As we close out 2021 and look forward to all 2022 has in store, the team at PIUS is grateful for the growth we have experienced over the past 12 months. From new carriers to new and renewed clients, new and bolstered partnerships to new hires and promotions, PIUS has experienced the type of steady progress growth-stage companies hope for.
Educating on Insurance to Raise Capital
We’ve had an especially busy fourth quarter, and PIUS was happy to partner with the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) and Marsh to present a webinar on, “Raising Capital through Insurance.” PIUS director, Amelia Erickson served as panelist and had the opportunity to discuss PIUS’ offerings and all aspects of funding through insurance to a venture capital audience. We were especially pleased to have long-time client, Mihir Shah, founder and CEO of StorCentric, and Drew Lanza, founding partner of Berkeley Catalyst Fund,join Amelia on the panel.
Superior Insurance Carrier
This October, PIUS made a change that positively impacts every aspect of our business when we entered into a program administration agreement with Great American Insurance Group, making them PIUS’ authorized insurance carrier. Great American holds an A+ rating from AM Best Rating Services, which puts any potential technology company clients at an even greater advantage. When PIUS goes to the markets on a company’s behalf, investors look at the A+ rating of the insurance agency underwriting the loan.
PIUS closed its first deal with Great American shortly after finalizing the partnership, with Adomni securing $20 million to expand its technology platform. But more on that below…
New Hires and Promotions
The PIUS team has grown over the past year, with several exciting new hires and a promotion.
Kevin Wallace joined PIUS as a Managing Director, leading the structured finance team. Kevin previously led the Technology Lending Practice for the New York office of City National Bank, where he established the New York office for City National’s Technology Lending business and has completed hundreds of millions of dollars in technology lending loans. Prior to City National, Kevin worked eight years at Silicon Valley Bank in the Corporate Finance Group and helped establish Silicon Valley Bank’s Life Sciences group in San Diego.
Erwin Gostomski was hired as a Managing Director. Previously, Erwin served as Vice President and Relationship Manager within the Technology Banking group at City National Bank, where he was focused on business development, structuring, underwriting, and portfolio management. Over the course of his career, Erwin has focused on investing in debt and equity securities, with a focus on senior and junior credit and equity in the lower/middle markets and technology sectors.
Keleigh Stender joined PIUS as a Director, joining us after several years at City National Bank, where she served as Vice President, Credit Officer in their Technology & Venture Capital practice. With more than 15 years’ experience in the financial services industry, Keleigh has worked as commercial credit analyst to loan underwriter at leading financial institutions, including Silicon Valley Bank, East West Bank, and The Mechanics Bank.
Finally, Amelia Erickson was promoted from Senior Analyst to Director. One of our first employees, Amelia has been with PIUS since 2017 and has been instrumental in dozens of intellectual property transactions. With her holistic approach to analyzing technology companies, Amelia evaluates the intellectual property and technology, as well as the company’s financial position, investors, business model, and market share. We are incredibly proud to see Amelia step into this new role.
Technology Companies Financed
Of course, PIUS worked with several growing technology companies over the course of the year to help them secure affordable, non-dilutive financing to provide working capital to scale their businesses.
We kicked the year off right by helping Blast Motion secure $25 million in January, along with placing agent, Tribal Capital. Through PIUS’ CLip Notes program, PIUS wraps its proprietary IP Residual Value Insurance policy around a private placement bond, issued by Blast Motion. We look forward to seeing Blast Motion expand its innovative wearable sports analysis technology with the $25 million in funding.
In February, PIUS once again worked alongside Tribal Capital to secure $15 million in growth capital for C3 Nano, a developer of solution-based, transparent conductive inks and films as direct replacements for indium tin oxide.
In July, PIUS facilitated the placement of $35 million via corporate bond on behalf of Uniquify, Inc, a fabless System-on-Chip (SoC) product company. Uniquify offers SoC design expertise, integration, and manufacturing services to leading semiconductor and system companies worldwide. The company will use the capital to support its continued growth and innovation.
In November, PIUS secured $20 million in funding via private placement bond for Adomni, an online platform that enables marketers to easily and transparently build and launch digital out of home (DOOH) advertising campaigns. The bond will provide the company with working capital, and the deal also includes an accordion feature, providing Adomni the option to increase the amount to $45 million.
Earlier this month, PIUS secured $45 million in funding for Dragonfly Energy, an industry-leading battery storage technology company that produces deep cycle lithium-ion batteries and develops solid-state lithium-ion battery technologies. Stifel served as the lending institution and brought the funding opportunity to PIUS, having recognized Dragonfly Energy’s potential for success.
Looking to 2022
In these final weeks and days of 2021, our team is busier than ever, working on several exciting new deals to accompany the new year. We look forward to sharing those with you soon. Until then, wishing you all the best for a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2022.