The Daily Stack is a daily market insight newsletter by PrivCo, a private market intelligence platform. Read our previous insights.
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In the last week of 2020, we look back on the events and major activities of each quarter, with today’s issue covering the second quarter. April to June was a time of change globally. Aside from the biggest shift in history towards racial equality that sparked from the US but ignited the entire world’s support, it was also a time for the adoption of face masks and social distancing.
Worldwide coronavirus cases hit 10 million+ in this quarter and face masks, including how to make one on your own became a new normal. The cases in the U.S. topped 2.6 million.
The Black Lives Matter movement erupted. The police-involved killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor became the fuel to a global uprising towards police brutality and racial injustice that spread across the world.
Murder hornets were spotted in Washington State for the first time but its news disappeared as quickly as they came.
SpaceX launched two NASA astronauts towards the International Space Station and is the first time in history for a commercial aerospace company to do so. The company has since received numerous funding.
Although in-person ceremonies were canceled, virtual graduations were held throughout the month of June in replacement.
Throughout the three months, cities and states struggled with quarantine and shutdown restrictions. By the end of the quarter, many cities attempted to move back to a more ‘normal’ state with outdoor dining and the opening up of gyms, salons, and more.
To coop with stay-at-home orders, working out shifted to working “in.” If you haven’t read our report yet, take some time to read about companies that have benefited from the at-home fitness movement. Read here.
Despite a new normal, PrivCo recorded over 1300 funding rounds in this quarter in the U.S. with many capital funding rounds by hard-hit businesses such as those by Macy’s and United Airlines. Other notable funding rounds include Waymo, Stripe, and Airbnb.
We also recorded over 750 M&As notably Lululemon acquiring Mirror, Amazon of Zoox, Facebook of Giphy, and Just Eat Takeaway of Grubhub.