Startups Weekly: Mixed messages from venture capital

Summary

Startups Weekly — your weekly digest of the latest in the fast-paced startup world. This week, despite mixed signals, Figma made headlines by filing for an IPO after a founder-driven struggle against market volatility. Meanwhile, U.K.-based startups laged behind their Silicon Valley peers in fundraising, while Smashing shut down after underperforming growth. In VCs, some are banking on new strategies to create liquidity ahead of potentially brighter days.

Additional Summaries

Welcome to Startups Weekly — your weekly recap of everything you can’t miss from the world of startups. New funding rounds, but founders frustrated over lack of capital. According to Dealroom, British startups raised just £16.2 billion (approximately $21.5 billion) last year compared to the approximate $73.8 billion (£65 billion) raised in the U.S.Smashed: Smashing, an AI-powered reading curation app launched last June by Goodreads’ founder Otis Chandler, shut down due to disappointing growth. Growing: Marshmallow, a British insurance startup, raised $90 million in equity and debt at a valuation slightly above $2 billion. Bullish: Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund completed the raise of its third growth fund.

Startups this week show mixed signals with IPOs underway but exits lagging; U.K. founders struggle to bridge funding gaps compared to Silicon Valley. Smashing shuts down due to slow growth, while BluSmart's service is suspended after an Indian regulatory investigation. Founders Fund raises $4.6 billion as venture capital optimism returns, alongside significant funding rounds for Marshmallow and Hammerspace at elevated valuations.