IPO: Retail and fintech return to Wall Street with Klarna, Gemini and Pattern Americas After years of slowdown, the I.P.O. market is picking up steam in the U.S.A. This is shown by IPOs of Klarna, Gemini and Pattern in the retail and fintech sectors.
Loyalty: Start-up 10% raises €2.4 million to compete with Joko, Shopmium and iGraal Europe Less than a year after a launch, the start-up specialising in 10% cashback wallets has announced a fundraising of €2.4 million from Speedinvest, Kima Ventures, Fund F, True Capital and Techmind. Several business angels, including Frédéric Halley, are also participating in the round. This fundraising should enable accelerated development of tech platforms and give brands better control over their customer data.
Interview Through the VC lens Frédéric Halley, Sonorcap: “We are going to invest in a company focused on CRM and digital loyalty programmes” Retail tech put to the test. Frédéric and Guillaume Halley, respectively Venture Capital Investor and Carrefour Franchisee, launched Sonorcap, an investment fund specialising in retail technology, with a unique approach: start-up solutions are tested in real-life conditions in stores, in parallel with investment. From AI applied to after-sales service to in-store computer vision, via a future project in CRM and digital loyalty, the two brothers are building a strategy around concrete use cases and international ambitions.
After Dim and Bally, Regent sets sights on Petit Bateau to grow a European portfolio Americas After several years of declining turnover (down by 6% in 3 years) and a net loss that worsened in 2024, Petit Bateau is changing hands. The planned sale to the U.S. investment fund Regent, which is now official, marks a new phase for the iconic children's fashion brand seeking to revive its fortunes.
Malls : Simon Property accelerates data monetisation with Humana, URW continues arbitrage Americas As more Americans visited shopping centres in H1 2025, the sector’s leader Simon Property Group is expanding both data and community engagement with a new partnership with Humana. This gives a new experience for seniors that should translate into additional sources of revenue.
SMCP returns to growth, ending legal battle Asia On August 11, 2025, SMCP (including Sandro and Maje) announced the end of a legal battle from 2021.…
Danish grocer Salling accelerates VC investments, following in the footsteps of Vinted Europe Eager to better source retail innovation and accelerate time to market, Danish grocer Salling (2024 turnover: €9.7 billion,…
Al-Futtaim acquires a 49.95% stake in Cenomi Retail for US$667 millions Africa, Middle East On July 20, Saudi operator Cenomi Retail (2024 revenue: 635 million dollars, up by 4% year-on-year) announced an agreement to sell 49.95% of capital to the Emirati group Al-Futtaim (revenue confidential).…
Central Retail invests US$1.4 billion in omnichannel strategy in Thailand and Vietnam Asia On June 24, the subsidiary of Thai conglomerate Central Group, Central Retail Corporation (revenue for the year ended March 2025: US$7.3 billion,…
Blackstone acquires Kolkata’s South City Mall for US$377 million Asia In India, with the buyout of developer South City Project on June 17, the US investment fund Blackstone has acquired Kolkata’s South City Mall.…
