Marc Vartabedian

2 days ago | wsj.com | Marc Vartabedian

Venture-capital firms have struggled to return capital to investors over the past several years with public listings drying up and M&A activity sputtering. A new fund aims to capitalize on this liquidity crunch. Scenic Management, a late-stage, private growth-equity investment manager, is raising a $150 million sophomore fund, doubling down on its strategy to purchase shares of private companies from early-stage venture firms and senior-level employees.

3 days ago | createsend.com | Marc Vartabedian

Good day. The battered financial technology sector could see better days ahead, according to one report. “Like a boxer on the ropes, fintech companies have endured a valuation pummeling that has likely tested the resolve of many founders,” private-shares trading platform Forge Global said in a report this month.

1 week ago | venturecapital.cmail20.com | Marc Vartabedian

Good day. While it’s not game over, the gaming sector has been in a slump. Global deal count in the first quarter was the lowest quarterly figure since the second quarter of 2019, according to a recent report from PitchBook. This underscores investor hesitation while the industry awaits the next platform shift and grapples with a lack of gaming hits to come out of the fast money days of circa 2021.

1 week ago | wsj.com | Marc Vartabedian

Updated June 16, 2025 3:04 pm ET|WSJ ProArtificial intelligence is coming for wildfires. Pano AI, a startup that is using AI to detect wildfires before they explode into massive conflagrations, has raised a $44 million funding round. The San Francisco-based startup says the capital will help it deploy more of its technology in wildfire-prone areas including California and Australia. Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

2 weeks ago | venturecapital.cmail19.com | Marc Vartabedian

Good day. Venture firm Geodesic Capital has raised $250 million for a fund dedicated to strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance at a time when both countries face rising defense and geopolitical challenges in the Asia-Pacific region. The fund, named the Geodesic Alliance Fund, will invest mostly in U.S. early-stage startups whose technology could benefit Japan in national security-related sectors such as artificial intelligence, space, cybersecurity and robotics.