combinator is a close second with 16 early bets. Startups that graduate from Y Combinator's program receive $150,000 in exchange for a 7% stake in the company . At current valuations, Y Combinator's stake in Airbnb is worth around $2.6 billion, and its stake in Instacart is worth $532 million.
Here are the top venture capital firms with the most early-stage investments in billion-dollar businesses, according to CB Insights:
Read the full report from CB Insights.
Andreessen Horowitz tied for fourth place with 11 early bets on startups now valued at or above $1 billion.
Marc Andreessen, co-founder and partner of Andreessen Horowitz.
REUTERS/Fred Prouser
CB Insights doesn't share the firm's largest investments, but Andreessen Horowitz was a major early investor in startups like:
Airbnb, most recently valued at $29.3 billion.
Stripe, most recently valued at $22.5 billion.
Coinbase, most recently valued at $8 billion.
Tied for fourth place is Sequoia, one of Silicon Valley’s oldest firms, which made early bets on Airbnb, Instacart, and DoorDash.
Sequoia Capital partner Michael Moritz
John Phillips/Getty
Top early stage investments:
Airbnb, seed and Series A. Most recent valuation: $29.3 billion Instacart, Series A. Most recent valuation: $7.6 billion DoorDash, Series A. Most recent valuation: $7.1 billion
Also tied for fourth is IDG Capital, an international investment firm that has early stakes in U.S. and Chinese companies.
Hugo Shong, co-chairman of IDG Capital
Greg Baker / AFP
Top early stage investments:
SenseTime, Series A. Most recent valuation: $4.5 billion XPeng Motors, Series A. Most recent valuation: $3.65 billion Zoox, Series A. Most recent valuation: $3.2 billion
Sequoia Capital China, the Chinese counterpart to the Silicon Valley firm, comes in third with early bets on Chinese startups.
Sequoia Capital China founder Neil Shen
Reuters/Bobby Yip
Top early stage investments:
Chehaoduo, Series A. Most recent valuation: $9 billion VIPKID, Series A. Most recent valuation: $3 billion Ucommune, Series A. Most recent valuation: $3 billion
Y Combinator comes in second with early investments in companies that graduated from its accelerator program.
Getty Images
Top early stage investments:
Airbnb, seed-stage. Most recent valuation: $29.3 billion Instacart, seed-stage. Most recent valuation: $7.6 billion Rappi, seed-stage. Most recent valuation: $1 billion
SV Angel has made the most early investments, including in Airbnb and Instacart.
SV Angel founder Ron Conway
Brian Ach/Getty
Top early-stage startups investments:
Airbnb, Series A. Most recent valuation: $29.3 billion Instacart, Series A. Most recent valuation: $7.6 billion OpenDoor Labs, Series A. Most recent valuation: $3.8 billion
