TL;DR

Omada Health and Circle IPO; Yale sells $2.5B in VC/PE stakes; L'Oréal acquires Medik8 for €1B.

Highlights

• L'Oréal to acquire UK skincare brand Medik8 from Inflexion for ~€1B; expands dermocosmetics portfolio 1.
• Omada Health prices $150M Nasdaq IPO at $19/share, valuing the digital health company at $1.1B 2.
• Circle, issuer of USDC stablecoin, completes IPO after reaching $30T in transaction volume 3.
• Gemini crypto exchange (Winklevoss) confidentially files for U.S. IPO following Circle’s public debut 5.
• Yale University finalizing $2.5B secondary sale of PE/VC stakes at <10% discount; buyers include Lexington and HarbourVest 4.
• Metaplanet launches $5.4B equity raise in Japan to acquire up to 210,000 Bitcoin by 2027 7.
• China’s AI/biotech sectors accelerate: Manus raises $75M, Genspark hits 5M users, AstraZeneca invests $2.5B in Beijing R&D 8.
• Amazon to invest over $5B in new AWS data center region in Taiwan, expanding Asia cloud footprint 13.
• India grants Starlink a unified license, enabling SpaceX to offer satellite internet in the country 14.
• Deel and Rippling escalate legal dispute with new espionage and racketeering allegations; HR tech sector under scrutiny 9.
• UK FCA proposes lifting ban on retail crypto ETNs, opening consultation through July 31 11.
• OpenAI appeals court order to preserve deleted ChatGPT logs in NYT lawsuit; privacy and compliance issues raised 10.
• Yuga Labs proposes dissolving ApeCoin DAO and creating ApeCo, ending token-holder governance 12.
• Michaels acquires Joann’s brands after 800 store closures, expands fabric/yarn offerings; terms undisclosed 15.

Commentary

Public market activity remains robust, with Omada Health's IPO pricing at a $1.1B valuation 2 and Circle successfully listing after $30T in USDC volume 3. Both deals, backed by major VCs and institutional investors, signal improved sentiment for late-stage digital health and crypto infrastructure exits 23. Gemini’s confidential IPO filing suggests continued public market demand for digital asset platforms, particularly as regulatory clarity improves 5.

Yale’s $2.5B secondary sale at less than a 10% discount is notable for LPs and GPs, reflecting both the need for liquidity ahead of potential tax changes and a growing market for high-quality secondary venture assets 4. This could set a benchmark for further secondary transactions as distributions from legacy funds remain slow 4.

Strategic M&A continues in consumer and retail, with L'Oréal’s €1B Medik8 acquisition 1 and Michaels’ purchase of Joann’s brands 15. These moves highlight consolidation opportunities for differentiated brands with scale, particularly as market leaders seek to expand product lines and capture share from distressed competitors 115.

Asia’s tech and infrastructure sectors are active: Metaplanet’s $5.4B Bitcoin -focused equity raise is a first for Japan 7, while Amazon ’s $5B AWS investment in Taiwan 13 and India’s approval for Starlink signal ongoing cloud and connectivity expansion 14. In China, significant funding and user growth in AI and biotech—plus AstraZeneca ’s $2.5B R&D commitment—underscore the region’s global ambitions and potential for cross-border deal flow 8.

Legal and regulatory developments remain a watchpoint. The Deel-Rippling litigation highlights operational and reputational risks in high-growth SaaS 9, while OpenAI’s legal battle with the NYT raises data retention and privacy concerns for AI startups 10. The UK FCA’s proposed easing of crypto ETN restrictions 11 and Yuga Labs’ governance overhaul of ApeCoin are further signals of evolving frameworks that could impact both product development and exit strategies 12.